Illegal Immigration

[Amarok]

[Jackie]

I live in the "sanctuary state" of California which refuses to aid ICE in apprehending people who are here illegally and actually seems to encourage people to come here illegally. I'm totally in favor of allowing immigration into the US and see our liberal immigration quotas as a positive.  What I don't understand is how we can exist as a nation if we don't have control over who enters the country.  I have a question for those who agree with the state of California and are against prosecuting those who have entered the country illegally or preventing undocumented people from crossing into the country as they wish.  What is your rationale and why is this good for us?

1. Entering without papers is not treated by the government like a violent felonies.

2. Most violations of staying are from overstaying visas.

3. Most migrants ARE NOT VIOLENT.

4. The majority of people in American's prisons ARE people born here with legal status.

5. Put yourself in your fellow human's shoes. If you are fleeing famine, violence and especially war, and especially if you have kids, you are not out to commit crimes, you are out to survive, that is what life does, including humans.

I am all for kicking violent people out, I am not for treating non violent humans like garbage. I am not for sending people, especially kids back to where they risk death.

There is a humanitarian crisis in Central America causing innocent people to flee. But as far as drugs, most of the opiate crisis is caused by big pharma over prescribing leading the addict buy pills from others, and or turning to heroin. But even with illegal drugs, those are not coming in across rivers, deserts or mountain ranges as a majority. The majority of the time the drugs are coming in hidden in cars, pickups and 18 wheelers hidden, but coming in through established ports. 

I have TWO Hispanic families living on both sides of me. They have lived next to me for the past 10 years, I have not had one lick of problems with them. They have kids. I am not going to rat them out or even want them deported regardless of their status. 

If you vilify people based on lack of papers, even if they are not violent, that will actually increase crime, not decrease it, but cause they will fear police and be less likely to report crime. Allowing them to live without fear will reduce crime and allow them to be more likely to report those whom should be deported whom are violent.

Just on topography the wall is a waste of money not to mention you can climb over them, or dig under them, and again, most migrants try to enter at established ports. The myth of the dangerous desert crossing is just that. It is far more likely that people will hide in the backs of trailer trucks or in car trunks. 
And boats can and are used to cross the ocean around borders too.

The POTUS is simply pandering to hate and fear  and nothing  more. Keeping violent people out is one thing, basing that on the bigoted assumption that most entering are violent and basing that on race and nationality is simply false, and inhumane regardless.

[Amarok]

I see that many of you are confusing border control with wanting to stop immigration.

 Often the two go hand in hand 

It's a way that those who are against controlling immigration use to cloud the issue. 

And it's very rarely  wrong 

 stated in my OP that I am in favor of our liberal immigration quotas and think that it is a positive for America

That's good 

Another they use is to label anyone who is in favor of border control is a racist.

  And it's very rarely  wrong 

They're tactics to shift the attention away from the real issues. 

Or what they are doing 

If some stranger came to the door of your house, said they were a refugee from another country and wanted to move in with you would you just open up the door and let him in? 

A country is not a house 

You might even be willing to take him in, but not without first knowing who he is and what his real situation is first.

A country is not a house and it's none of my business 

If you want to know what uncontrolled immigration can do to a civilization just as the Native Americansand they'll tell you.

Comparing imperialist colonization to what's going on at the US Mexican border is absurd

---

I live in the "sanctuary state" of California which refuses to aid ICE in apprehending people who are here illegally and actually seems to encourage people to come here illegally.

And ?

I'm totally in favor of allowing immigration into the US and see our liberal immigration quotas as a positive.

That's nice 

  What I don't understand is how we can exist as a nation if we don't have control over who enters the country. 

The assumption here is a nation is defined by border control 

I have a question for those who agree with the state of California and are against prosecuting those who have entered the country illegally or preventing undocumented people from crossing into the country as they wish.  What is your rationale and why is this good for us?

Better they are here then were they came from and it's not about us .

[Jane2d]

[Natachan]

I live in the "sanctuary state" of California which refuses to aid ICE in apprehending people who are here illegally and actually seems to encourage people to come here illegally. I'm totally in favor of allowing immigration into the US and see our liberal immigration quotas as a positive.  What I don't understand is how we can exist as a nation if we don't have control over who enters the country.  I have a question for those who agree with the state of California and are against prosecuting those who have entered the country illegally or preventing undocumented people from crossing into the country as they wish.  What is your rationale and why is this good for us?

I’m trying to find a way to phrase this that will clearly convey what I think about this. So if I ramble, I apologize.

Our immigration system is deliberately complicated, and simply crossing our southern border at a port of entry is prohibitively difficult for non-US citizens. This is deliberate. People who wish to come in are forced to come through deserts, rivers, and mountains. Thousands die. And these deaths are seen as a positive by policymakers. They see it as a deterrent. Then when the migrants get here they are faced with horrible working conditions, blocked from social services, and mat be separated from their families. And these people STILL want to come here. They are that desperate.

No amount of cracking down on these communities is going to stop the migration. What states like California are doing is wise, IMO. If these communities feel safe calling the cops, then they will be safer. If they don’t, then criminals will exploit these people and hide in these communities.

If stopping this was actually the goal there’s a much easier and more effective way to do it. They come here because there’s work. Well, what if there wasn’t? Companies hire illegals because they’re cheap, they can’t complain about working conditions, and they can’t really negotiate. So let’s say instead of going after desperate people, we fine the companies that hire illegals. Hard. Let’s say $5k per illegal employee per day.

(Incidentally the reason we don’t do this is because businesses don’t want this. It gives American workers more bargaining power and certain administrations didn’t like that)

My bet is if you did this a lot of illegal immigrants would choose to leave or begin applying for legal status (which we really should make a path for). I would also bet that businesses would start pushing hard for comprehensive immigration reform.

[Amarok]

[Aoi Magi]

[Lek]

I see that many of you are confusing border control with wanting to stop immigration.

 Often the two go hand in hand 

It's a way that those who are against controlling immigration use to cloud the issue. 

And it's very rarely  wrong 

 stated in my OP that I am in favor of our liberal immigration quotas and think that it is a positive for America

That's good 

Another they use is to label anyone who is in favor of border control is a racist.

  And it's very rarely  wrong 

They're tactics to shift the attention away from the real issues. 

Or what they are doing 

If some stranger came to the door of your house, said they were a refugee from another country and wanted to move in with you would you just open up the door and let him in? 

A country is not a house 

You might even be willing to take him in, but not without first knowing who he is and what his real situation is first.

A country is not a house and it's none of my business 

If you want to know what uncontrolled immigration can do to a civilization just as the Native Americansand they'll tell you.

Comparing imperialist colonization to what's going on at the US Mexican border is absurd

---

I live in the "sanctuary state" of California which refuses to aid ICE in apprehending people who are here illegally and actually seems to encourage people to come here illegally.

And ?

I'm totally in favor of allowing immigration into the US and see our liberal immigration quotas as a positive.

That's nice 

  What I don't understand is how we can exist as a nation if we don't have control over who enters the country. 

The assumption here is a nation is defined by border control 

I have a question for those who agree with the state of California and are against prosecuting those who have entered the country illegally or preventing undocumented people from crossing into the country as they wish.  What is your rationale and why is this good for us?

Better they are here then were they came from and it's not about us .

Ok. Let me get this straight. If you believe in controlling entry through the borders that means that you are against immigration and you're a racist to boot. A house is different than a country, so there is no need to verify whether or not a person is a terrorist, drug smuggler, human trafficker, felon, etc. before allowing them into the country. It's really not our business anyway. Plus they cause no danger to us because they are not imperialist colonizers. And finally, it's all about them and not about us. Phooey!

[LadyForCamus]

Undocumented immigrants are less likely to commit crime than native-born citizens. If those in power really care about crime prevention, maybe they should refocus their attention on building up impoverished communities, and looking with a fair eye at the wealth distribution in this country.

[Mermaid]

Undocumented immigrants are less likely to commit crime than native-born citizens.  If those in power really care about crime prevention, maybe they should refocus their attention on building up impoverished communities, and looking with a fair eye at the wealth distribution in this country.

oh you and your facts.