Where does an alien go to register?

If an elderly senior citizen doesn't understand something, they'll often say that phrase or the more commonly used, "It's all Greek to me."  That's right boys and girls, I'm going to talk about illegal immigration.  This will probably be a long post, but those are the breaks. 

I want to say a few things before I get into an idea for a possible solution.  First, I need to be clear that I have nothing against people wanting to immigrate to the U.S.  While we have our problems here, I still believe the "Grand Experiment" is a great place to live.  Secondly, people who come here illegally are breaking the law.  If you don't like the law, then work towards getting it changed.  If you just want to hoot and holler about the government breaking up families, you'll get no sympathy from me.  The people experiencing these situations knew what they were getting into the moment they decided to enter this country illegally.

Now, for a solution.  I think it's pretty clear we need to secure our borders before implementing any kind of policy change.  I'm not talking about a fence, electrified or not.  I'm talking about increasing border patrol manpower and buildings.  "But that costs money."  So what?  If national security is that important, and I think it is, you're going to have to spend money to make it happen.

Once the border is secure, we then require registration of all illegal immigrants.  If they don't want to register, they will be deported.  Those that just want to work here and send money home will have to find something else to do with their time, as this practice isn't immigration.  Those that register will be given a background check.  During this time, they may continue to work for their employer with no penalty to either party.  Once the background check is complete, the immigrant is given a work permit.  I still haven't worked out how to deal with the employer, since obviously there is no paperwork.  However, I think this could probably be dealt with through some kind of audit to verify revenue is indeed going somewhere.  I don't have a business background, but perhaps someone who does could shed some light on this area.  The point is, if the employer wants to challenge the audit and they're found to have lied about the immigrant, they will be fined the cost of the audit as well as a penalty for employing someone illegally.  If the immigrant is found to have falsely identified an employer, their work permit is revoked and they will be deported. 

The immigrant would then be put into the pool to become a citizen and pay a fine under negotiable terms.  The normal immigration process would then be followed.  The employer, if found to be employing the immigrant, would have the option of hiring the immigrant as a legal worker at the minimum (or above) wage, or provide the immigrant with a severance with no further penalty.

In closing, there is no one absolute solution to the problem of illegal immigration.  I have given what I think is a fair solution for everyone involved.  The crime rate would undoubtedly drop in illegal immigrant communities, due to those previously afraid of deportation not having that fear anymore.  While I don't agree with illegal immigrants coming into this country, that doesn't mean I want them to suffer either.  What are your thoughts on this issue?

One puff too many...

I've always thought of addiction as something that happened to other people.  It turns out yours truly is addicted to nicotine.  I've also always thought the withdrawals from nicotine were relatively minor - headache, flu like symptoms, etc.  I've come to realize (the hard way) that nicotine withdrawals, at least in my case, are very real and very scary.  I'm one of the lucky ones that gets to experience the joys of the panic attack.  Imagine feeling the walls closing in.  Imagine having the sensation that your throat is closing.  Imagine feeling lightheaded and you're going to pass out, but you don't (although you get to keep feeling like you will).  Now imagine there's absolutely nothing you can do about it (the drama...the horror).    

Anyway, I have a new appreciation for the struggles people go through when having withdrawals (even though oftentimes the cause is admittedly their own fault), and figured I would put my thoughts on digital paper.   

Reboot...

After a couple years of inactivity, I'm finally back.  I'm hoping to use this blog as a means of self expression on a wide range of topics: politics, random thoughts, and things I think about when I should be falling asleep but just can't quite make it to Dreamland.  I would also hope it becomes a forum for the exchange of ideas, but that's probably too much to ask for at this point.