Comments on “Border crossed”

Screw the illegals and screw you. You break the law, you take your chances. I hope you are arrested and prosecuted to the full extent of the law. It’s time to stop babying these people; a good place to start is by removing all bilingual signage. Option 1 is English. There is no Option 2. Every other generation of immigrants, including my mother’s, made their way here without special treatment. Let this generation do the same. Detain all illegals and deport them immediately.

I must admit easing another human’s suffering should be paramount in our day to day life, but when we aid and abet illegal immigration we only encourage others to follow in their paths, those paths we know are full of tragedy. So, as an unintended consequence, are you just creating a circumstance that more immigrants then you save, actually suffer greater problems. You are only adding to the social welfare and crime problems of this country when these illegal immigrants, not all but a large percentage, move out to other parts of the country. You no longer take any responsibility for these helpless souls do you? No, you simply feel all full of humanity while many of these people struggle to survive as they are ill-equipped to make their way in this country. They become fodder for predators at the very least. Think about it. You are committing a crime!

Sir/Madam:
This from someone who wants to become a lawyer? Aiding and abetting in the commission of a federal crime? No wonder states like Texas and Arizona and New Mexico and their municipalities are going broke. This is nothing to praise. These illegals come to this country mostly for the benefits that they do not get wherever they are from. Too many are a net drain on state and local governments. This young person should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. It seems that where we are going is only conservatives need to live up the law, not members of designated liberal victim groups.
Dan Flatley, GA&S ’89
Canton MA

Well, I just noticed these comments (I’m the author of the article).

I don’t have the time or inclination to answer all of your charges, some of which I’ve already discussed at length in the article.

In response to Pat Peick: I have never been in the business of “saving” “helpless souls” aka immigrants. I feel fairly strongly that no, or virtually no immigrants make the decision to come to the US based on the fact that Annunciation House exists.

Most undocumented immigrants I have met are extremely resilient people, and most come to US to work their butts off. True, many are exploited to a greater or lessor extent. But the vast majority find better lives, materially speaking, than what they have left in their home countries. Their “paths full of tragedy” do not originate in the United States.

As I discuss in the article, a tremendous amount of suffering and exploitation is a normal part of the process of getting to the US, for most undocumented immigrants. That exploitation continues as they become, or in many cases (again see the article) continue to be grist for the US consumerist/capitalist mill.

That is how our system works, and while I do not see it changing anytime soon, the best way to dramatically lessen the suffering and exploitation of immigrants is to offer those that wish to work the right to come and do so in a dignified manner, and to offer those that have been living here in secrecy and busting their butts, a way to come out of the shadows.

Of course, one of the greatest tragedies of migration is the separation of families and the inability of able-bodied workers to provide for their families in their home countries. The process of this migration strengthens our economy and diversifies our culture while at the same time vitiating the culture and family stability of the home countries. There is no easy answer.

In response to Dan Flatley: I reject the idea that undocumented immigrants are a “drain” on society; to the contrary, to speak purely in terms of economics, they serve to shore up vital sectors of our economy, keep prices on vital goods and services down, and pay many millions of dollars into the social security fund that they will never see.

Of course, as Catholics, we should not think purely in economic (or legal) terms, and I absolutely reject the idea that we may tacitly invite a class of people into our county to do our dirtiest work, and then treat them as a caste of untouchables as manifest in some of the comments above.