How will this affect Houston in general? (sales, utilities)

[glorplaxy]

Originally Posted by ethanw

I wonder what percentage is legal and illegal?

Texas has always been a seat of Hispanic culture in the Americas, very closely related to Mexico with its strong presence of Spanish, German, and Native blood. Texas music, clothing, and culture in general is really incredibly close to the culture of Northern Mexico. The makeup of our people is also quite similar.

My father's family has lived in Texas for hundreds of years and I know that at least my great grandmother on my mother's side was born in Texas...and my family is Hispanic and we have always considered ourselves such and used the Spanish language. I have never had any blood relatives in my family from Mexico. There are many Hispanics in Texas with similar backgrounds.

Whether you like it or not, drawing an imaginary line (a country border) is not going to take away the fact that Texas and Mexico are closely linked and always have been.

[testmo]

The burden this state is under is from being mismanaged for the past several years. we went away from a balanced budget for an idea perry had that literally everyone with a brain said would leave us in ruins. it has left us in ruins. had nothing to do with the number of illegals in this state... unless its all the illegals that are running the businesses here

and its nice you and your family were given an opportunity to become citizens or live here permanently. people arent allowed to take the same path you did anymore

[rb4browns]

Originally Posted by testmo

The burden this state is under is from being mismanaged for the past several years. we went away from a balanced budget for an idea perry had that literally everyone with a brain said would leave us in ruins. it has left us in ruins. had nothing to do with the number of illegals in this state... unless its all the illegals that are running the businesses here

and its nice you and your family were given an opportunity to become citizens or live here permanently. people arent allowed to take the same path you did anymore

Can you clarify which immigration laws changed and when that you are citing here? I don't think EthanW is someone who came here on a boat through Ellis Island in the 1920's. And of course the added expenses placed on our public services by illegal immigrants is part of the state's budget woes. Why should taxes have to be raised to cover money being spent that shouldn't be to educate, feed, cloth and care for the citizens of other countries who do not have a right to be here in the first place?

[testmo]

dallas morning news had a wonderful article analyzing the same numbers our texas government uses. the expenses added by illegal immigrants on our public services and budget is not significant. take a gander at where the fault is

it is much more difficult to get a permanent visa or just about any visa anymore. they may also do away with birth right citizenship. so i guess his european/asian children could still risk deportation had he come over just a few years from now. not to mention people are hating on immigrants more now than in the past... wouldnt make it so easy

taxes be raised? the state of texas pays the lowest per person in this state than all 49 others. yet we are bottom of the barrel when it comes to education, the elderly, and taking care of children. yet for the longest time was fairly flush with money. wasnt a poverty issue then. priorities? has nothing to do with illegals unless you think the illegals in this state make up some majority of our people

[rb4browns]

Originally Posted by testmo

dallas morning news had a wonderful article analyzing the same numbers our texas government uses. the expenses added by illegal immigrants on our public services and budget is not significant. take a gander at where the fault is

it is much more difficult to get a permanent visa or just about any visa anymore. they may also do away with birth right citizenship. so i guess his european/asian children could still risk deportation had he come over just a few years from now

taxes be raised? the state of texas pays the lowest per person in this state than all 49 others. yet we are bottom of the barrel when it comes to education, the elderly, and taking care of children. priorities? has nothing to do with illegals unless you think the illegals in this state make up some majority of our people

I'm all for doing away with birthright citizenship, especially if the parents of the child are in this country illegally. It's an artifact of another time that has outlived its purpose, and it is not something other countries do, so why should we?

As far as the cost of illegal immigration, we will just have to pick the statistical analysis we want to believe I guess. Logic tells me that a person earning money off the books or minimum wage with a stolen social security number and sending money out of the country to family back home is not pulling their financial weight compared to the cost of a public education and public health services.

[testmo]

artifact from another time that has outlived its purpose - like the 2nd amendment? i havent seen a threat of redcoats in years

so the people that are here illegally dont pay utilities, buy food, buy gas, buy anything, pay rent? who are you to say they get a fair pay of that cash under the table? what benefit do we get as legal citizens for the cheap labor?

so our public education is in the tank because of illegals? thats the number 1 reason, or even the only reason? or just part of a huge problem, maybe an insignificant part

what public services are illegals eligible for? id like to hear a layperson tell me what they can use

[ethanw]

I did arrive in this country in 92 following the proper and legal immigration protocol.It wasn't any different then than is now, trust me. I was proudly naturalized after 5 years. I met my asian wife in this country actually who happens to be a british citizen. Both my kids were born in Houston and this is their home.

To be honest my first reaction to this issue of illegal immigration was, WOW, that can't be happening and yes call me naive. No other country in the world will allow this kind of illegal behavior. Try crossing the borders by millions anywhere Europe or Asia, and they will do something about.And is just not happening at the scale is happening here and I am sure there is a good reason for that. But what get's me even more is that we as a country provide schools, healthcare, you name it and we're just OK with it? Is like we're encouraging breaking the law and basically saying that is OK, just continue coming in and we will give you a driver license and won't ask you if you're here legally or not. That I really don't understand.

[testmo]

we dont provide them with healthcare

(you have never heard of illegal immigrants in europe? i am suspicious)

[testmo]

actually the healthcare brings up an interesting issue. i am sure the response is YES WE DO PROVIDE THEM HEALTH CARE

the only health care they have access to (which will very likely be stopped) is access to emergency medicaid to a pregnant woman for prenatal care and delivery. that child in there is a US citizen as the law stands now. "but it doesn't matter they aren't a citizen yet" - does that cause any hypocrisy about your belief in abortion rights? you cant deny an illegal immigrant's fetus from citizenship yet at the same time be against abortion because the fetus is an individual person with rights.

now i am getting into way too many controversial bags. maybe it is just too late in the evening. but i know i would never want to deny a fetus/baby, any fetus/baby, a right to enter the world safely. but maybe some people dont care

and for those who say free clinics = health care. go work in one or better yet try to access their services. illegals aren't eligible for HCHD free clinics either. you can try the county hospitals but they will likely just shove you out the door (ive seen it although yes this evidence is anecdotal)

[ethanw]

When was the last time you were in Ben Taub hospital, emergency room. When was the last time you were in a child delivery hospital Try that for a good diversity moment I am not saying punish the illegals by denying basic human help, just fix the system.

There are very few illegal immigrants in Europe and not by hundred of thousands or millions. They don't allow illegal immigrants to just keep on coming and burdening the system as we do here. In Europe you can't get any legal status if you're illegal. They do things that forces illegals out since they won't be able to survive for long...

Originally Posted by testmo

we dont provide them with healthcare

(you have never heard of illegal immigrants in europe? i am suspicious)