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"Should I hurry over to the US now so as to take advantage of President Bush's amnesty?"
"Lets Roll" > wrote in message ink.net... > http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20060717/cm_csm/ycollins > By May Akabogu-Collins Mon Jul 17, 4:00 AM ET > VISTA, CALIF. - My cycling buddy, Julie, and I had just ridden up the Torrey > Pines hills in San Diego, and were resting under the shade of the pine trees > overlooking the beach when a small group of Mexicans strolled past. > > > Julie shifted and cleared her throat, "Tell me, as an economist, what do you > think about legalizing illegals?" > > I chuckled, stretched my legs, and told her about a call I received at 3 > a.m. that day. > > It was my cousin, Ifeoma, calling from Nigeria. She determined a long time > ago to deliver all her babies in the US so they can all have American > citizenship - "in the land of milk and honey," as she calls it. She's now > three months pregnant with her first child. Her plan had been to arrive on a > visitor's visa when her baby was almost due, drop the baby on US soil, and > then go back. But now her plans have changed; having heard that the US > Senate may grant amnesty to illegal aliens, she's in a hurry to arrive. And > that was really the purpose of her early morning call. > > "Should I hurry over to the US now so as to take advantage of President > Bush's amnesty?" > > I sat up on the bed to explain the facts. I said that even if the Senate > bill passes into law (which is a big "if"), it won't benefit her since > "amnesty" would apply only to those who'd been in the US for five years. > > But Ifeoma was undaunted: > "In the meanwhile I can apply for welfare for my American baby and use my > talent to supplement my income and who knows ... in a few years, American > Congress may grant another Amnesty Act." > > I informed her that it would be hard to get a job in America as an illegal > alien. That didn't discourage her, either. "I can always braid hair." > Julie, my cycling friend, nodded and listened with religious attentiveness, > and when I paused, she said, "Interesting. What makes her think there'd be > another amnesty?" From there, the economics professor in me rose and took > over. > > The theory of rational expectations states that rational people tend to use > all available information, as well as past experiences, in forming > expectations about future government action. In this way, they learn to > anticipate government policy changes and to act accordingly. > > Let's apply this hypothesis to the current immigration debate. If Congress > legalizes illegal aliens - without first securing the borders - economists > who believe in rational expectations would argue that the policy would be > ineffective. This is because potential illegal aliens (such as Ifeoma), > would see what Congress is doing and raise their expectation of future > legalization. Ifeoma's brother had arrived on a visitor's visa but stayed > beyond, and then he benefited from the 1986 amnesty; her sister arrived in > America six years ago on a visitor's visa and would benefit if Congress has > its way. "That's why Ifeoma believes there'd be another amnesty," I ended. > Unless, of course, the Senate acts differently this time around. > > "So you don't support legalization?" Julie asked. > Oh yes, I do, I replied. It'd be impractical to round them all up and put > them in the already congested jails or send them home (and then let in guest > workers). They'd go underground, and the IRS would still lose tax revenues, > while at the same time, the illegal aliens would continue to overtax our > schools, hospitals, and welfare systems. > > "But isn't it unfair to those other aliens who are playing by the rules?" > I reminded her about the landowner in Matthew 20:1-16, who had paid all the > day laborers the same amount regardless of their time of arrival for work. > When the early arrivals, who had "borne the burden and heat of the day," > complained that the landowner gave the same amount of money to those who > came late, the landowner replied (in the New International Version): "Are > you envious because I'm generous?" > > "Okay; be that as it may," Julie said, "What's the solution to illegal > immigration into the US?" > An anti-illegal immigration campaign by Congress, I said, is more effective > if it is seen as "credible." Such a campaign would be credible if Congress > convinces people that it will "stick to its guns" this time around by > tightening borders first and sending a strong message to potential illegal > aliens such as my cousin, Ifeoma. > I'm not even sure that a fence is what it takes to successfully tighten the > borders. It'd be much like an escaped prisoner who's had it behind bars and > would chance climbing an electric fence rather than submit to one more day > of inhuman conditions in jail. The poor Mexican would rather die trying to > climb a border fence than sit by one more day watching his kids starve. But > chances are, given how porous the borders currently are, he'd survive. He'd > come over, get a job under the table, and send money back to Mexico to feed > his kids. > > Until we close all existing loopholes, illegal immigration will continue to > be a reality of American life with the potential for terrorists slipping > into the country, to boot. Until that time, these scenarios will continue to > play out with rational- expectations predictability: Legalize illegal aliens > every once in a while. More illegals immigrate. And Congress debates. Does anyone still support this government? Hank http://www.fairus.org/ Federated Americans for Immigration Reform > > |
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