Illegal Immigration

[Soldier4Christ]

 Los Angeles 'is a Third World city'

Los Angeles is becoming a "Third World city" with immigrants making up half its workforce, says a new study.

A third of immigrants have not graduated from high school and 60 per cent do not speak English fluently, the Migration Policy Institute found.

It said this left immigrants ill-equipped to fill California's fastest-growing occupations, such as computer software engineering and nursing. The organisation added that as the so-called baby boomers reach retirement age, a similar pattern will spread across the US.

Ernesto Cortes Jr, of the Industrial Areas Foundation, a think-tank that specialises on social change, claimed Los Angeles was at a crossroads.

"The question is are we going to be a 21st century city with shared prosperity, or a Third World city with an elite group on top and most on near poverty wages?" he said.

The US Census Bureau last year predicted that by 2050, minorities will account for half of all residents across America.

It registered the largest numerical increases in minority residents in metropolitan Los Angeles, Riverside, in California, Dallas, Houston and New York.

In 2000, according to the Census Bureau, whites were in a minority in 262 US counties, up from 183 in 1990.

Nationally, the number of minorities topped 100 million for the first time in 2006, to make up about one third of the population.

[Soldier4Christ]

Hundreds of illegals riot in L.A. detention center
Tear gas used to diffuse brawl between detainees from rival gangs

Hundreds of illegal immigrants awaiting deportation rioted at a county-run detention center and had to be subdued with tear gas, authorities said Wednesday.

The riot Tuesday started as a fight between detainees from rival gangs and spread to the detention center's outdoor yard, said Virginia Kice, a spokeswoman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Nearby sheriff's stations sent additional deputies to separate the detainees. The brawl was diffused "within minutes" after tear gas was used, said sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore.
Fights among incarcerated gang members periodically break out at state jails, prisons and immigrant detention facilities, sometimes sparking riots.

The federal Department of Homeland Security contracts with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department to staff and manage the Mira Loma Detention Center in Lancaster, which holds about 900 detainees who are in the process of being deported or awaiting resolution of their cases in immigration courts.

Ten detainees were treated for injuries, including two who suffered serious head injuries.
Sheriff's officials will evaluate how Mira Loma guards separate detainees based on gang affiliation, Whitmore said. About 45 detainees involved in the riot have been identified as suspected gang members and moved to other federal facilities.

[Soldier4Christ]

Unemployment plummets after crackdown on illegals
Lawmaker: Oklahoma no longer 'OK' for undocumented aliens

Unemployment rates are rising across the United States, except Oklahoma. That state is experiencing the most dramatic reduction in unemployment since 2007, an improvement many in Oklahoma attribute to the passage last year by the state legislature of a strong employment-focused immigration reform law.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday reported unemployment in Oklahoma had fallen to 3.1 percent in March, down from 4 percent in March last year, while unemployment nationwide was 5.1 percent, up from 4.4 percent in March last year.

"Oklahoma is no longer 'OK' for illegal aliens," said State Rep. Randy Terrill, who sponsored House Bill 1804 which passed by overwhelming majorities last year in both the House (84-14) and Senate (41-6) of the Oklahoma Legislature.

"The bottom line is illegal aliens will not come here if there are no jobs waiting for them," Terrill said. "They will not stay here if there is no government subsidy, and they certainly won't stay here if they know that if they ever encounter our state and local law enforcement officers, they will be physically detained until they are deported."

House Bill 1804, the Oklahoma Taxpayer and Citizen Protection Act of 2007, has been characterized by USA Today as "arguably the nation's toughest state law targeting illegal immigration."

The Oklahoma law imposes strict penalties on employers who knowingly hire illegal aliens, makes it a felony to transport or shelter illegal immigrants, forbids the state to issue drivers licenses or pay social welfare benefits to illegal aliens or their families, and empowers state and local police to enforce federal immigration laws.

Last month, the Oklahoma Bankers Association threatened Oklahoma would lose about $1.8 billion annually in productivity and wages, largely because House Bill 1804, which went into effect in November last year, will force an estimated 50,000 illegal immigrants to leave the state.

The group based the conclusions on a study done by economists Russell Evans and Kyle Dean of the Oklahoma-based Economic Impact Group that estimated as many as 70,000 illegal immigrants were living in Oklahoma when the legislation was passed.

Proponents of the law would counter that forcing illegal aliens to leave Oklahoma was precisely the intended effect of the bill.

"The next question to ask would be whether citizens have taken jobs that illegals used to do," observed blogger Tom Blumer. "Though the lower unemployment rate doesn't in and of itself prove that, it does point strongly in that direction."

"Will anyone in Old Media dig more deeply into the Sooner State's situation?" Blumer wondered. "Or will they try to pretend that Oklahoma's improvement doesn't exist, because finding out why might expose some inconvenient truths, and hurt the cause of illegal-immigrant 'amnesty.'"

[HisDaughter]

"Oklahoma is no longer 'OK' for illegal aliens," said State Rep. Randy Terrill, who sponsored House Bill 1804 which passed by overwhelming majorities last year in both the House (84-14) and Senate (41-6) of the Oklahoma Legislature.

"The bottom line is illegal aliens will not come here if there are no jobs waiting for them," Terrill said. "They will not stay here if there is no government subsidy, and they certainly won't stay here if they know that if they ever encounter our state and local law enforcement officers, they will be physically detained until they are deported."

Way to go Oklahoma! 

[nChrist]

YEAH!

Oklahoma politicians actually do things right fairly often. I think that we'll try to keep most of them.

[HisDaughter]

YEAH!

Oklahoma politicians actually do things right fairly often. I think that we'll try to keep most of them.

Wish the rest of em' would catch on!

[HisDaughter]

George  Carlin's
Solution to Save Gasoline

Bush  wants us to
cut the amount of gas we use..... 

The  best way to
stop using so much gas is to deport 11 million  illegal immigrants!

That  would be 11
million less people using our gas. The price  of gas would come down.....

Bring  our troops
home from Iraq to guard the Border....   

When  they catch an
illegal immigrant crossing the border, hand  him a canteen, rifle and some ammo
and ship him to Iraq  ...

Tell  him if he
wants to come to America then he must serve a  tour in
the military....

Give  him a
soldier's pay while he's there and tax him on  it.....

After  his tour, he
will be allowed to become a citizen since he  defended this country.....

He  will also be
registered to be taxed and be a legal  patriot.....

This  option will
probably deter illegal immigration and provide  a solution for the troops in
Iraq and the aliens trying to  make a
better life for themselves.. . 

If  they refuse to
serve, ship them to Iraq anyway, without  the canteen,
rifle or ammo.....

Problem   
solved.....

[HisDaughter]

Got this in an email.....


Windfall Tax on Retirement Income
 
Adding a tax to your retirement is simply another way of saying to the American people, you're so darn stupid that we're going to keep doing this until we drain every cent from you. That's what the Speaker of the House is saying. Read below...............

Nancy Pelosi wants a Windfall Tax on Retirement Income.  In other words tax what you have made by investing toward your retirement. This woman is a nut case! You aren't going to believe this.

Madam speaker Nancy Pelosi wants to put a Windfall Tax on all stock market profits (including Retirement fund, 401K and Mutual Funds! Alas , it is true - all to help the 12 Million Illegal Immigrants and other unemployed Minorities!

This woman is frightening.
She quotes...' We need to work toward the goal of equalizing income, (didn't Marx say something like this), in our country and at the same time limiting the amount the rich can invest.'  ( I am not rich, are you)

When asked how these new tax dollars would be spent, she replied:
'We need to raise the standard of living of our poor, unemployed and minorities. For example, we have an estimated 12 million illegal immigrants in our country who need our help along with millions of unemployed minorities. Stock market windfall profits taxes could go a long way to guarantee these people the standard of living they would like to have as 'Americans'.'  (Read that quote again and agai n and let it sink in.  'Lower your retirement, give it to others who have not worked as you have for it'.   

This lady is out of her mind and she is the speaker of the house !

[Soldier4Christ]

This woman is a nut case! You aren't going to believe this.

Yep, I do believe it. It is the goal of all socialists to make everyone in the nation to be poor except for them.

[nChrist]

Brothers and Sisters,

Charity is a matter  for each individual to decide - not the government. Many of the taxes they are extorting now are illegal and Unconstitutional. Someone needs to send these idiots in Washington a message that many of us are having a hard time taking care of ourselves and our families. Further, we didn't sign on to take care of illegal immigrants, and nobody asked us if we want to. Most of us try to help others as we can, so please don't misunderstand what I'm saying.

It's a pretty hard job just taking care of your own family these days, and this is multiplied for retired people living on small fixed incomes, pensions, and small supplemental programs that were slaved for just to make things more bearable in retirement. The answer to Pelosi and ilk of her kind is "NO!" We'll give to the charities of our choice, and we will select the amount. THE GOVERNMENT CAN BUTT OUT! Pelosi and her friends can also choose their own charity and give what they want to, but they WON'T BE DICTATING THEIR CHOICES TO US!

The last I heard, this is still a free country, and the people still run it. We might need to prove that a few times soon because some folks are too thick-headed to get the message. The problem with folks like Pelosi is they forget they are nothing more than public servants. They are not kings, queens, or dictators - and the same certainly applies to SITTING JUDGES. A like problem is the attempted forcing of all kinds of PERVERSIONS on our children to indoctrinate them as future WEIRDOS! They can forget that too. The people still run this country, and it appears that our elected PUBLIC SERVANTS need remedial training on numerous issues. Those who can't or won't pass need to be sent home and barred from ever holding public office again. For those who have committed criminal acts, they can serve their time in prison first.

There are lots of things happening today that don't resemble a FREE COUNTRY! We have laws designed to deal with corrupt and dirty politicians. We need to be using them.

[Soldier4Christ]

Newspaper: Economy
hurts 'struggling' illegals
'Nobody's coming. A lot
of people are leaving town'

The hurricanes that blew through Martin County in 2004 and 2005 were a blessing in disguise for Golden Gate's Latin American day labor community.

Extensive damage to homes meant work was easy to come by, and laborers had plenty of money to send home to relatives.

But many say the recent housing slowdown and a lack of hurricane activity have made employment opportunities dry up.

"There is no work," said Javier Lopez as he stood outside a labor hiring center on Old Dixie Highway.

Lopez, a native of Guatemala, used to work five days a week.

But since September, the local day labor job market has dwindled drastically, Lopez said. Now, he feels lucky to find a day's work.

The scarcity of employment is causing many illegal immigrants in the local community to pack up and return home, said Baldomero Bartolon, a Guatemalan day laborer who lives in Golden Gate.

Bartolon lost his job with a roofing company and now sits outside the Texaco on Dixie Highway where many illegal immigrants gather in hopes of being picked up for a day's work.

Others have dealt with the downturn by seeking job opportunities elsewhere, moving north to states such as Delaware or Minnesota to work on chicken farms, he said.

Businesses serving Golden Gate's Latin American community also have begun to notice a change.

"Nobody's coming," said Andre Caldaron, an employee at the Latin American grocery El Mercadito Mexicano. "A lot of people are leaving town."

Shopkeepers say a drop in remittances being sent to Latin America has been the main indicator people can't find jobs.

"Business has definitely been slower," said Jonathon Ucelo, whose family owns the wire transfer store El Centro de Envios.

Bartolon, who used to send money to his family in Guatemala on a regular basis, said he hasn't been able to send a dime since Christmas.

"Between rent, bills, and lunch there's not much left over," he said.

Isis Gomez, music director at Golden Gate's Iglesia Bautista church, said many people in the community are leaving to look for jobs in states such as Illinois, Michigan, and Texas in hopes the economy is better there.

Some moved back at the first hint of an economic downturn. Gomez said a friend worked two restaurant jobs and saved all the money he made to return home before things got bad.

"He was smart and saw what was coming," she said.

House of Hope, a local charity headquartered in Golden Gate, has seen an increase the number of Latin Americans seeking assistance from their Pantry Program that distributes food to Martin County's hungry.

"We look out for them," said the program's warehouse manager Kathy Carmody.

Carmody said the program has seen a jump of more than 140 people registered without official documentation. Only one person per family is permitted to register for the program, and Carmody worries the small amount of canned goods families receive might not be enough.

She said many receiving help from the food bank's services are stranded with no money or transportation to move elsewhere.

The downturn in demand for day laborers has some Golden Gate landlords worried about their property investments.

Juan Gomez, who owns three duplexes in Golden Gate, said one of his properties has been empty for the past several months. He worries he and other landlords won't be able to make payments if many of the current residents continue to leave.

"Somebody has to do something," he said. "In six months it will be a mess."

[Soldier4Christ]

Since the democrats are all for the illegal aliens I wonder if this will give them the incentive to do something now.

[Shammu]

Since the democrats are all for the illegal aliens I wonder if this will give them the incentive to do something now.

I can answer that in one word....................... NO!!

[Soldier4Christ]

U.S. deporting
Christian pastors
Immigration rejects requests to stay
when church leaders' visas expire

U.S. immigration authorities have stepped up deportations, but rather than pursue illegal aliens, they have chosen to evict America's church ministers from the country instead.

Honesty could cost Christian pastor Keith Thomas his citizenship because he cooperated with immigration officials, disclosing two minor marijuana convictions he incurred when he was a young man in England 33 years ago.

Thomas, 53, is working without pay, fearing deportation from the U.S. and separation from his family. He was denied a green card based on convictions that were overturned by an English court in 1982. Thomas told WND he has documentation to prove his clean record and that he has always been truthful with officials, but he doesn't understand why people who enter the country illegally are allowed to stay when he is facing the citizenship battle of his life.

"They've let 12 million illegals into the country, yet somebody has been doing some good, paying taxes, came in legally and has been married to an American with two American kids, and they're going to kick him out?" Thomas asked. "I told the truth. Nobody called me out on my past. If I had not even owned up to my record, the government would not have been able to find any of it."

Immigration troubles

Thomas said his first conviction happened while he was working on a cruise liner in 1971 when he was only 17. He was charged with being knowingly concerned in the importation of marijuana after his cabin mate brought it into the country. Thomas said the second incident took place in 1975 when he was 21. Authorities charged him with allowing his premises to be used for the smoking of cannabis when a tenant in his home told authorities Thomas gave him permission to use drugs on the property, though he did not live in the house at the time.

"I came in on a five-year work visa, and I told them about my convictions," he said. "I was very honest and forthright with them all the way from the very beginning."

Thomas said he first sought citizenship in 1981 after marrying his American wife, but his request was denied.

"I was kicked out," he said. "I was told I had to leave, otherwise I'd be deported. So, I left."

Pastoring in the U.S.

Thomas became a Christian and served as a senior pastor in England for several years. His wife became homesick in 1990, and he decided to apply for U.S. citizenship again. The second time, Thomas received a pastor's religious work visa that lasted five years. He accepted a position as a pastor at the 8,000-member Vineyard Community Church in Cincinnati, Ohio.

He received a paycheck while his work visa was active, but when it came time for the pastor to apply for a residency visa, also known as a green card, immigration authorities denied his application based on Thomas' disclosure of overturned marijuana convictions in England.

Thomas has asked for an appeal before an immigration judge to plead his case on several occasions, but his requests have fallen on deaf ears since September 2006.

"Finally, after much hassling of congressmen and people saying they'll talk to somebody, I get the notice to appear in December 2007," Thomas said. "The place where it says 'date' and 'time' said 'yet to be fixed.'"

Thomas said he cannot understand why immigration authorities will not set a date for him to appear before an immigration judge, though he speculates it could be a form of religious discrimination against people in the Christian ministry.

"Have you ever been told the government is going to take you to court, and then not give you a court date?" he asked. "It's ludicrous. I just can't believe I am going through this."

Family separation anxiety

Meanwhile, his family lives in a state of flux, constantly wondering if Thomas will be deported.

"It is unbelievable because we're living day in and day out wondering if we are going to be here next month," he said. "Of course, there's always the threat that they could put me in jail. It's just been heartbreaking for us for years now, and I am still being penalized for a mistake I made when I was just a kid."

Thomas said it looks as if the convictions may be held against him for the rest of his life.

"They said my wife and kids can stay here and that it's just me," he said. "I love my wife and kids. The most heartbreaking thing of all is thinking that I may be on another continent where I can't see my grandkids."

The pastor said he would rather face incarceration than allow his wife and kids to continue worrying about what will happen to their family. He is pleading with authorities to make a fair decision on his future.

"Look, if you think I am such a bad character, stick me in prison for a year or two years," he said. "I'd much rather go to prison for a couple of years than have this kind of stress on my family, not knowing where we are going to live the rest of our days."

U.S. deportation of religious leaders

Immigration authorities have also marked a Catholic priest for deportation to Ireland on July 1 after documentation errors left the 58-year-old missionary without paperwork he needed to remain in De Smet, S.D.

Cathal Gallagher arrived in South Dakota from Ireland 10 years ago and has since become a respected figure in his community. Now the state's top elected officials and parishioners are pleading with immigration authorities to reopen his case and allow him to remain in the country, the Argus Leader reported.

"I wouldn't want to stay in this country if you haven't blessed me with the right to be in this country," Gallagher told his home church in De Smet. "I won't be here as an illegal."

Gallagher served the church for 22 years in Japan before he was a granted a religious visa in 1996 to work with alcohol addicts in Rochester, Minn. He was later invited to work with churches in South Dakota.

"I thought I was going to go back to Japan ... but then I fell in love with De Smet," he said. "It's a very simple way of life, a place where people are important. I never expected to find that in the United States."

Following his application for residency in 2001, Gallagher was informed in 2003 that he would receive his green card. However, it was later denied in February 2006. Lawyers hired by the Catholic Church spent two years fighting to have the decision reversed, but their efforts have been without success.

Authorities said the priest should expect a phone call from Citizenship and Immigration Services before Tuesday, June 17, but Gallagher said he is still waiting for it to come.

[Soldier4Christ]

Mexican set free after border patrol agent struck, killed
Judge releases drug dealer accused of murdering U.S. officer with vehicle

Officials are outraged after a Mexican judge released a Mexican national who allegedly struck and killed a U.S. Border Patrol agent with his vehicle.

Jesus Navarro Montes was accused of intentionally killing Agent Luis Aguilar Jan. 19 near the Imperial Sand Dunes in Imperial County, Calif., the Los Angeles Times reported. Aguilar was attempting to stop two Mexican vehicles from entering the country illegally. As he positioned a strip of tire spikes into the road, Montes allegedly rammed his vehicle into the agent and killed him.

Now a Mexican judge has released Montes without restrictions.

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said he was shocked at the Mexican judge's decision to free Montes.

"We are working with a determined Mexican government and our Department of Justice to seek swift justice for the Aguilar murder," Chertoff said in a statement. "We have also assured Agent Aguilar's family that every resource is being called upon in the relentless pursuit of justice."

Chertoff had previously applauded Mexico's support in finding Aguilar's murderer, and he referenced the agent's slaying as an illustration of increasing violence along the U.S.-Mexico border.

However, Montes was arrested in northern Mexico three days following Aguilar's murder, where he awaited a trial on charges of immigrant smuggling. He was later set free, and the details of his prison release were unclear, the Los Angeles Times reported.

The president of the National Border Patrol Council, T.J. Bonner, told newspaper he couldn't understand how Montes could be released after he allegedly killed a border patrol agent in cold blood.

"How can a guy who murdered one of our law enforcement agents just be released like that?" Bonner asked. "He could be anywhere by now."

Officials at Mexico's federal attorney general's office and Public Safety Department said they believe Montes drove from Mexicali in Baja California toward the U.S. border in a Hummer loaded with drugs prior to striking the agent with his vehicle.

According to the report, U.S. Border Patrol agents saw the vehicles illegally enter the country on Interstate 8, so they attempted to apprehend the suspects. After Aguilar was killed, Montes drove back to Mexicali and gave the Hummer to one of his friends.

According to the report, Mexican government spokesman Ricardo Alday said, "The United States, to this date, has presented neither a provisional order of arrest for Mr. Navarro Montes nor a formal extradition request."