masterrig

Absolutely. It would help a ton if we didn't threaten to deport them and fine their employers when they try to pay their taxes. _________________________________________ That's an idea. Then, deport them anyhow! Chuck

The difference between the two is legislative. The economic facts go back to before we used laws to distinguish types of immigration. Immigration is what made this country what it is today. That's not some leftie bs remark, it's economic history. IMO, if there is a problem that we don't tax certain types of immigrants...we should tax them...problem solved. Next. _______________________________________ Getting them to pay that tax is another chore. Chuck

Quitting cigarrettes, will be the toughest thing you have done or will do. I quit, 9-yrs. ago. You will, for a long time, get little cravings but, you will have quit and your lungs and the rest of your body, will love you for it. Not to mention, your clothes will smell better! The best of luck to you!!! Chuck

I believe that strong economy trumps pretty much every other concern about immigration. Strong economy wins wars. Immigrants strengthen our economy. This is fact. People who are against immigration are against stronger economy. you avoided the question I posed to you _____________________________________ Are you referring to 'legal' immigration or 'illegal' immigration. I don't know of too many folks who are against 'legal' immigration. It's the 'illegal' kind, folks are against. Immigration laws are like any other laws we have. They need to be enforced. Chuck

_______________________________________ Looks like, he got tired of those paychecks, too! Well, good for him. (edit to add)...What about the 'children'? Chuck

>then too, you have to keep in mind that all these people, there will > be many of them who will want to hunt and fish. Are you seriously using this as a reason we can't support more immigration? There won't be enough space to hunt? ____________________________________ What I'm getting at is 'recreational' lands. $-wheeling, dirt bikes, horse trails, skiing, etc. Well, in that case, we can't sell any more hunting rifles either! >The increased price we see for meat and produce, doesn't always > mean that the farmer or rancher saw any increase in profit. If they can get significantly more money for their products, and their profits don't change - then they deserve to go out of business. Another, smarter farmer will take over and make money where they failed to. That's capitalism as well. __________________________________________ There is a certain time when crops and cattle are sold. With produce, it's about the time the produce is ripe. With cattle, they are sold when the steers and heifers are sold when they are seven - eight months old. The rancher keeps-back the 'breeders' for re-population. When it comes time to sell, they sell at the market price at the time. The price is set by the buyers. What 'they' are willing to pay. It's not so much about being smarter, it's based on 'economics'. That farmer or rancher has bills to pay and a mortgage. He gets ONE paycheck a year and payday is when he sells what he has raised. An avocado producer can't hold his crop and wait for the price to go up. He does that, he's going to be sitting on a pile of rotten avocados. You'll find too, a good percentage of the farmers or ranchers or their kids who chose to stay with the farm or ranch are college educated, usually in some field of Agri-Business. >What about the demand from the big cities like L.A., San Francisco >and the like? Those people need and want water too. When they > start pipe-lining the water from other areas, this doesn't leave much > for the farmers and ranchers. This is happening now. Result is that water prices go up, and farmers relocate to where water is cheaper. (Or they swing some deal with the federal government to subsidize their water.) ________________________________________ It's not that simple. Usually, if the price of water goes up to the farmer and he can't afford to buy water, he usually just goes broke. A similar thing happened here in the 60's. The price of fuel to run irrigation pumps went through the roof. The farmers couldn't afford it. That land has laid dormant ever since. It's not a matter of being smarter, it's a matter of being able to afford it. They got 'priced-out'. >Not if contracts with foreign countries have to be met. >Do we just 'cut-off' foreign trade? Nope. We just sell slightly less grain to Mexico, because those people are now here. Total number of people hasn't changed. __________________________________ We sell less to foreign countries. The price of a man's corn to the buyers goes down. The price will not go up here, to the farmer because we then have an 'abundance'. The market drops, the price to the farmer goes down. That's a 'cut' in pay to the farmer. He can't meet his expenses. He's out of business. No, the numbers haven't changed... just their location. TThey become our 'concern' Mexico doesn't have to concern themselves with them. Chuck

____________________________________ Not if contracts with foreign countries have to be met. Do we just 'cut-off' foreign trade? Chuck

__________________________________________ Do you really believe that 'new' farms and ranches will open-up? The govt. has and is making it so difficult for the farmer and rancher that there is little profit in it for the family farmer and rancher. I work for a rancher and I listen to him and other ranchers. As farm and ranch owners pass from existance, the 'kids', don't want to mess with ranching or farming so, the land gets sold to developers. I get out and see what's going on out there. After private lands, you have BLM lands, State park lands and Natl. park lands. Also, just because there is a 'vast expanse' of open lands, does not necessarily mean that the land is good for farming and or ranching. Then, you've got the conservancy folks who are taking-up farm and ranch lands for their purposes, namely money. Sure, there's parts of the country where there are vast open lands and maybe, irrigation will make that land usable for farming. How are you going to get the water there to irrigate? Pipelines, cost money. Here in West Texas, we've got a problem with folks wanting to buy the water from 5-West Texas counties to sell to the folks in Dallas and other cities because their water supplies are dwindling. The 5-counties I'm referring to have been in a drought for the past 13-14 yrs. Farmers and ranchers in those counties need all the water they can get to continue their operations. No water... no cattle or corn! Also, the farmers and ranchers 'percentage' of the profits from the sale of their cattle or produce is much less than what the guy who bought it gets. Also, without rain, grass doesn't grow. Cattle eat grass. So, the rancher has to buy feed to keep his cattle going. If, he can't afford to feed his cattle, he has to sell-off some of his stock, usually, at below market value. often times, the next step is to sell his ranch. The buyer's set the market. Farmers, go through the same things. So, if, they can't grow crops, they go under. It's not just a matter of going to Von's or Kroger's. One percent of our population feeds 100% of the population. There's no telling, what the future is going to bring. Iguess, we'll just have to wait and see. Also, what are the 'normal economic forces'? Also, in regard to 'illegals', they aren't looking for the Ag. jobs... they want the higher paying factory and construction jobs. There's damned few who come here just for the Ag. jobs and stay at those jobs. Chuck

________________________________________ Exactly! Do't worry about tomorrow, when you can make it all today! Chuck

True story! Chuck

I did once! A pit-bull was humping my leg and it was all I could think of at the time! Chuck

I followed the rules, paid the fees, and got my green card in 1979. The delays were interminable. The lines at the INS office were awesome. "NO we don't make appointments, just come and stand in line for 7 hours". Even people who just came to pick up a form had to wait in the same line as people there to see an immigration officer; "No we don't mail out forms. No we don't put the forms out on display where you can just take one." INS had to be the worst run bureacracy in US history. _______________________________________ I was told as a kid growing up. Good things come to those who wait. I hope, it's worked-out in your favor. Congratulations to you, too. Have you ever seen the Immigration and Nationality law books for the I&Ns? ...and the laws change almost daily! One thing about governments of any kind... they don't seem to make it easy for the general population. Chuck

Do you see a pattern here? Hmmmm... Chuck

It may have taken all those years but, you got it! To answer your question about what happens to those who follow the rules? They, like everyone else, legal or illegal, blend-in to our society. By the way, congratulations on becoming a citizen and having the patience to 'do it right'. Chuck

__________________________________ Don't give him any ideas! Oh my goodness... we're actually going to have a 'little' Funks in the world? Too cool! Chuck Little Funks #2. ____________________________________ Poor, little Funks... numbers 1&2! Big congrats, Funks! All seriousness aside. Hope, Mama and little one are doing good!

__________________________________ Don't give him any ideas! Oh my goodness... we're actually going to have a 'little' Funks in the world? Too cool! Chuck

_______________________________________ Why, don't we just annex Mexico! Then, we'd get all their oil, too. Back in the 50's and 60's, we had the 'Brazero System'. Migrant workers could be hired by farmers. When the season was over, the workers, went back to Mexico. In Sprin, they would return. Farmers had to supply housing and toilet facilities. That worked fairly well till the program was ended. Chuck

What I want to know is, with all those mortgages and housing to be built... who's going to feed them? What about the loss of farm and ranchland we are facing at the rate of thousands of acres being lost to 'expansion'? All those folks are thinking about is the money they are going to put in their pocket. It's not just Mexico, we're having a problem with. It's also Central America. I'm not buying their 'crock of crap'. Everybody's gonna get rich off of them... right! Chuck

_________________________________________ A lot of folks don't really 'see' what is going on out there. We get sppon-fed bull-shit from our government and big business, about the problem. The 'bleeding hearts' in this country think that we should open our doors (more like flood-gates) to them. What they don't understand is, the increase in drug traffic into this country, the large numbers of them that join gangs, the criminal element in general, the diseases they bring. Folks were complaining about the criminals released from the jails in Louisiana after Katrina, they should worry about what crosses our border and wake-up and see the situation for what it really is. I love this country and the way I feel is, we have enough problems we don't need to 'open our arms' to more. Chuck

Almost sounds like the Bush admin's programs, doesn't it! By the way, I think you're right. _________________________________ Yeah. I really don't think, that a lot of folks 'really' understand the whole situation. Chuck

__________________________________ You're kidding... aren't you? Chuck

I want it to be a surprise! Chuck

True enough. As long as they're working, then that's one thing, I just think it's bs that they can run across the border and pop a kid out in San Diego...presto, US citizen! Not to mention all the ones who are there and don't really do shit. __________________________________________ The point is, they are not just running across the border for the big chance to pick avocados and peaches. They hit the highways to points North for the high paying factory jobs and construction jobs. They have phony Social Security cards and other 'fake' ID. Nobody checks their papers. The ones hiring them just see 'proper' ID and bingo, they're hired. Smuggling aliens and selling phoney papers is big business. Many of them join gangs. They also send billions of U.S. Dollars to Old Mexico and a lot of that money is used to get the rest of their families over here. Chuck

Yup! Like... Nylon. I worked for an 'oilfield related' fuel and oil distributor, for 17-yrs. Mostly, tending to drilling rigs. I have always said "those hands, don't get paid enough." I do, have complaints with the 'big' oil producers though, who so obviously capitalized off hurricane Katrina. Now, fuel prices are up, again because, the gasoline producers are feeling a 'possible' shortage, due to the fact they are switching over from winter blend gasoline to summer blend. I guess, I just don't understand but, I think, the gasoline producers are feeding us a line of shit because they know they've 'got' us. In that, Americans are going to have their cars, pick-ups and Hummers. Any way you look at it, the gasoline and oil producers are going to their way. Willie, just might be onto something. Chuck

If they all went home tomorrow the US economy would collapse. Do you like cheap produce? If you want to find fault, fault the businessmen that hire them. We could raise the minimum wage and create a bigger demand for them....... ____________________________________ Sure! Don't give our folks a chance to make a little more... let the illegals! Chuck I think you mis understood me. I believe raising the minumum wage would put US people out of work (as study after study has shown) and create a larger demand for illegalls. My comment was meant tounge in cheek..... ____________________________________ I re-read what you wrote and I see your point. It's all kind of a 'touchy subject' in these parts. Nothing wrong with a little sarcasm, now and then. You can sometimes make a good point, that way. Chuck