Immigration Reform and You!!!

With the recent issues with immigration regulation in Arizona, the topic has been on the tips of every wagging tongue in the nation. One side yells that the illegal immigrants are taking American jobs, while the other begs to please take these wonderful jobs, because American workers are lazy and spoiled. Well, you are both wrong. And you are both right. Ready for this one? I may just tick a few of you off with this....

Let me put this in a pure market kind of perspective. The United States has labor laws, and we are all well aware of them. We are regulated by federal minimum wage laws, child labor laws, OSHA laws and regulations and humanitarian laws, all designed to keep us from becoming a nation like China that feeds on the poor while the rich remain rich. It helps to prevent worker exploitation.

When an illegal immigrant takes a position, whether it is in a factory or a farm (and I stress the term ILLEGAL), these laws are no longer a factor. The "employer" no longer has to worry about maintaining safe work environments, paying fair wages or even exploiting children. Someone who is here illegally will not report them. This ensures that these employers won't have to hire the "expensive" American worker who has the audacity to expect to receive humane treatment. In this respect, potential American jobs are being replaced by sweat shop labor by those who refuse to object to unfair labor practices. In this respect, yes, American jobs are lost.

On the other side, Americans have become overly complacent, and yes, LAZY. I have been on the Unemployment payroll since mid December, and let me tell you, if I had so much as an interview, I would be jumping out the door to take the job. That's why it infuriates me to watch people I know (who shall remain nameless) sit on the unemployment roll not even trying because they feel that after all their years of work that they are entitled to a "break". Listen folks, we are damned lucky to have a system in place to take care of us when the economy takes a dip. That being said, this does not mean you have the "right" to sit around and run through your unemployment not even attempting to locate work, or being "selective" about your work. In many other countries, you would be starving now. This is the reason that people like myself, who are actually pounding the pavement looking for any work at all, have to go through the insane pressure of watching the senate play with our only income, deciding whether or not we are worthy of help. In this respect, we, the American workers, are making our own beds in which we must eventually lie.

So here is the simple reform in my opinion: Shut down the employers that hire illegal workers. No questions. No fines. You are no longer in business. Period. Enforce the labor laws-all of them. If they are enforced in every respect, the illegal worker loses their appeal. Reform the policies that have people trying to get into the country waiting for 5 to 10 years to do so. Make sure they are all legal so that they pay taxes and contribute to society. Make them citizens-with all the privileges AND responsibilities that go with it.  RESPECT those who have gone through the crazy system to get here legally, and end the profiling. They are here, and they freaking earned it. That's more than I can say for many who were actually born here.