[notjustamom]

Originally Posted by Buggsbunnie2006

We need to remember that every American has immigrant ancestors. Our founding fathers came from far and wide, they did not just grow out of the Ameican soil.

Spoken like someone who has forgotten that Native Americans were here first, before immigrants arrived and took over shamelessly.

And I don't think anyone on this thread has suggested that immigration halt completely in this country, only that it continue legally.

[JViello]

Originally Posted by TiZZ

Go meet a struggling immigrant family and tell them that.

Funny you say that as I come from one. I'm a first generation American. Hahaha! LOL

But since we are on the "Mexican" theme, I'll just mention that ONE of my many Latino friends named Diego recently moved here from Oaxaca Mexico with his mother, wife and brother. They opened a *small* Mexican restaurant in Manchester on main street. (Those in the area know which one I'm talking about).

He and his family are here legally and they all bust their hump to make a daily living more than you could imagine. I would and do go out of my way to help them out any way I can.

We've become pretty tight over the last year as I watched him struggle with the town government over rediculous things which almost put him out of business several times - I even did some work for him for free to help him out and being a member the local chamber am helping him get acclimated with the local business crowd.

Diego is just as upset about illegal immigration as I am. Yes, we talk about it.

I suggest YOU live by your own words before preaching to me about it. You really have no idea what you are talking about. In fact it's "your type" I watch in his restaurant who don't mind being served by them, then try and strike up a conversation in broken Spanish to "connect" or leave a "big tip" to appease their own guilt about whatever. Diego just rolls his eyes and answers back in his best English. You really want to connect? DO SOMETHING. Go introduce yourself. Ask if you can help them with anything if you know they are recent immigrants. Make a friend.

P.S. In the spirit of helping Diego out, if anyone wants REAL HOME COOKED Mexican food in the Hartford area...head over to El Mariachi Loco on Main Street Manchester. The food is cooked by him and his mother. Best Mexican I've had in years. Ask for Diego and tell him his friend Jay sent you over. (And ask for his Chipotle Enchiladas that he makes for me which are not on the menu...out of this world! )

[Srib]

didn't even know that restaurant was there. We'll have to check it out sometime. Is it kid friendly? Do they have high chairs or booster seats? We love mexican, but find smaller restaurants often don't have them so we sometimes cart our own. thanks

[nish2006]

As far as I know, all posts in this thread have been by US citizens (so far). Here's one from a legal "non-resident alien", in this country on a work visa. I would generally avoid entering such a discussion, but after renting an apt in Danbury for 6 months last year (a mile from Main Street), I felt the need to state that to me personally, the issues mentioned by the original poster are real and not easily dismissed by the time worn "America-has-been-built-on-immigration" sentiment. Nations benefit & flourish from immigration when prospective immigrants embrace & enrich its social, cultural & economic status. If there's no "give" and only "take", it needs to involve a welfare state, which the US was clearly not, the last time I checked.

My post has nothing to do with the rights of men & women to come to the US & seek to better their lives, legally or otherwise. I'm quite happy to leave that subject to people far better informed than me, who can be (and frequently are) very vocal about it. I am a lot more concerned with the attitudes prospective immigrants bring with them, since following the law seems to be very low on some such peoples' lists these days.

As an Asian, it has frequently been pointed out to me that many first generation Asian immigrants to this country lead their lives in a bubble, observing their own traditions and keeping America at arms length. I never dispute that, even though it may be unfair... instead, my response is, "As long as these people are obeying the law, all you have to do is wait until their children grow up, and almost all of them will invariably blend into this racial & cultural melting pot". Every day, Asian second generation kids consciously become become happily & proudly American, and would not have it any other way. Most importantly, barring a few exceptions, respect for the law seems to come with the territory. After living in five countries, I have yet to see it ingrained among the population as much as it is here... notwithstanding any crime statistics thrown at me.

This is why the situation involving illlegal immigration in towns like Danbury bothers me... since it shows every sign of people being more inclined to take advantage of a situation, rather than becoming part of and contributing to a society that will in turn benefit their own future generations. My wife, who is Scottish, has seen such things go downhill first-hand : she now refuses to live in any large city in the UK, after spending ten years in London watching the overall law & order, medical, legal and educational standards fall drastically, due to a proven and documented influx of illegal immigrants and people falsely claiming refugee status, who have critically overloaded the system. The result? A building backlash among white voters, giving rise to more seats in parliament for right-wing representatives swearing to rid Britain of these "pests". The debates will continue for years, but who could lose out in the short term? Guys like me who might be denied work visas, I guess.

Enough said. For my own part, I go where my work takes me, while I'm healthy enough to do it. I have been fortunate to live in various parts of the world, each of which has given me much more that I could possibly offer in return. Obeying the law is therefore the least I can do.

Have a great year.

[reason180]

Originally Posted by sliver203

Wow, lots of responses.


User Reason - how can you compare the Italians and Irish to the immigrants in Danbury? The immigrants in Danbury are NOT legal, the Irish and Italian were. That is not at all fair and as a first generation Italian, I'm personally offended by your comparison.

First, I hope you enjoy your vacation in Florida.

I'm not trying to offend anyone, I'm just stating the facts. Between 1850 and 1920 there was a massive amount of immigrants to this country, especially from Italy and Ireland. The Italians and Irish came to America to escape the poverty they were subjected to in their own countries. Most of them entered America through Ellis Island where only 2% of them were turned back because they had obvious physical maladies. That was the only criteria for this "legal" immigration, there were no background checks or document checks.

When they arrived they lived in overcrowded, dirty housing tenements. The men waited on street corners hoping to get picked to work as day laborers in constructions sites or factories. Their children assimilated to American culture and moved up the social ladder. This is American history. My point is what makes the illegal immigrants of today so different?

[beautymarked]

Originally Posted by reason180

They pay sales tax.

If they rent an apartment then part of that rent money they pay to the landlord will be used to pay property taxes.

If they gave a fake social security number to their employer then the employer will use that number to submit the appropriate payroll taxes to the federal and state government.

If their employer pays them off the books then it is the EMPLOYERS failure to pay taxes. It is strange that nobody ever mentions how the employers don't pay taxes.

Wether or not taxes are paid, the schools and hospitals are being abused by people who are not citizens of this country.

[beautymarked]

Originally Posted by notjustamom

Spoken like someone who has forgotten that Native Americans were here first, before immigrants arrived and took over shamelessly.

And I don't think anyone on this thread has suggested that immigration halt completely in this country, only that it continue legally.

I have grandparents that came to this country, they went through the legal process became citizens and learned to speak and write english.

[beautymarked]

Originally Posted by notjustamom

Spoken like someone who has forgotten that Native Americans were here first, before immigrants arrived and took over shamelessly.

And I don't think anyone on this thread has suggested that immigration halt completely in this country, only that it continue legally.

NICELY PUT!

[JViello]

Originally Posted by reason180

My point is what makes the illegal immigrants of today so different?

First off, I'm not sure if I agree with your assesment that we had "open borders" back then but I'll pass on that for now.

What's changed?

A few that come to mind would be much smaller global community, the threat of terrorism, the much more prevalant crime culture in todays world...all do not mix well with open borders...North or South.

What country on Earth has no laws regarding people coming into their country? It's absurd to think we can just say "oh well" and not have problems stemming from it.

[beautymarked]

I can only hope and wonder if our "elected" officials spend this much time on this subject.
If anything we need to stay on top of what they are doing to improve immigration.