Our own Echo Chamber

The online chatter, network punditry, and arguments between ourselves have become a giant echo chamber where new ideas cannot penetrate.

I really don't know why, but periodically I will take a peek at our newly improved Facebook format, our online forum has taken because old habits are hard to break. It's still the antiquated “you’re a racist, and I'm not" type of dialogue that takes place every day.

I’m my own echo chamber, repeating my ideals thinking that maybe one day we will get beyond the viewpoints that have not worked in the past.

One of the favorite subjects is illegal immigration, where someone will submit a blog just to do a little race- baiting, knowing that he won't have to wait long before someone bites. The whole discussion will be between individuals who don't know (nor do they want to) a thing about the economics' of illegal immigration, and that's what it's all about.

The discussion will start with a poster calling the immigrants criminals or the preferred illegal aliens because it sounds more demeaning. The posters will step up on their pedestal and tell the world of how their ancestors who all came here it legally; of course, they can't prove that because illegal immigration didn't just start a few years ago. They probably don't know that the first offense for crossing into this country illegally is a misdemeanor and then they're usually processed and sent back to their country of origin, where they will not have to wear that label “illegal alien" again. The topic then has a life of its own, where unverified opinions will be the prevailing method they will use. The open borders crowd will first try to play the sympathy card, which will quickly be rejected, so there is no other options but to engage in ad hominem attacks.

As I was riding of my bicycle this morning, I kept wondering if there was a solution to this problem had that has divided us for so many years. I compare the people that keep coming to our country illegally to cigarette smokers (although cigarettes are legal products) because they both know the consequences of bad choices, and we cannot force them into submission... We taxed the tobacco consumer and made it harder for them to support their habit in public places, so why wouldn't that tactic work for illegal immigration?

We call the people who break our immigration laws criminals, but we don't do the same for the businesses who hire them. It costs a lot of money to raid an establishment that's known to hire the illegal immigrants because there’s court costs’, processing, over time for surveillance and then the transporting fees. Why not make these raids revenue neutral for the Feds? We could charge the indicted companies the entire amount of what it takes from day one until the time we release the immigrants, on top of the normal penalties. The full amount would include the costs for medical, education, and back taxes. We know that jail time would only mean that they would just transfer ownership, but astronomical fines would bankrupt them.

That sounds relatively easy and the "no amnesty crowd" would go along with this but those companies have lobbyists. Do you really think they're going to let the politicians take a stand against the companies? In this case, I will compare the drug addict to the American consumer who cannot go cold turkey. We want and demand cheap products; especially in this economy. For each additional raid ICE makes, the more, the consumer will pay at the register. My conspiratorial mind tells me that we won't hold too many raids because we need cheap labor, if our country is going to maintain the 1.5%, growth or expand it to 4% growth. I agree with Ron Paul when he said that if we were at 4 to 5% unemployment; we wouldn't be having this conversation.

Yes, we can make this issue tolerable, but it won't be until after the American voter gets tired of the Hatfield and McCoy answers. The ideal time would be tomorrow because the southern border is manageable right now. The answer is still and always will be a comprehensive reform package where each side has to do the unthinkable; compromise. We can't allow 11 million undocumented people living among us. Attrition will never work, so the answer is that most of the 11 million will likely stay, but they shouldn't be at the head of the line for citizenship. It will be a long drawn-out process with documentation being the priority. There are those who compare our immigration policies with other countries, saying that we are the most lenient, but that's not the issue. The other countries kept their immigration under control, but we did not, either for greed, necessity, or incompetence. We need to update our inept computer system, so we can carry out the E- verify a system without fear that the system would cost a U.S. worker their job. Those wanting voter ID laws should accept the concept of a tamper proof national ID card.

It all starts at the voting booth, so if you like the status quo then vote for those wanting to amend the 14th amendment, implement voter id laws but not a national ID. Card, and those who are advocating attrition only, open borders, or English only causes.