Yearning to Breath Free

So someone recently sent me an article from CNN.com about a Guatemalan man who has worked illegally in the US for the last 11 years. He saved his money over all those years so that he could take it back to buy land and a home for his family in Guatemala. Unaware of US customs regulations, he attempted to go through airport security with his savings in a suitcase - all $59,000 of it in cash. For anyone who is familiar with US customs, you cannot leave or enter the country with more than $10,000 in cash without declaring it to customs so that it can be taxed. So, in the end the entire sum of this man's savings was confiscated and he is in the process of being deported. He has filed suit against the US, but the likelihood of getting his money back is slim.

This story demonstrates some of the issues that arise with immigration. By all rights, since the man was here illegally, the government is entirely in the right when taking his money and kicking him out of the country. Of course, most people, including myself, believe that this punishment far outweighs the crime. After all, this man did not gain any money through illicit means. He provided a valuable service as a dishwasher for 11 years, and was financially prudent enough to save $59,000 over those 11 years - a feat that most Americans working at the same job would be unable to match. However, because he failed to jump through the hoops we have set up to keep non-Americans out of the workforce he has no right to his earnings. This is the law as it stands.

On the other hand, I do believe that there is a need for boarder and port protection. Not to control immigration, or protect the American workforce, but to keep out possible security threats. As much as I would like to support completely free human movement across international boarders, there are simply too many people who wish us harm currently to safely allow that. Of course, I believe that a change of our foreign policy could change that, but that's another debate.

At any rate, I'd like to get people's opinions about this story and immigration in general. Post your replies and see what people think! I will post a link to the story referenced above if I can find it.

G'night,
TheStoph


I found the story: http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/09/27/immigrant.money/index.html?iref=mpstoryview

Free Market Cure

Here is an answer to all the people who tell me Canadians are happy with their health care system and that ours should be just like it: freemarketcure.com

I haven't read through the whole site yet, just watched the videos, but they're very enlightening. Enjoy.