Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Ranting Again...



It has taken me longer than I had anticipated to get to composing this rant, so some of the steam may have escaped. However, I think that the main points are still intact. Here goes...

Illegal immigration woes are an often debated subject these days. Especially the problem with illegal immigrants from Mexico. I don't disagree that illegal immigration from Mexico is creating many problems here in the USA, and places many burdens on communities that try to provide health care, education, and other services for the illegal Mexicans. On the other side of the coin, these illegal immigrants are providing cheap labor force for industries that need it. Those arguments are not what I am ranting about.

I had the opportunity to chat with a very well educated, legal Mexican immigrant who has previously worked in our area as part of a faith-based organization called FAST (Faith and Action in Service Together). This group organized people to lobby local politicians to provide for community needs such as safer school bus stops. He left our area to work for a national immigration committee. My conversation with this man opened my eyes to a source of some of our illegal immigration problems.

It seems that at one time small individual or family businesses employed 90% of the work force in Mexico. Mexico has a minimum wage that was typically significantly lower than what the majority of the workers earned in these small businesses. Enter the American corporations... Small towns across our country have experienced a bit of what has happened in Mexico. WalMart, Home Depot, or similar types of superstores move into town and with lower prices, drive the smaller stores out of business. In Mexico these corporate gars generally do not pay much above the Mexican minimum wage.

Once again we see the results of corporate greed and arrogance. Fewer jobs, lower wages, and the lure of better things across the border tempt many Mexicans to risk their lives in an attempt to find work in the USA. If they make it (and many don't), they are able to send money home to Mexico to provide for family members left behind. The unlucky ones die crossing or get stuck in sweatshops or other underground jobs that treat them as slaves.

When we complain about these illegal immigrants, I think we need to consider the fact that it is some of our own corporations that are exacerbating the problems. They get to pay lower wages and make higher profits at the expense of both Mexican and American workers. Perhaps before our country spends exorbitant amounts of money on building a wall along the border, we could somehow address what could be done to reverse what our corporations have done in Mexico. If the number of illegal immigrants declines, we will be better able to deal with the smaller numbers and concentrate on those crossing that provide a security risk or are intent mainly on criminal activity.



7 comments:

Anonymous said...

RHODENT for PREZ 08!

Anonymous said...

I think the only way to stem the tide of illegal immigrants from Mexico would be to make Mexico another state in the U.S.
The problem seems to be out of control..

Cliff said...

How about making the U.S. part of Mexico?? We already know they don't want to live in Mexico.
I'll agree with part of this Rhodent. They are doing jobs that Americans won't do...for the same money. Case in point, we have a packing plant within 30 miles of here. A friend worked there 20 years. His first year he made $30K. Over time, they sped the line up X 4 (increased the work load significantly)and his pay slipped to $15K his last year there. Largely due to pressure from migrant workers. The jobs were then classified as jobs Americans won't do.. Well they WERE doing them but now not for that price. I'm sure the plant could have shown documentation on every worker. That's the law, but most were still illegal and not subject to the same taxation as American workers.(with exception of the FICA taxes which they do lose if not legal)
My problem is that most (it would seem) are making no attempt at becoming Americans or members of our society. Instead it is more like a rape of our society by sending all of their money back to Mexico.
I think we must gain control of our borders for security reasons.
And we must gain control of migrant workers for taxing purposes to help pay for the schools, hospitals, welfare, and services that they now use for free.
On another subject...send me an email, I would like your address.

Ralph said...

Rhodent
It's interesting to me that you wrote about corporate greed and arrogance at the same time they are putting up Christmas lights and pumping in Christmas carols.
Ralph

carmilevy said...

Nicely put. I've always referred to the big box retailers as hoovers. They more into a region and suck up everything that's there. Sad.

Anonymous said...

Your sister here--I couldn't agree more. Well done!!

Alisa said...

It is a tough line to be drawn, but a line does have to be drawn or we will find ourselves simply melting as a nation instead of being a melting pot.

The Mexican government needs to step up to the plate and protect it's own citizens by imposing strict regulation regarding corporate pillaging of their cities and towns through wage and labor law.

Unfortunately, with their legal and illegal immigrants in our country supplying their country with American dollars, there is no incentive for the Mexican government to change the status quo. Exporting their people is good business for them.