Is our current policy providing a fertile hunting grounds for terrorists or is the spirit of "give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free" still alive and well in God's country?

Talk about "huddled masses", what do you call twelve million illegal immigrants? Is this what the poet Emma Lazarus had in mind when she used the term?

I have an idea, why don't we just impose a huge illegal immigrant tax. We could probably eliminate our national debt in no time at all. The only problem with this self defeating strategy is that then no one would want to come to this country. Perhaps we should make it a both ways border tax. That way we could charge these illegal immigrants coming and going. There is nothing illegal about that is there?

We could also double the minimum wage, in which case the farmers might automate and eliminate the need for cheap labor. Our food prices would rise, inflation would set in, unemployment would grow, and our own citizens might become more willing to take low paying jobs again, thus eliminating the need for immigrants altogether except from a do the right thing point of view. What about granting them all amnesty? Amnesty from what? I thought everyone has a right to pursue the American dream. So many choices, it is hard to know which to choose

Perhaps if we stopped offering illegal immigrants free health care and schooling for their children we could reduce the flow substantially, but I am afraid we might run the risk of growing our own illegal immigrant terrorists from this formerly hard working lot who would become upset at the lack of equal social services being supplied to them. Besides, we probably don't have enough buses in this country to send twelve million people home and we surely can't expect them to walk although that is how many of them got here. Do you think this whole problem is part of a French conspiracy? After all they sent us the Statue of Liberty on which Emma Lazarus's poem is inscribed. I doubt it. It seems unlikely given that they have their own immigration problems.

What does the temporary or guest worker program proposed by the President and by some in congress really mean? Does it mean that illegal immigrants will have to work in this country until they are granted citizenship and then can stop working and go on welfare or refuse to take the low paying jobs that some corporations originally hired them for. What's to stop these twelve million illegal immigrants from forming their own unified union and going on strike for higher wages and pension plans. Can illegal immigrants have 401K plans? Can they take tax deductions on their tax returns for foreign travel as a business expense? So many questions and no one seems to have all the answers. What would happen to our trade deficit if these people stopped buying American goods that are made in China? This thing has ramifications that none of us may have thought of. Is this what Emma Lazarus was alluding to when she said, "I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"Are we the golden scapegoat for the world? Why not try to reverse the trend by helping Mexico employ their own citizens at a good living wage. We could even institute a buy Mexican policy. It might be cheaper than buying goods from China considering that we wouldn't have to pay long distance freight charges.

What should we do to protect ourselves from foreign terrorists who might sneak across the border with all the peaceful and hard working immigrants? Perhaps we should install an honor system instead of a wall. We could ask all the illegal immigrants to report any terrorists crossing over with them - anonymously of course. Another approach that might work is to require all illegal immigrants to travel lightly. We should limit them to one small carry across the border type bag and allow nothing big enough to conceal a bomb. Probably something the size of a passport wallet would be safe.

Another approach would be to make Spanish our primary language instead of English. That way so many of us wouldn't be able to understand our utility bills that we might have to migrate to England to find a commonly spoken language, then let's see who revolts against whom. The only problem with this scenario is that the Muslim minority in England might object to being overpowered by a new bunch of migrating American Christians. I almost forgot to mention the negative affect this transmigration might have on our national sovereignty, but then we are not talking about a flock of birds, are we? We are talking about a mass of humanity. When Emma Lazarus spoke of "the wretched refuse of your teaming shore", do you think she had us, or the illegal immigrants in mind?

You might well ask where God comes into this whole mess. I believe it goes back to my belief that this is God's homeland every bit as much as it is ours. I can almost see Him using the poet Emma Lazarus's famous words, "send these the homeless, tempest-tost to me" as His own. I wouldn't be a bit surprised if God put those words in Emma Lazarus's mind. Maybe we should find a way to honor the words of the poet and the thoughts of God at the same time. How about making all these illegal immigrants legitimate citizens of God's world. They are anyway, aren't they? There has got to be a better way to protect the rights of American citizens and at the same time give comfort to these struggling masses of immigrants. Can we look to God for the inspiration to find the answers?

Arthur Levine 2006

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