Last week WRKO’s John DePetro (now my favorite talk show host) had “Illegal Thursday,” where he had two illegal aliens who would like to attend Massachusetts state-run colleges at the in-state tuition level. These two people explained that they had come to the US as children, gone to schools here, graduated, and been accepted into colleges — but couldn’t afford to attend.
This morning, Boston Glob Columnist Adrian Walker opined about it, in a piece called “Degrees of Separation.” She hits on all the usual pro-illegal-alien claptrap, which in this case includes the “they didn’t choose to come here as children, so it’s not their fault” bit.
Folks might want to step back a bit, or turn away. This could get messy.
First of all, the “don’t blame them for their parents’ misdeeds” argument is getting old. It occurs to me that it is the exact opposite of the “slavery reparations” arguments — those who descended from slave-owners are being punished for their ancestor’s misdeeds. Also, while it is true that the children aren’t responsible for their coming here, from the instant they turn 18 they are responsible for their own actions, and the ongoing violations of the law.
Next up, Mr. Walker says that the beneficiaries of this move would be only about 400 students a year. Others have actually read the bill, and have spotted loopholes that could open up the state’s colleges to a flood of applicants, all demanding their “right” to subsidized tuition.
And even if it is just 400, let’s run the numbers: the difference between in-state and out-of-state tuition is about $9,000/year. That works out to $3.6 million dollars a year — hardly chump change.
Mr. Walker also bemoans the fact that it can take up to ten years for an illegal alien to follow the process to become a legal resident. Apparently he endorses short-circuiting that process when the illegal aliens can come up with a suitably pathetic sob story, and to hell with those who actually do follow the rules.
Mr. Walker does an admirable job summing up my position, and that of his opponents:
The opposition has much more to so with the sense that undocumented immigrants don’t deserve the benefits of citizenship. Within the State House, that is coupled with not wanting to open the door to the immigration issues that could follow, such as drivers’ licenses for the undocumented.
But he tries to dismiss them with a simplistic play for emotions:
The trouble with this argument is that immigration is a fact of life, and it isn’t going anywhere. Children should not be punished for their parents’ failures to pursue citizenship, and they should not be consigned to the bottom of the economic ladder — exactly the effect of shutting them out of college. Someone who has lived in Massachusetts since she was 6 is, for all practical purposes, a resident.
No, sir, not for “all practical purposes.” IT’s simply a question of whether or not you believe in the law, and believe in enforcing the law, and if you believe in pissing all over those who do follow the established processes whenever someone manages to make you feel bad. If you don’t like the way the law works, you work to change it — you do NOT simply ignore it. That is the idfference between being a responsible citizen, and being a soft-hearted, soft-headed twit.
Last week the Globe ran a big piece explaining how providing illegal aliens with taxpayer-funded tuition discounts will, in the long run, be a net gain for the Massachusetts economy.
So, we need to give them tuition breaks, because it can take up to ten years to get their paperwork in order, and it woud be mean-spirited to amke them wait that long like those pursuing legal citizenship are.
AND, they’ll provide a boost to our economy because they’ll immediately get that paperwork in order upon graduation to enable them to actually get a job.
huh?
And I love the attempt to cloud the issue by saying these are children who shouldn’t be punished for their parents’ actions.
Um…that’s why we give them “free” education through 12th grade. But that’s not good enough for them now.
When it’s time to go to college, to paraphrase Adrian Walker, they are, for all practical purposes, adults.
And as adults, they are required to take responsibility for following the law as it pertains to their immigration status.
Why my tax dollars should be used to help an adult illegal alien get a colleger education is beyond me. Maybe I’m not being “progressive” enough.
And spare me this “But they’re paying taxes” BS that Reilly keeps repeating…and repeating, and repeating.
A tourist from Nebraska can go the 7-11 up the street from my house, buy a cup of coffee, and pay “taxes”. Should his children be eligible for a tuition discount?
Is Reilly referring to the gas tax they’re paying as they fill up the gas tanks in the cars they’re not legally allowed to operate in the Commonwealth?
Jay, don’t bar the gates leading into NH until after I’ve moved…PLEEEEASE.
More from my blog here on how one “expert” rationalizes this government handout program.
And this one for those of you who haven’t read the actual text of the bill and were instead foolishly relying on the Boston Globe or AG Reilly to provide you with the facts in this matter.
Xenophobe!
Just trying to get out in front of the inevitable cries of racism you are sure to encounter in response to this post simply because you have the gall to suggest illegal immigrants should not get the same benefits as citizens.
“Lawmakers, with their usual aversion to conflict, have been slow to embrace a plainly unpopular cause.”
Interesting quote from the Walker article. “PLAINLY UNPOPULAR” – isn’t the ruse of US government that the people control it? This may be a situation where governmental reality and our perception of government coincide. If it is a plainly unpopular cause, then clearly, simply because a few people bemoan their situation, the bill should remain “on ice.” The system works!!!
Re: “Children should not be punished for their parents’ failures to pursue citizenship”
I daresay that many illegal immigrants come to the United States at least in part for the many benefits their children will receive. Like most parents, they want their children to have a better life. Unlike many parents, they are willing to break the law to get those benefits. If you eliminate the incentive to break the law — benefits for the innocent children who can’t help where their parents drag them — then you may help reduce the number of illegals, or at least a big part of their incentive to get here. As long as there’s a free lunch, people will line up to feed their fill. And as the buffet gets bigger and better, the faster the number of people struggling for a place at the public trough increases and the bigger their appetites grow. (Ever hosted a party with an open bar? Then you know what I’m saying.)
It beggars belief that some of us cannot see the relationship between increased handouts and increased demand for handouts. You get more of the behavior you reward.
Walker said: “The opposition has much more to so with the sense that undocumented immigrants don’t deserve the benefits of citizenship.”
Well, DUH. Couldn’t have said it better myself.
AMEN Jay Tea.
Please stop these government giveaways wherever you can. 400 illegal immigrants is just the camel’s nose under the tent. In California I have been in stores and found not one person who spoke fluent English. My daughter had to quit her job because the prejudice against Americans was so prevalent. There are Spanish signs and billboards everywhere, with no English translation. The local school district has gone from 93% caucasian to 75% hispanic in 25 years. To have your hometown changed so completely due to legal immigration is one thing, to have it done by the actions of people who have no respect for the law is entirely another. I want my hometown back, but now I will have to leave to find it.
Just WHEN did the children of illegal aliens — and now their CHILDREN — become pet dogs and cats? We feed them, we house them, we even pet them…and what we have is millions of illegal aliens in the country and many more millions coming who now cannot “go outside” without so much as their owners taking care to watch out for pesky problems, the warm blanket at home just waiting, the treats, the games and fun, the bowls overflowing with all the food they can eat, and now SCHOOL!
The country has gone mad.
If and when this becomes ordinary behavior, I think it’s fair and reasonable for every single American citizen to demand “free education” at any public college or university of their choice.
On the other hand, sure hasn’t helped France.
IF their parents can’t handle the welfare of their children, then deport them. A harsh reality but at least it’s not incarceration.
Let’s see…this (thread) reasoning goes…parents can’t be responsible for their children’s education, parents didn’t think ahead and can’t handle a competitive lifestyle and provisions for their children in the land they entered and remained in illegally, so…REWARD THEM?!?
Send.the.parents.home.with.their.children.at.taxpayer.expense.to.any.major.airport.of.their.country.of.origin.
That’s a very generous offer by American taxpayers. Because it has been proven time and time and time again that any “benefit” for illegal aliens produces MORE ILLEGAL ALIENS, thus requiring MORE BENEFITS FOR MORE MILLIONS with the same problem.
The country has to get around this problem. The realities are harsh but so far I don’t see Venezuela, Mexico, China, Peru, France, etc. offering Americans who land on their shores by whatever means free anything except a stay in prison. We reward one generation of people escaping from those countries and guess what, we have those countries right here supplanting the U.S. in another one, two generations. Because, the people arriving here aren’t doing so with goals for American citizenship. If they were, they’d be making headway already toward that goal.
No, they arrived here to exploit and “feed their families.” That means, Americans are feeding their families. And now educating them even when it means Americans can’t afford to educate their own children.
It just amazes me what people ‘expect’ Americans to do for them. There are Americans who need those college slots and Americans who could use help with the tuition. Ship these illegals home. I touch on the fact that Americans are fed up with immigration in this country and will vote accordingly in upcoming electionson my site Right Truth here: Immigration and Elections, http://righttruth.typepad.com/right_truth/immigration/index.html
This post was also on In the Bullpen.
Children should not be punished for their parents’ failures to pursue citizenship…
This is the characteristic misrepresentation that the advocates for the illegal immigrants always make. Nobody is objecting to legal immigrants, even those who don’t wish to pursue citizenship. It’s the illegal immigrants, regardless of whether they want citizenship, that people find objectionable. The failure to distinguish between the two groups is repetitive, and intentional.
The Arizona Republic (a liberal rag) printed a sob story today about an illegal who graduated, went to college, got her teachers degree and now is whining that she can’t get a job because – she’s still illegal. She felt the degree would “shield her from deportation.” And apparently teaching is an job that “American’s won’t do.”
When I read this, my first thought was this was the perfect example of why in-state tutions for illegals is a bad idea. We give them a free K-12 education, they want free or reduced rate college. Give them college, they want a job, and the right to stay because they managed to stay under the radar and feel they should be rewarded for this feat. Where does the gravy train end?
I wonder if this has anything to do with the fact that Massachusetts is de-populating? For the past couple of weeks the Sunday Globe has been running articles on the demographic changes taking place here. Most recently they claimed that over a third of baby-boomers planned on leaving. I think the Dem’s are afraid of losing seats in congress. . .