MyPoV

An Research Thesis for Composition2

By rcjr84 @ wordpress.com

America has always been known as “the great melting pot”. A place so rich and so open everyone was welcome to come in. Back in America’s early days, the doors were wide open for newcomers that the philosophy of protecting the borders has emerged. Since 1819, when America passed its first immigration laws restricting the number of passengers who entered and exited this country via ship, hundreds upon thousands of new laws have been passed in regards to immigration. Today the country is more at risk of terrorist attacks than ever, and yet our country has failed to protect our own national security, by failing to fully protect our borders. With the tense situations we are facing politically around the world, the time to act towards fully protecting our borders is now.

The security of this country has been at risk for many years, mainly due to the open borders we have. With no punishable actions for those who illegally cross the United States border, many people who do get caught just attempt it again and again until they succeed. To top it off, having such an open border allows for larger amounts of drug trafficking along with the possibility that biological or nuclear weapons could be smuggled across successfully. When people enter this country illegally, they pose a great threat not only to our national security, but also add an additional financial burden on society. Considering that nearly two thirds of illegal aliens do not have a high school degree, result in lower paying jobs, and no taxes to pay in. A recent study estimated that in 2002, the United States Government added an additional 10 billion dollar deficit to the federal budget resulting from illegal aliens¹.

With an estimated fifteen million illegal aliens in America in 2006², Congress decided to do something about it and passed a bill that would require Homeland Security to build a seven hundred mile fence across the US-Mexican border. The new fence would contain two security walls with high tech security cameras, motion sensors, and night lighting at hefty price tag of upwards to fifty billion³. With a down payment just over one billion in 2006, President Bush has already cut the project’s funding back by fifty percent. The United States Government is currently in no position to be able to fork out that kind of money, considering that the government has already over spent a trillion dollars under Bush’s Administration alone.

One of the largest stereotypes out there about illegal aliens is they are stealing our jobs. However, from a business stand point if you can keep your production levels the same and be able to cut your labor cost, you are going to attempt to capitalize and gain your profits. The real issue is that our jobs are being lost to people willing to work for food no matter the pay and no mater the job. The blame belongs to the government for not enforcing the law when businesses fail to uphold employment verification, or fail to comply when they are notified of an invalid social security number. If our government stands up, forces the minimum wage higher, and enforces greater penalties for not complying with the verification process, then the ripple effect would be less Americans losing jobs in favor of cheaper labor. Also, the fact that US based companies are allowed to move hundreds of thousands of American jobs oversees is resulting in millions of US dollars leaving with those jobs.

I see only one overall positive solution to this entire mess. First, the government needs to protect the borders of this country no matter the cost. Money should never be an issue when it comes to safety and security. Take NASA for example, whose estimated budget for 2008 is a stunning 17.3 billion dollars, up 1.1 billion from the year before⁴. Honestly, we need to begin focusing on security on a national level instead of an intergalactic level. Increasing the budget of the space program more every year than you put towards protecting you citizens and economy seems insane, and yet the Bush administration is deceasing the budget for national security while they are increasing the budget for space exploration. Let’s just say we cut NASA completely out for 5 years, this would result in an estimated 86 billion that could be easily used to fund the border project. Also, funding such a massive project is going to result in tens of thousands of new temporary jobs being created for Americans. So all the NASA fanatics may be pissed off, but I’m sure they can pull together and gain some private funding.

Now that we have some funding in place, we need to think about protecting these borders with the new fifth branch of military, the Border Agents. I understand this is an elegant group of individuals who already exist, however; they currently are treated more like meter maids than true upholders of our laws⁵. By offering true border security and having trained American solders on the border and at home, we are stepping up our first line of defense with a simple security alarm. Granted this is a massive size alarm, but we are protecting our very existence as a nation and our way of life.

With the borders closed, and security in place the last remaining issue are the illegal aliens already in the country. The only acceptable solution I see is to offer a temporary one year visa for those currently in this country. The reason this is an acceptable solution is because this country was founded on the principle of people migrating towards a better life. As a great grandson to an immigrant, I understand that people are just seeking a better life, however; if the laws we have today were upheld even 100 years ago, the vast majority of the population would have been considered illegal. Since we did nothing a hundred years ago to close the borders and have done nothing yet it’s, un-American to punish a group of people for exploiting our weaknesses. Now of course this temporary one year visa I have talked about would have some restrictions. For starters, the time frame the temporary visa would be offered is open for a maximum of 120 days and would be available to all illegal aliens that can prove residency within the United States. This can be done with a simple pay check stub, utility bill, or even a renter’s contract. With documentation in hand, an illegal alien would be able to get a visa at any government office that issues driver’s licenses. Once issued, the visa gives the immigrant a chance to work in America and work for citizenship. During the one year visa, the immigrant would still be required to follow all current requirements to gain citizenship, additionally the government would intervene and offer free public classes at all local high schools nationwide, and testing held weekly for citizenship.

Failure to comply with the visa’s requirements to gain citizenship within the allotted time would result in deportation and being banned from the United States. Becoming a citizen is fairly simple, and following the laws are as well. Any person living in this country illegally, or on a visa, convicted of more than a mere traffic violation would be subjected to the legal actions as Americans, plus eviction from this country after time served. Time served is referring to the fact that aliens would only be subjected to mandatory jail time at the maximum possible time served for the crime. This may seem like a little over harsh, but in reality we are lending out an open hand to help, and if you can not meet the very minimal requirements to become part of this country or obey our laws you’re also not going to be allowed to earn a pay check and live here.

Understanding the history of this country and the principles behind its existence has helped me to understand a very realistic solution to the political talk of illegal immigration. The reason illegal immigration has gotten way out of hand is because of lax border security. With little protection America has left herself wide open for anything that can get across; from illegal immigrants, to biological weapons. With a vast amount of people exposing our weakness and our government doing nothing more than signing a sugarcoated bill attempting to resolve the issue, America is still wide open and waiting for whatever might make it across. The solution is simple, secure America, protect her borders, before its too late.

©2008 Rcjr84