December 14, 2004
It's The Border, Stupid
Since I just said in email that illegal immigration is a hot button issue for me, this article by William F. Buckley was a timely find:
.... Asa Hutchinson, an official in the Department of Homeland Security, recently cut down a Border Patrol initiative to catch illegal aliens. The reason? It was catching too many illegal aliens.Posted by Ithildin at December 14, 2004 3:50 PM | PROCURE FINE OLD WORLD ABSINTHEWe have the piquant problem of what to do with illegals. It approaches the problem of what to do with drinkers during Prohibition. You couldn't put them all in jail because there weren't enough jails. Illegals remain largely undisturbed, and the main reason for it isn't U.S. sentimentality toward aspirant Americans. It is the market contribution to the dilemma: There are jobs only illegals are willing to perform, e.g. serving as nannies for Bernard Kerik. Much of the menial and agricultural work done in the southwestern states is done by illegals.
The result of the combined forces — the need for cheap labor, and the passion to avoid any appearance of ethnic or religious discrimination — is an open frontier. Yes, a few illegals are deported. These should get a parade, signaling such distinction as attaches to the infrequency of their apprehension. And perhaps a parade when they come through the next time, often through the same gap in the southwestern frontier.
