Mayor Rallies Illegal Immigrants

Is it right that an elected official in an American city (Los Angeles) tries to rally illegal immigrants? He seems to be supporting the practice and ignoring the rule of law. It seems as though Mayor Villaraigosa is trying to gain political support, but to what end. Illegal immigrants do not have say in our political system. Also how does it look for illegal immigrants looking to change their status of illegal immigrants to citizen as they burning American Flags?

A Failed State that Threatens the Region

Remnants of European World Dominance

Today Somalia is one of the most troubled nations in the world. It has often been referred to as a “stateless state.” This is because the nation has been in continuous violent civil conflict, where recently 47,000 people have left their homes in the capital of Mogadishu in fear of their lives. Just last week the Islamist insurgents and government troops, in association with Ethiopia troops, battled in the streets killing over 400 civilians.
Somalia is a country whose borders were drawn during the 1884 Berlin Conference where European nations embarked on the Partition of Africa. They drew the borders with no respect to ethnic, religions, or cultural relations of the indigenous populations. As in many countries throughout Africa, this is still a major factor of internal conflict. In Somalia this conflict is boiling over and massive numbers of innocent civilians are being killed and forced from there homes. The AU pledges to aid the government with troops to quell the insurgency but this seems futile as the current government holds little internal sway, as the local warlords battle for control of territory. The current Somalia government seems to care little about the welfare of its citizens and seems to be intent on continuing their war. I believe that this conflict has a direct correlation between the European domination of Africa in the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. This sentiment also holds strong for me in many other nations in Africa such as Nigeria, Sudan, and the Congo.

Washington: We have a problem here!

So all the H1-B visa's for 2008 are already filled -- in fact the 65,000 cap was overwhelmed by over 150,000 applicants. What do you do now? The H1-B visa is for "skilled-workers" -- in the computer industry, etc., -- I had an H1-B visa to work in the U.S. before I became a permanent resident and then naturalized citizen. If we obviously have a need for more skilled workers but only have a cap at 65,000 what to do?

ICE (Immigration & Customs Enforcement) is finally doing something right!

This article from the Washington Post details have 3 human rights abusers - from Peru, Argentina, and Cuba have recently been arrested by ICE for human rights violations. They are going to be tried and probably deported back to their country to face justice. Kudos finally for ICE.

Becoming Illegal

This is a letter from a small town Iowa resident to Senator Tom Harkin. He pretty much is complaining about a bill that he believes makes it more advantageous to be an illegal immigrant than to be a citizen. It seems like this man does not have all the information, but it is still interesting to see how people in different areas of the country react to immigration.

Sorry, but since my dad emailed it to me I didn't have a link so I just attached it below.

Becoming Illegal

(Actual letter from an Iowa resident and sent to his senator)

The Honorable Tom Harkin
731 Hart Senate Office Building
Phone (202) 224 3254
Washington DC , 20510

Dear Senator Harkin,

As a native Iowan and excellent customer of the Internal Revenue Service, I am writing to ask for your assistance. I have contacted
the Department of Homeland Security in an effort to determine the process for becoming an illegal alien and they referred me to you.

My primary reason for wishing to change my status from U.S. Citizen to illegal alien stems from the bill which was recently passed by the Senate and for which you voted. If my understanding of this bill's provisions is accurate, as an illegal alien who has been in the United States for five years, all I need to do to become a citizen is to pay a $2,000 fine and income taxes for three of the last five years. I know a good deal when I see one and I am anxious to get the process started before everyone figures it out.

Simply put, those of us who have been here legally have had to pay taxes every year so I'm excited about the prospect of avoiding two years of taxes in return for paying a $2,000 fine. Is there any way that I can apply to be illegal retroactively? This would yield an excellent result for me and my family because we paid heavy taxes in 2004 and 2005.

Additionally, as an illegal alien I could begin using the local emergency room as my primary health care provider. Once I have stopped paying premiums for medical insurance, my accountant figures I could save almost $10,000 a year.

Another benefit in gaining illegal status would be that my daughter would receive preferential treatment relative to her law school applications, as well as "in-state" tuition rates for many colleges throughout the United States for my son.

Lastly, I understand that illegal status would relieve me of the burden of renewing my driver's license and making those burdensome car insurance premiums. This is very important to me given that I still have college age children driving my car.

If you would provide me with an outline of the process to become illegal (retroactively if possible) and copies of the necessary forms, I would be most appreciative.

Thank you for your assistance.

A “Path to Citizenship” for Current Illegal Aliens?

I came across this discussion between a Professor of Political Science and a former Justice Department official. Apart from discussing many alternatives that can be used to deal with illegal immigrants, the debate focuses on the issue of granting amnesty to approximately 12 million illegal immigrants. President Bush has already suggested a temporary foreign worker program, but do you think that granting amnesty to all illegal immigrants would be too much? Should we learn from the fiscal deficits that the American government has borne over the years due to the amnesty granted to illegal workers? Do you think that granting amnesty at this point in time will attract more illegal immigrants in the United States? What side of the fence are you on?

300 Darfuris in the Midwest

300 Darfuris are now living in the Midwest. They have given up the fast-paced life on the East coast for the agricultural work in the Midwest. The article itself is interesting as it answers what life for these people is like once they came to the United States. However, the bigger question is: what now?

Overpopulation?

The Zimbabwe Government is juggling the task of overpopulation. The ‘informal’ shacks and markets had been burned or destroyed. The government said it would try and compensate for the people who no longer have homes, however, what if people do not want to leave. They have made a life in this area and want to stay, now they are being thrown out. What do you all think?