Robert H. Bickmeyer, Troy, MI — Guest Editorial

Remove the incentives

Many contend, “It is impossible to deport all of the 12 million illegal immigrants. We may as well legalize them.” Using that logic, it’s impossible to stop all rapes, so we may as well legalize rape. Both arguments are equally silly. If something’s illegal, you do your best to minimize it, even lf you cannot wipe it out.

Harsh laws penalizing employers of illegals would put many of them out of work and tend to send some back to their country. Many could be arrested for violating our laws and transported back across the border. Admittedly, a small percentage of the 12 million would thus be sent home, but a strong message would be sent to others in their homeland.

Meanwhile, we prevent further infiltrations of our border in every way we can — increase our Border Patrol, build walls and/or fences, rotate National Guard units, whatever. In 2005 Border Patrol officials nabbed 577,418 illegals on the Arizona side of the border and 14,323 were non-Mexicans. Of those, 407 came from countries known to harbor terrorists. What better reasons to more tightly secure our borders for the security of our nation.

Those who argue that we are all immigrants or descendants of immigrants should know that legal immigrants “pass muster.” They are interviewed, investigated and often, after years of waiting, are accepted into this great country. We do the best we can to screen out those with criminal records or illness and to issue visas to professionals — doctors, lawyers, engineers and people with exceptional abilities who would benefit the United States. The immigration law lists 31 reasons for barring an alien from entering the United States. In 1921 Congress passed a quota law, limiting the number of immigrants. It has always been recognized that an open border is detrimental to our nation.

I am weary of almost daily reports of unemployment and other reports of illegal immigrants working for low wages that Americans aren’t interested in. The Associated Press recently reported illegal immigrants make up 5% of U.S. workers. The following day they reported the national rate of unemployment is 4.7%. Theoretically, using our unemployed to do the jobs performed by illegals would solve both problems.

It is time we enact laws that require people who are too proud to work for low wages, but not too proud to accept welfare or unemployment checks, to work.

In 1991, Michigan’s Gov. John Engler tightened a few screws in our welfare system. When healthy, single adults were taken off the dole, there was a flood of complaints. One newspaper quoted a lady, “My friend is being stripped of self respect. She will be reduced to washing windows.” My heart bled for her, especially when I remembered my mother cleaning another lady’s house and, on her knees, scrubbing linoleum floors during the Depression. I washed dishes in a hot kitchen for 50¢ an hour. Sadly, this woman who was too proud to wash windows wasn’t too proud to accept a monthly handout from her friends and neighbors.

The welfare system needs a thorough overhauling. Tough laws and requirements for welfare eligibility must be implemented and trained investigators hired to enforce them.

We must have compassion for the truly needy and tough love for the lazy. Forcing people to work, who are too “proud” to take menial jobs, would be a boon to the taxpayers who support them and minimize the incentives for illegal immigrants to cross our borders.