An American in Guatemala

Another outrageous and maddening immigration story brought to you by the ever-so-inefficient US Government:

A 4-year-old American girl has been returned to her family on Long Island, NY after being deported to Guatemala by US immigration officials.  The girl, Emily Ruiz, had been separated from her parents for almost three weeks after being initially refused entry upon travelling to the US with her grandfather by US immigration officials.

While the father maintains that the option to come and collect Emily was never presented to him, United States Customs and Border Protection officials have said that their agency does not deport US citizens and her parents would have been told that they could have come to pick Emily up.

Once again, the left hand of the US Government doesn't know what the right hand is doing.  This is but one of the many bad consequences of trying to enforce arbitrary laws that violate individual rights.

Quote About Immigration

My parents came to the United States in the early years of this century as part of a wave of Russian Jewish immigrants seeking freedom and opportunity in the New World.
Daniel Nathans

Business Opposition

A bill is rushing through the legislature, looking to pass with some tough opposition. Its proponents loudly proclaim that its purpose is to protect the common man from insidious economic attack from the enemies of the people. But at the last minute, a hand-delivered envelope from the state's business interests sways just enough legislators to ensure the bill doesn't pass.

Is this yet another defeat for state-run healthcare, higher taxes or more stifling regulations on oil companies?

No. Its the defeat of more insane immigration laws:

The Senate rejected the bills on Thursday when majority Republicans split and minority Democrats voted in lockstep against the bills, which included measures intended to force a U.S. Supreme Court ruling against automatic citizenship for U.S.-born children of illegal immigrants. Other bills dealt with health care, public services and everyday activities such as driving...

...In the wake of controversy over last year's Arizona immigration law, dozens of CEOs warned in the letter that new state legislation on the contentious issue could hurt the state's struggling economy and cost jobs.

For all their rhetoric about loving the free market and business, it seems like the Republicans are awfully comfortable piling on the regulatory burdens and hurting the economy.

Quote About Immigration

Most analysts would agree that if all the undocumented immigrants in California were deported in one day, our state would experience a severe economic downturn. This does not even consider the many cultural and spiritual gifts these immigrants bring to our state and nation.
Roger Mahony

Texas Introducing Guest Working Program?

Mentioned in an article about the Utah guest worker program:

In fact, a member of the Texas State Legislature has already introduced his own guest-worker proposal. The proposed Texas Immigration Reconciliation Act, introduced by Republican Rep. Paul Workman, would help fill the needs of Texas businesses and serve as a way to collect more taxes to "pay for services provided," he told the Austin American-Statesman.

I think the meme that illegal immigrants don't pay taxes is something worth going into here more in-depth, but the thrust of the bill seems like a good one. Deport violent criminals and keep the productive, peaceful workers here. If more legislation like this gains traction, the tide might finally be turning against ridiculous, xenophobic legislation.

Illegal Immigrants Should be Shot?

Conservatives, staying classy as always:

A legislator said Monday it might be a good idea to control illegal immigration the way the feral hog population has been controlled: with gunmen shooting from helicopters.

Rep. Virgil Peck, R-Tyro, said he was just joking, but that his comment did reflect frustration with the problem of illegal immigration.

Peck made his comment during a discussion by the House Appropriations Committee on state spending for controlling feral swine.

After one of the committee members talked about a program that uses hunters in helicopters to shoot wild swine, Peck suggested that may be a way to control illegal immigration...

...Asked about his comment, Peck was unapologetic. "I was just speaking like a southeast Kansas person," he said."

Sounds like a grave insult to southeast Kansas, since he was talking like a lunatic.

This sort of rhetoric is always simmering in the dregs of conservative message boards and comment threads, but this is the first time I'm aware of that a somewhat prominent public figure said it. Hopefully it does not go mainstream in conservatism.

Be Our Guest

Utah immigration reform passed:

Gov. Gary Herbert last week signed a bill that would give illegal immigrants who do not commit serious crimes and are working in Utah documents that, in the state's eyes at least, make them legal residents. For the law to work, however, the Obama administration would have to permit Utah to make it legal to employ people who entered the United States illegally - a federal crime.

The legislation requires a waiver from the federal government, which may or may not be forthcoming. I wonder if there is any parallel to the medical marijuana rules, though - the federal government simply doesn't have the manpower to do very much without local help, and simply doing their own thing will remove much of the risk associated with being an illegal immigrant.

We'll keep you updated.

Quote About Immigration

It is not new or unusual for the real Americans, meaning those immigrants who came to America a little bit longer ago, to fear the outsiders, the pretenders, the newcomers.
Luis Gutierrez

Quote About Immigration

It appears fashionable these days, and almost politically correct, to blame hard-working immigrants, especially those from Mexico and Central America, for the social and economic ills of our state and nation.

-Roger Mahony

This Week's Objectivist Roundup

It's over at Reepicheep's Coracle.  Go check it out!

3M CEO Gives it to the US Government

Once again, our government is hurting the US economy, destroying individual lives and causing job losses.  3M CEO, George Buckley, tells it like it is:

[Buckley] said President Obama is "anti-business" and his regulation and tax policies could result in manufacturers shifting production out of the United States.

Buckley also criticized the country's immigration policies. He said 68 percent of U.S. science PhD candidates are from outside the U.S. and would like to stay here, but they have a difficult time obtaining visas. The result: 3M is "exporting our science" overseas, he said. Indeed, a recent Business Journal report illustrated how nearly half of 3M's R&D operations are now outside of the United States.

A business is in existence to make a profit.  If our government prevents businesses from making profits, have no doubt they will move elsewhere and take our lavish lifestyles with them.

Quote About Immigration

In fact, allowing immigrants to have licenses actually improves homeland security by allowing our government to track who is in our borders.

- Joe Baca

ICE Official Accused of Theft

As more Americans call on the heavy-hand of government to resolve problems that only capitalism can solve, you can expect more and more of these types of stories:

A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement official has been charged with misusing his diplomatic passport and filing bogus travel expense reports to embezzle government funds.

The more government you have involved in anything, the more corruption you have in everything!

The Real Economics of Illegal Immigration

Here is yet another reason why pure capitalism is needed to solve America's immigration problem:

An investigation by U.S. immigration officials into illegal unemployment at Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc (CMG.N) is making some investors nervous and could have implications for the fast-food industry as a whole.

The rapidly expanding burrito chain -- famous for keeping a tight grip on labor costs and coming off a two-year stock gain of 350 percent -- far exceeded Wall Street's profit expectations when it reported quarterly results on February 10.

But the shares have since fallen 4.5 percent. A handful of analysts have downgraded Chipotle shares due in part to uncertainty about the liabilities and costs related to immigration audits, which have expanded from about 50 restaurants in Minnesota to Chipotle's 60 restaurants in Virginia and Washington, D.C.

Once again, when the US government gets involved in the economy (as if politicians know how to run a business better than the business' owner), and violates individual rights (an employer's right to hire whomever they please), you end up with a big mess in which no one wins.  Investors, employers, customers and employees are all losing big in this Chipotle mess, and the government is too! 

When Chipotle loses money or when they're completely run out of business, the government won't be able to steal federal, state or local taxes from them anymore.  In addition, job losses at Chipotle will send unemployed citizens to the unemployment lines where they will receive a check for not working and pay fewer taxes.  This will contribute to the national debt, reduce tax receipts that could be used to pay off that debt and reduce the productive output of the nation in general, much less make the lives of many people miserable.

Nothing about what the government is doing to Chipotle is good for America, much less her economy.  Let's stop this senseless battle against workers and employers.  The sooner, the better, for us all!