Immigrant workers give back to U.S. more than they take

Your views: Letter the the Gainesville (GA) Times newspaper
http://www.gainesvilletimes.com/news/st ... 4105.shtml

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LETTER

I hear a lot about the illegal issue. As a nation under God we, I believe, have quit acting like that.

I am 27 years old, have four boys and am married to a Hispanic.

If you could believe or even listen to some of the stories I've heard from illegal immigrants, I believe you'd change your minds about them. They aren't coming here to take our jobs, but the ones no one wants.

Americans have become babies. A lot of our jobs have relocated to other countries because no one will do them for the wages that are offered. If I was broke and needed a job, I would apply at a chicken plant for $8 an hour because I know at the end of the week I'd get paid. The week before, I had nothing.

Have you thought about what would happen if these illegal immigrants decided that it's to hard to live here and went back to their country. I have. I believe the president would try to get them back because Americans have become lazy.

I'm proud of these illegal immigrants coming here. Some had dying parents to help and little brothers or sisters to help put through school. They are hard and determined workers.

Next time you eat corn, cabbage or chicken, thank God for the illegal immigrants. If it wasn't for them, we could perish.

Tammy Jewel Cortes

Gainesville

Originally published Wednesday, July 11, 2007
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Immigrants should make effort to enter U.S. legally
http://www.gainesvilletimes.com/news/st ... 5009.shtml

Your views: response to above letter to the Gainesville Times newspaper
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LETTER

I am responding to the letter of July 11, "Immigrant workers give back to U.S. more than they take." The very headline on the article is untrue. I referenced the site usillegalaliens.com to look at the determined and projected costs of illegal immigration. Now decide for yourself if illegal immigration is truly a benefit to our country.

Mrs. Cortes raises some questions in my mind. Did her husband come to this country legally? Does her husband send part of his earnings back to family? If companies are moving out of this country because of "the wages they offer," then why are illegal immigrants coming to this country to get the jobs that are moving to their countries?

We can debate this issue until death, but the point is are they legal or illegal? There is no fine line to cross between the terms. Our country rewards citizenship to immigrants who have taken the first step to obey our laws and legally apply for citizenship. If they are unwilling to do this, they should be permanently disqualified.

There is a background investigation that goes along with applying for citizenship. If someone is trying to avoid legal immigration, they must be trying to hide a questionable background.

I am not against immigration; I am against illegal immigration. I have some dear Cuban friends who legally immigrated to the United States. They took jobs nobody else wanted, and through hard work and financial management, they were able to build a large commercial company that catered to the Hispanic community. We have discussed the immigration issue to great lengths and his view is very simple: Citizenship is not a right, should not be freely given (via amnesty), or should not be granted because of birth or marriage. It must be earned.

Mrs. Cortes stated that illegal immigrants are "hard and determined workers." If she believes that to be true, then by asking immigrants to apply legally for citizenship should not be a problem. That same hard work and determination should drive them to become legal citizens.

Politicians want amnesty for illegal immigrants because it means more votes. Big business wants them because it means lower wages and little to no benefits (they are disposable labor). Their own countries want them here because it means a cash flow to their economy.

Let's face it: Little income from illegal immigrants stays in this country. Go to the post office on a Friday afternoon or Saturday morning and see them in line to purchase money orders (and a registered letter with international address) to send back home. Visualize this going on all over the country on a weekly basis. The amount of money leaving this country is staggering.

Don't make the immigration issue a debate. Laws are in place to allow for legal citizenship. If immigrants refuse to follow them simply because they are not convenient, then they should not be allowed in this country.

If Mexico and its citizens (and other Latin American countries) refuse to respect our borders and sovereignty, then a border fence is a necessary measure to aide in the enforcement of our immigration laws and is not an issue for debate.

Robert Miller

Ringgold

Originally published Sunday, July 15, 2007