Crossing the border

LET ME SEE IF I GOT THIS RIGHT:

IF YOU CROSS THE NORTH KOREAN BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU GET 12 YEARS HARD LABOR

IF YOU CROSS THE IRANIAN BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU ARE DETAINED INDEFINITELY.

IF YOU CROSS THE AFGHAN BORDER ILLEGALLY, YOU GET SHOT.

IF YOU CROSS THE SAUDI ARABIAN BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU WILL BE JAILED.

IF YOU CROSS THE CHINESE BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU MAY NEVER BE HEARD FROM AGAIN.

IF YOU CROSS THE VENEZUELAN BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU WILL BE BRANDED A SPY AND YOUR FATE WILL BE SEALED.

IF YOU CROSS THE CUBAN BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU WILL BE THROWN INTO POLITICAL PRISON TO ROT.

IF YOU CROSS THE U.S. BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU GET

1 - A JOB,
2 - A DRIVERS LICENSE,
3 - SOCIAL SECURITY CARD,
4 - WELFARE,
5 - FOOD STAMPS,
6 - CREDIT CARDS,
7 - SUBSIDIZED RENT OR A LOAN TO BUY A HOUSE,
8 - FREE EDUCATION,
9 - FREE HEALTH CARE,
10 - A LOBBYIST IN WASHINGTON
11 - BILLIONS OF DOLLARS WORTH OF PUBLIC DOCUMENTS PRINTED IN YOUR LANGUAGE
12 - AND THE RIGHT TO CARRY YOUR COUNTRY'S FLAG WHILE YOU PROTEST THAT YOU DON'T GET ENOUGH RESPECT


I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE I HAD A FIRM
GRASP ON THE SITUATION.

Are WE dumb or what ?????

Would you rather live in North Korea than in the United States? Would you rather live in Iran than here? Or how about Afghanistan or Saudi Arabia or China or Venezuela or Cuba? I would like to think our culture is a little more advanced in our approaches towards humanity than these countries. Each of these countries is extremely hostile and we have been at war with practically all of them at one time or another. I'm not saying we should just let people cross our border illegal and do nothing about it. But to just kill someone on the spot is ludacris. And it's not like we hand these people these benefits as soon as they get passed our guards. I don't think there is a person in this country that would agree that illegal immigrants should receive any of the 12 things you put forth. To say they are handed those things is ridiculous. I agree that they should get none of those things until they are a legal citizen and pay taxes just like everyone else does. But you can't just go around killing anyone you think might be illegal. This country was founded on immigrants and is supposed to be the melting pot of the world where we treat every human being with respect no matter age, gender, race, social class, or intelligence level. Once again, humanity doesn't mean they receive our benefits, it just means we treat them with respect when sending them back to their respective country until they are a legal citizen.

Hi bballer, you make a good observation. I have seen this being passed around on the internet in emails and one has to consider what the point is. It is obviously a comparison of extremes. The message shows that the US has been generous to people who have been in our country illegally while there are those nations that exist today where the consequences are harsh for people who go there illegally. It is doubtful if any of those countries has problems with illegals flooding their border. One could consider that in more civilized countries illegalls are treated more decently, like in the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, etc.

Perhaps the writer of the orginal email wanted to show the extreme to make the point that America is doing to much. I don't think anyone is advocating that in America we adopt the harsh standards of the above listed countries.

How much of the above services the illegals in this contry get I don't know. But there is much evidence that the number is large. There are many illegals in this country that work VERY HARD for the money they earn and they send it home to their families who live in poverty. America is founded on welcoming immigrants. however it is legal immigration that is needed and sending dollars out of America is a loss to everyone.

It would be best if the people who come to this country would instead take what they like about the USA and incorporate it into their country. It would be better for their countries to be open and free and prosperous so that they didnt' have poverty and had to risk their lives coming to the USA. That would be the best solution. Perhaps the people could talk to their leadership and make changes in their own country to better their lives.

This is a little like the children's jingle, "One of these things is not like the others." What happens to illegals in those countries is accurately stated, as far as the world knows. But those countries are ruled by a person in power, whose motive is to retain that power. Outsiders could threaten that power, so they are dealt with harshly so the ruler can stay in power.
The United States is different -- We the People have the power. And we aren't in danger of losing it -- in fact, the more we share it to help create other free countries and prosperity, the better things are all around. Democracies don't attack each other.
Illegal immigration is a tough challenge. But stop and think how it came to be that our borders are so open -- we allowed people to come to our country and boost the labor force, produce prosperity efficiently (ie, for less cost than we produce it ourselves), and help grow our economy. It wasn't until we began to think there were "too many" that it got to be a big issue. No one minded all those dirt road trailer parks housing the people who broke their backs and ruined their health working in the meat packing plants and spending their money on food and clothing in our stores...until there got to be "too many."
Let's call it like it is -- larceny to set up a system that allowed it, and larceny that calls foul when it gets to be too good a thing.
As for the money going out of the country -- the more stability there is in other countries, especially our next door neighbor's country, the better for all. Those people produce far more than they send out of the country, and they still spend much of their disposable income in our borders.
There isn't a "make it happen now" solution. It will take a generation to evolve to a new condition, once the objective is set -- it just depends on what that objective is. As for me, I'm in favor of spreading freedom and democracy as we work through things -- that's how we won the cold war and that's how we're going to insure our future security.
Oh, and these people are human beings, after all. They want nothing more than what we want -- a chance to pursue liberty and happiness. I think there's enough to go around.

This is a suspicious photo, I think. These people are all carrying American flags, respectfully (not upside down); there is no flag of another nation being displayed, it's the only readable sign. Moreover, it is not even an attitude that illegals have. I'm thinking this is Photoshopped. It just has no corroborating images in the same picture. I'm not willing to jump to any conclusions on this. It's "convenient" but not much more.

I lived in Arizona for 3 years before moving back to my homeland of MN... I don't think you realize how bad illegal immigration is until you have illegals swimming in your pool when you come home from work. Or how about an officer being shot just a couple miles from your home by illegal immigrants carrying weapons and drugs? It's scary business. I beg everyone that believes they should be allowed here to go live it and see if it doesn't sway your thoughts...