Children are sacred.
Industrialized countries understand that universal edict and defend children -- no matter their circumstances.
The countries that enslave children and prostitute, exploit and press them into soldier-duty are routinely considered less than civilized and unfit to join the power ranks of the developed world.
So, it's rather ironic that the leadership in this country can still hold their heads up high while they blatantly follow the paths of those countries we purposely shun for not being smart enough to safeguard their most precious asset -- the children.
(Source: University of Michigan)
It doesn't matter that the children are undocumented or immigrants. They are children with potential to grow into accomplished adults, able to achieve great things.
But the actions of the federal government and local leaders, who are on a path to cleanse cities of undocumented immigrants, are also in the process of washing away a reservoir of great potential for future leaders, scientists, writers, entertainers, etc. -- but most of all, contributing citizens. All over the nation, immigrant children, of all ages, have felt the ramifications of what it means to not be born in this country.
Undocumented college-age students spent as much time watching C-Span as MTV over the last two weeks as they waited for the Senate to vote on the Dream Act amendment that was to be added to the Defense Reauthorization Bill now under debate in the Senate.
Yet, like with the Immigration reform bill, the Senate couldn't come to an agreement. So the Dream Act amendment has been put on hold.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid promised to bring the measure back for a vote by mid-November. In the meantime, students who were ready to go to school are having to put their lives on hold -- yet again. No one can blame them if they're frustrated and feel like life is passing them by as they watch their friends whom they went to high school with enjoy their college years.
In Irving, Texas, school officials are reporting that, so far this week, about 90 immigrant chlidren have been pulled from the public schools by their parents.
Police have stepped up their efforts to deport undocumented immigrants so much that parents are worried that their children will be targeted in the schools.
In the neighboring suburb of Farmers Branch, city attorneys, on behalf of the City Council, have asked the local school district to supply them with the name and address of every child living in the city and enrolled in the public schools.
From a city council that earlier this year passed punitive measures meant to drive out undocumented immigrants from their suburb (like not allowing undocumented immigrants to rent apartments), no one trusts the motives for such an unusual request, and the City Council isn't explaining why they want it either.
Yet, the biggest blow this week came in the form of the Democrat's handling of the State Children's Health Insurance Program or SCHIP. Though Bush vetoed it and congressional Democrats blasted the President for depriving thousands of low-income Latino children of needed health coverage, the Democrats had earlier disappointed legal immigrant children by dropping the Immigrant Children's Health Improvement Act or ICHIA.
It didn't matter to the Democrats that Republicans were supporting this one measure that dealt fairly with immigrant children; they dropped it without explaining why.
Some have speculated it's because the term "immigrant" was in the name of the provision, and the term has such a negative connotation these days that politicians want to distance themselves as far from it as possible.
Maybe so, but distancing ourselves away from something or someone is also a way to abandon that issue or person.
As a country, we can't afford to abandon any child.
Why?
Because there's potential in their destiny, and that's worth caring about every time.
If a college-aged American citizen wants to attend college out of state the tuition doubles.
The Dream Act would have given an illegal a tuition break and he/she would pay in-state tuition regardless of the state they chose to attend college. This is simply unfair.
I'm tired of my tax dollars being spent on free medical care, free education, free food, free housing and on and on for people who are here illegally.
There are US citizens that don't have food, that don't have medical care and that don't have a place to live. There are over 25,000 people in the Missouri Ozark area that go to bed hungry at night and there are American childred in this region that have to live in tents in the woods. After all of the citizens and invited immigrants are properly cared for, then if there is money left we can extend a helping hand to others. But we must take care of our own people first.
Mexico has become extremely good at dumping poor, ignorant people in the US so that Mexico doesn't have to feed and clothe them. Enough already.
Seems fair.
Seems to me if we concentrated our effort on our infrastructure there would be more than enough employment and revenue for everyone. But, apparently I'm missing something because all I hear is how expensive everything is and how we can't afford it. Rebuilding our infrastructure takes labor, paid labor equals taxes, taxes equals revenue, revenue equals the money necessary to provide for not only our citizens but for those who are here desperately trying to make a better life for themselves and their children.
If you had been born in the morass that is Mexico I certainly hope you would do everything you could, including crossing the border illegally, so that your children would have half a chance at a decent life.
Changing policy so that our country is a help rather than a hindrance to the people of Mexico and rebuilding our nation so that all who live here reap the rewards makes sense. But, of course making sense is the sure way to ruin for our nation. Or so my 'leaders' tell me.
I can't imagine being tired of footing the bill for any child. I also wonder if you are aware of the lack of workers in Washington state for the apple harvest. Are you aware of the 'ghost' social security taxes and income taxes paid by illegal immigrants?
The result of all those illegals going back to their home countries would be devastating to our local economy. America is paying the price for bigoted and culturally xenophobic immigration, foreign and economic policies. You reap what you sow. And babies are paying the price.
think the 'lets sneak 10 million people under
the wire, and see if anyone really notices' gambit was going to last for, anyway? There's
an agenda here, I call it the 'what-cha gonna DO about it' immigration plan,the REASON
for having some kind of immigration system is
to at least vainly TRY to prevent the United States from going the way of several countries
that've gone ahead and exhausted their resources such as fresh drinking water etc.
That dollar's paper-thin, and sinking fast against the Euro...there's 6.6 billion people
in the world, and, guess what, they can't all
move to the United States. Well, they could
try, but the Con Me would fold up like a cheap
kite about the time the first billion got here...it might do that anyway...THEN what are
they going to do?
Admit it, you've got stock in an HMO that stands to profit by your giveaway tax plan...
We need the labor, they need the jobs, and if we could just pry our politicians away from their mirrors, there are several possible ideas. I suggested one in "Opening the Borders," (Level 4 Press, 2007) and there are at least ten others.
We also need to stomp on the mindless hate of folks who are different, whether of color, language or land of birth. But they speak Spanish! Yeah, and in parts of New York, they speak Russian, or Ukranian, or Serbian, or Arabic, or -- fill in the blank -- and so what? What's important is not how they talk, but how they contribute and how we make certain that their children, have the opportunity to contribute still more.
Larry Blasko
As for the DREAM Act, it would let foreign citizens take college discounts from U.S. citizens.
In other words, if it passed some U.S. citizens would not be able to go to college because their discount was given to a foreign citizen who's here illegally.
As a country, deeply in debt and deeply taxed, we cannot afford to accept more responsibility. Mexico's rich and powerful are too greedy to share their wealth with own their people. Mexico has abandoned its people and now we are supposed to pay for their children's education?
We have to take care of our own before we can help anyone else. The children in Appalachia deserve our attention first.
The destiny of Mexicans is in Mexico. Help them get back to Mexico and help them get educational assistance from the Mexican government to one of the many universities and colleges in Mexico.
The National Autonomous University of Mexico is a large public university in Mexico and ranked one of the best. Help these people get back to their country .. help these people save their country.
violent criminals, welfare recipients, prostitutes, drug dealers, depressors of prevailing local wage rates, contributors to global warming and general environmental degradation, telemarketers, etc.
I'm not against LEGAL immigration, but you have to present both sides of the issue. Not all illegal immigrants or children of illegal immigrants are paragons of virtue who will improve our country.