What has changed economically for families has been the unemployment rate. Unemployment is now 5.7% and is reported to be under 6% since September 2014. Despite the low unemployment numbers, wage gains barely kept up with inflation or not at all. Some even say immigrants grabbed all of those jobs that have come open since 2000, but a better word to have use would have been "most."
It's interesting that "immigrants" fell into the topic of what has changed for families in America over the last two years, and is it a coincidence that the issue of immigration is now, today--March 1, 2015, the cog in the wheel that is holding up the republicans to do the right thing by voting on a bill that would fund the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)? Even republican Congressman, Charlie Dent, said in a matter of words on Meet the Press with Chuck Todd, March 1, 2015, the republicans should treat the funding of DHS and immigration as separate entities in which they are, and to put them together is foolish and destructive to the party.
But the issue at hand doesn't cover up the reports that immigrants have taken a majority of the jobs that have opened up in not only harvesting crops, but in construction, house keeping, lawn maintenance, in restaurants, education, health care, and other areas, plus, immigrants are getting grants and scholarships to attend college that our naturally born citizens, especially white males, can't even touch, which has kept many a white family in poverty for 300 years. Naturally born Americans are just asking for the same opportunities as immigrants, for if immigrants can come to America, rumor has it, and not pay taxes for 10 years, keep all their tax money and save it to open up their own business, naturally born Americans aught to have the same opportunity.
The complaints are legitimate in the minds of both democrat and republican voters, and the complaints shouldn't be construed to mean they don't like immigrants. Ninety percent of Americans are of some European decent.
So I did a little bit of research on this idea that immigrants don't have to pay taxes. Everything I have found indicates that immigrants MUST pay U.S. taxes. The only time they don't have to pay taxes is when they don't have a green card, when they own a house outside the country, have a closer connection to the foreign country than the U.S., and have lived in the U.S. less than 183 days.
Other reports show that illegal aliens are paying upwards of a billion dollars every year in taxes at both the federal and state levels combined. Naturally born Americans would argue that these same benefits to states and the nation would be the same or more if it were naturally born Americans holding down those jobs taken by aliens.
Another complaint Americans have is the thought that more should be done about U.S, businesses hiring illegals. Arizona took some flack on its immigration bill drawn up in 2010 that would penalize U.S. businesses when they hired illegals. As a result of the bill, two hundred thousand undocumented Mexicans left Arizona, and Georgia and Alabama drew up similar laws. Despite the states taking on illegal immigration where the federal government would not, protests by Mexican-Americans flared up in California and other parts of the nation showing unity and a strong push for immigration reform.
Probably the meanest thing to come out of Arizona's SB1070 was another enactment that with held $14 million in education funds if the Mexican-American courses were not taken out of Arizona's school districts. When a child must hide who he/she is and are caused to feel ashamed of his/her own race, that is an atrocity in itself.
So what has changed in the last two years? Maybe a little bit of financial relief for some naturally born Americans. Much has changed for undocumented aliens. President Obama wants to give them all amnesty by giving them all citizenship. Will that happen? Only time will tell. Will the action be fair or unfair? The answer to that question is in the mind of each beholder.
The only thing I know, is whatever happens, God loves us all and the rain rains upon the just and the unjust. We are all in this world together, so why let a thing called "supply and demand" get in the way of loving one another? Let's find some room in the Inn.
It's not so much the illegal aliens the problem, it's more about businesses wanting cheap labor, and the illegals fit the bill. Eventually, those who are illegal aliens now will get simulated into the American culture and demand higher wages, which will then set off another wave of illegal immigrants to move into the U.S. It's a cycle that has been going on for centuries. The U.S. talks about the cycle of poverty. For a change, we should get real and talk about the cycle of labor, wages, and big business that keeps people poor. You can call it whatever you want, "deflation," "inflation," "power struggles"...when it comes right down to it, businesses want more for less. Is it an ugly fact that all businesses must practice in order to stay alive? Maybe I'll tackle this question next. Until then, find peace within yourself and don't let those who criticize you make you stumble.
