Clarity

I was recently walking on a street in downtown Boston when I was approached by a young woman in apparent Somali dress.. She had an older woman trailing her. She addressed the older woman as a mistress addresses a servant. The older woman seemed to cower under her orders in their native language. "Where is free housing?" she barked in my direction with an arrogance which surprised me. "Free housing! Where?" she became more demanding. I think she thought me a dullard. I thought and realized the Boston Housing Authority's offices are located one block from where we stood. I gave her directions. She set off with a fast and determined gait. The older woman struggled to keep up, several yards behind her.

 

There can be no clarity of purpose where equivocation and self-delusion reign. This is proven by governments daily. The current immigration debate in Congress is an example. The drag of illegal and poorly managed immigration on the quality of life in the U.S. for its taxpayers is ignored in favor of the benefits of cheap and controllable labor for contractors and some industries. Congress, charged with maintaining the quality of life for U.S. citizens, has been bogged down by foggy ideologies on both ends of the political spectrum.

 

Hard data is ignored in favor of emotional arguments about "hard working immigrants" and "family values". The reality is that illegal immigrants degrade salaries for native-born unskilled labor, undermine unions, place a property tax burden on homeowners who absorb the costs of educating their children, engage in a shadow economy which is a breeding ground for criminality, consume large costs in free medical care, etc..

 

By making immigration an emotional issue rather than a legal and scientific issue, Congress fails to do its job at the expense of U.S. citizens. From a legal standpoint, illegal immigration is illegal. It is a form of trespassing. It is a crime which could perhaps be rationalized justly by a political or cultural refugee who cannot navigate the immigration system to save his/her life. From a scientific point of view, it costs communities a great deal of money. It may make or save money for contractors and industries, but the tax laws ensure that the money that goes to profits from illegal immigration does not go to pay for the civil costs in education, law enforcement and health care.

 

The fluffy figures presented by academic economists in the pockets of lobbyists representing those who profit from illegal immigration which show that illegal immigrants bring profit to the country as a whole are misleading. A simple drive through areas predominantly occupied by illegal immigrants will open the eyes of the deluded. I grew up in this kind of community, which became impoverished by providing services to illegal immigrants from a working-class taxable population.

 

The job of government, like the job of living a conscientious life, should be based in science and clear decisions based on objective data. Those who are studying this data in the immigration debate are those who suggest increased legal immigration for those who bring value to American life and the end of immigration for those who simply cross our borders with disregard for law or fiscal responsibility to this nation and its communities.