Dream Act, Dream On

Passage of the Dream Act looks bleak for the forseeable future, given the influx of Republican congress reps. It would allow about 2 million "illegal" immigrants to become citizens if they came to the U.S. before they were 16 & they finish college or military service before they are 35.

There are many in Congress who feel that our country is flooded with poor people from other countries who are taking scarce jobs from U.S. workers. They want these people out. They want more secure borders. They want to cut off any health or education to discourage them from coming.

How many of these representatives voted against measures that allow U.S. corporations to move their operations to other countries where the labor is cheaper? When corporations move operations to cheap labor countries it's called "outsourcing", and often includes tax loopholes, but when people from poor countries come to the U.S. to get work, it's never called "in-sourcing." They are "aliens."

For me, outsourcing would be acceptable if environmental standards were upheld and labor was paid fairly (not usually the case). I just think a lot of elected officials speak with "forked tongues."

Whitman Proposal to Resolve Illegal Immigration

California gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman unveiled a bold proposal today to stop the flow of illegal immigrants from Mexico and other Latin American countries. At a press conference in the Silicon Valley, the former CEO of EBAY said she would work with major employers throughout the high tech industry to outsource over a million jobs south of the border.

Whitman, who has considerable experience in both layoff-management and outsourcing is bringing together her skills and vision to create a California with considerably less traffic congestion on its freeways, less smog, and far fewer illegal immigrants. Critics have pointed to a huge hike in unemployment benefit costs that will impact the state, but Whitman points out that she will keep those benefits lean and temporary. Unemployed workers are more likely to leave the state, or fill the many gardener, housekeeper, restaurant, and nanny openings when "the illegals" hurry home to scoop up the high tech assembly jobs.

Wall Street is already showing a favorable response to the Whitman Plan that promises profits and lowered costs for key corporations.