I agree with Rudey. In fact, I just happened to be reading Fast Food Nation last night and got to some important facts about that. ConAgra, one of the biggest food suppliers in the country, basically blackmailed the state of Nebraska into giving them huge tax breaks. The state finally gave in, because they didn't want ConAgra to leave the state. One deal was that the executives would only have to pay income tax on their first $7,000 income each year! It was also to the point where for each job that ConAgra created, the taxpayers in NE were subsidizing that position from $18,000 to $23,000 per year. Another large food provider, IBP also benefitted from this, but in the end, even that kind of tax breaks wasn't enough for them. They moved their HQ to SD, where there is no corporate income tax.

What does this have to do with this thread? Well, I personally feel that the posters on this thread have some underlying hatred for the illegals being here and, possibly, for them doing jobs that legal residents and citizens could/would do. Maybe, maybe not. But what you need to know is that they come here because the corporations want to hire them and the corporations do not want to hire the average American for this position. Quite the opposite of what another poster said, it's not as if jobs would "open up" if illegals were deported. In fact, these powerful corporations would never allow that to happen. They do not WANT to hire the average joe, and if there is anyone to be angry about for the presence of illegals, it’s these corporations. To bring illegals here, corporations put Spanish language ads on radio stations in Mexico about job openings, and even go down to border towns to tempt illegals across promising them food, decent living conditions and work. One company took illegals up to Minnesota and dropped them off at a homeless shelter. Not only did the tax payers end up paying for these people (for the short time they were there) but the illegals were even pissed, because they were promised apartments by the corporation.

A lot of the things we perceive as problems with illegals are actually things these corporations perceive as benefits. High turnover? Good, because they don’t have to give them benefits or vacation time unless they stay for a year, so they actually encourage turnover. Poor working conditions that cause injuries save time and money for the corporation. No health insurance. More savings. So, if you are really against illegals being here, I suggest you work against the corporations that provide incentive and means for the illegals to come here. Without these corporations providing these incentives, many would not come as illegals.

And who are these corporations? You say you’ve never heard of ConAgra? Yes, you have. They own the following brands: Hunt’s, Armour, La Choy, Country Pride, Swiss Miss, Orville Redenbacher, Knott’s Berry Farm, Hebrew National, Healthy Choice, Reddi-Wip and Tase o’ Sea to name a few. So, if you are really serious about getting illegals out of “our” jobs and out of America, boycott these brands.

I just think it’s unfair to blame illegals for coming when mega-corporations in our own country are trying to get them here. When we are internally at odds, it’s hard to present a united front against illegal immigrants. I’m sure the corporations are happy that people like the posters here blame the illegals and not them, and don’t know the real story behind their coming.

interesting perspective godfrey...

Godfrey, I read that book as well. I actually cried during some of it. So sad. It's scary how much goes on that we don't know about. I'll tell you this much : I don't eat fast food any longer. I"m sure you don't either, now :)
I also agree with Rudey...if we're going to after the due taxes of illegals we also need to nab the other folks cheating our government of tax money. Especially since these folks are citizens and enjoy even more priveleges than any illegal could (i.e. protection from the U.S. embassies around the world while travelling, social security, etc).
I have the solution for illegal immigration...put Blockbuster in charge of immigration law enforcement. Those bastards are all over you if your movie is even one day late...think what that could do for people who have overstayed their visas. :D

Not.
I am very pro-immigration, as long it is done through proper chanels.
Illegal is illegal. Without the rule of law, society would disintegrate. Citing other injustices is irrelevant, as two wrongs simply don't make a right.

*LOL* You ain't lying on that! Shoot Blockbuster could handle a lot of our nation's problems :D (find Bin Laden, tax evaders, etc.).

Exactly. The wrong of these corporations purposely bringing illegal immigrants into this country does not make a right. I also am disgusted with these corporations that purposely circumvent our USNS regulations in order to get cheaper labor. It contributes to the decline of our neighborhoods and degrades our immigration policies and procedures. These corporations should be held responsible for this widespread behavior

I have no problem with holding corporate executives responsible for criminal behavior. Lock 'em up, and send 'em to a "Federal Pound Me In The Ass Prison." And send the illegals back to wherever they came from. The law is the law. If you don't like the law, lobby to change it, or better yet, run for Congress.

Well, then, we agree!

GRRRRRRRRRR
 

Damn you Godfrey!
Damn you for agreeing with me!
Damn you straight to hell!!!
Do you hear me, straight to hell!!!

Yet, don't we all remember the little boy who's mother died trying to make their way from Cuba? Now THAT's a case where my heart cries out for us to save him. Yet, Janet Reno sent in ARMED MILITIA to tear him from his family and send him back home to Castro. It was a very sad story.:(

Reno looks hideous too. I think that if she looked beautiful every guy in the country would have supported that action but since she looks like a linebacker, I doubt even Clinton would support her.

Fast Food Nation is a silly book written by a silly washed up man. Regardless, the issue of taxation isn't what most people care about. It's the fact that these people make you uncomfortable. They sit next to you and make you uncomfortable. They play their music and it makes you uncomfortable.

Here's the catch 22: You don't want to have to spend money on their education and health costs but then again you don't want to have to spend money patrolling the streets when they're not in school.

-Rudey
--I think that anyone that sits to me and wears uncomfortable fabrics just makes me uncomfortable.

Bush plan grants rights to illegal workers
 

Bush plan grants rights to illegal workers
Elisabeth Bumiller, New York Times


WASHINGTON, D.C. -- President Bush will announce a sweeping expansion of the nation's immigration laws today that could give legal status to millions of undocumented workers in the United States, senior administration officials said Tuesday.

Bush will ask Congress to approve changes to immigration policy, arguing that they would make the country safer by giving officials a better idea of who is crossing the border, bolster the economy by fulfilling employers' needs and protect illegal workers' rights.

Bush's proposal effectively amounts to an amnesty program for illegal immigrants with jobs in the United States.

Under his plan, an undocumented worker could apply for temporary worker status in the United States for an unspecified number of years, with all the employee benefits, such as minimum wage and due process, accorded to those legally employed.

Workers who are approved would be permitted to travel freely between the United States and their home countries, the officials said, and would also be permitted to apply for a green card granting permanent residency in the United States.

Tim Counts, Minnesota's Department of Homeland Security spokesman, said Tuesday that his office has not received any information about the president's proposal on the local level and could not comment specifically on it.

More green cards

Administration officials said Bush would also propose increasing the number of green cards issued each year, which is now about 140,000.

In a nod to conservatives who oppose any reward to those who enter the United States illegally, Bush is including in his plan incentives -- such as the promise of retirement benefits and the ability to open tax savings accounts -- to entice the workers to return to their home countries.

Under Bush's proposals, workers in other countries could also apply for guest worker status in the United States, provided there was no American to take the job.

Bush also is expected to broadly discuss giving workers from some countries expanded access to Social Security benefits, sources familiar with the plan said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Bush's proposal, one administration official said, would "match willing workers with willing employers" and "promote compassion" by fixing what one called "a broken system."

Helping Hispanics

The president's proposals were designed to appeal to Hispanic groups, a critical constituency that the White House has targeted as Bush seeks re-election this year. The proposals will also be embraced by President Vicente Fox of Mexico, who has been lobbying for them for the past three years.

Bush is to meet with Fox at an economic summit next week in Monterrey, Mexico, where immigration will be a significant part of the agenda and Bush's proposals are likely to become a major focus.

But Bush's plans are likely face a tough fight in Congress, where conservative Republicans have said they consider programs like the one the president is proposing nothing more than amnesty for people who have broken the law.

Bush's proposal is closely modeled on legislation introduced last summer by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Rep. Jim Kolbe and Rep. Jeff Flake, also Arizona Republicans.

The issue of undocumented workers is a major issue in the state.

"We are ecstatic that they are addressing this," Flake said. "We've maintained all along that you have to deal with both sides of the issue -- those who want to come to the country and those who are here now. We're very happy to see a realistic approach. We deal with it daily, and we have to have a rational policy.'

Immigrant advocacy groups say the president's proposal, known as a "temporary worker program" and outlined by senior administration officials Tuesday night, falls short of comprehensive reform. On the other hand, groups wanting to curb immigration say the president's proposal for a three-year temporary worker plan, rewards foreign workers who broke the law when they entered the United States.

"It's a two-step amnesty," said Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, which advocates strict immigration rules.

"It's not what the folks on the left want, which is a quick green card, but it is an amnesty nonetheless," he said. "It legalizes illegal immigrants and is going to increase the number of green cards so that people will be able to move through the system faster."

"Extremely disappointing," said Cecilia Munoz, vice president for policy at the National Council of La Raza, a Hispanic immigrant advocacy group.

"It's a serious backtracking to where the president was two years ago when the administration was prepared to provide some kind of path to legal status," she said. "They're proposing to invite people to be guest workers without providing any meaningful opportunity to remain in the United States to become legal permanent residents. It appears to be all about rewarding employers who have been hiring undocumented immigrants while offering almost nothing to the workers themselves."

Jennifer Prestholdt, deputy director of Minnesota Advocates for Human Rights, said Tuesday she has guarded optimism about Bush's proposal.

"Any kind of serious and comprehensive reform of our immigration policy would be welcomed," she said. "As long as it recognizes that families need to be reunited and it rewards those who have been contributing to our country and their rights."

"It might just be election-year posturing" on Bush's behalf, Prestholdt said.

Staff writer Terry Collins and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

I'm unsure how I feel about this.
Awarding temporary status will probably make many illegals documented, which is more than we have now. We'll always have illegals here, if we can at least get them written down and tracked, well that's a step in the right direction.

I think the idea of minimum wage and other "benefits" awarded to u.s. citizens in an effort to entice them to return to their home countries is bullshit, though...as previously stated in this thread, the majority of illegals don't want to stay here permanently. They're already planning on going back, why do we need to give them further incentive?? I'm sorry but if we're going to give ANY rights/freedoms to illegals, English classes MUST be a priority. Yes, they do the jobs no one else will do....but how in the hell are you going to drive a car when you can't read the f**** road signs??? I'm sorry but speaking English is a HUGE issue w/me.

Why? You work at Value City!

-Rudey