Wednesday night I will be meeting with my Activist group. Like always, we must continue to push our administration to move forward quickly.

When addressing my freinds I would not like to see them in a segregated category labeled "the undocumented." I would like them to fall into the category of "people" because that is who they are "people" just like everyone else in this country.

The faster we get this problem fixed; the quicker we will re-unite familys and take the power away from profit buracreacys. Also, I agree that we need to move forward and become more liberal with our legal immigration and its quotas.

Guest Workers would be OK providing they are given an opportunity for a path to citizenship because we wouldn't want to have the same problem again where people plant there roots and overstay their visa and fall out of status.

we wouldn't want to have the same problem again where people plant there roots and overstay their visa and fall out of status

So you think to answer to people who break the law - is to change the law?

(So you think to answer to people who break the law - is to change the law?)

Most of these people who broke the law many years ago have lived a fair share of suffering living in the shadows of fear in a system where they planted roots. Many of these people have had familys with our fellow Americans "US borned citizens" and the question I ask you Wire is: Have you ever broken a law? and what is a reasonable punishment when a law is broken?

To answer your question should the law be changed? Yes it should be changed and with that change a sufficient fine should be paid with a reasonable path to citizenship.

*This is the plan that 63% of your fellow Americans agree with.

Well I did not exactly mean "white people". What I meant was just because we were so lucky to be born here, white black purple blue whatever, does not mean we need to discriminate against people who were not so fortunate to be born here, and who want a better life. Should my child have to be punished because her father was not born here? I do not see immigrants as "criminals" so I disagree with that. People who do crimes and have to go to prison, REAL CRIMES, deserve to be there, because they were stupid enough to do something to get there. God gave us free will.

And you know what? God made this earth, He made me and He made you. Who are you or anybody else to say who can go where?

Huh?!

I'm sure you could NEVER understand my pain and what I'm going through now because of immigration, because I guess you were so "perfect" not to date an "illegal immigrant", and not to fall in love with an "illegal immigrant". Well congratulations for you.

You know what?! Maybe us oh so fabulous "American citizens" should gather up a group of people who truly CARE about other people, and go to other countries that are poor and full of families and children who are not so wealthy and can't exactly afford to do a lot of things, like EAT.

But nope, this country is full of arrogant people who are so worried about theirselves that they want to blame how the country is on people who come here from other countries.

Immigration actually asked my fiancee if he had any kids, he told them he had one on the way, and they still deported him. So what was the point in asking if they did not care?

So I guess I should pack up my bags and all my things and my NEWBORN BABY, and just travel to El Salvador, but wait, there are no jobs there, how will I be able to raise my child? So what do I do, just say "oh immigration took him away, so I'll just forget him, forget how much I love him, forget how much he loves me, I mean, it was their RIGHT TO DO SO, so I was wrong to fall in love with an "illegal". WHATEVER!!!

You know the real problem?

The druggies, the alcoholics, the whores, those who simply waste their lives away and bum as much as they can off the government, the rapists, the child molestors, the killers, all them people, maybe we should kick them out because they're taking up our space too.

Forgive me for being angry, I believe I have the right to be. Maybe you just don't understand. But that's okay. Because God does.

I still do not agree with that. You do not choose who you fall in love with, it just happens. And once you find it, you hold on to it, because it's real.

I understand what you're saying.

However, I still disagree with the government and how they split families up because of immigration.

Yeah when my fiancee first came here he should have gotten a visa, or whatever, but he didn't, so we're dealing with the consequences. We have no other choice of course. But he's the father of my child and the way I feel about him will not change.

We'll get through this somehow.

Even if I have to move to El Salvador, even know it's poor. Just because immigration wants to see him as a criminal who broke the law and made him leave does not mean I will be able to forget him. Or to let him go. It's not like he broke my heart and left me, he had no choice.

We were given no options. My grandma hired us an immigration lawyer to try and help stop his deportation, and the lady was retarded as can be and either didn't do her job right or just wanted money and didn't care. So, I had no choice but to deal with the stress and depression of him having to be thousands of miles away from me.

No matter what you say, or the government says, I still feel as if my country has ripped my family apart, and those feelings won't go away.

They literally asked him if he had children! What was the point????! They took him away anyways. If that's not heartless, I don't know what is!

And from where I stand, we do not have the choice as to where we are born, who our parents are, or what nationality we will be. So all this hatred towards immigrants is just rediculous.

Having a conversation with Mark is like talking to a wall--while generally civil, he will never change his position, does not understand the concept of dialogue, and is unwilling to compromise.  In short, he is fully representative of the restrictionist position.  Common sense, compassion, and historical context have no place in the restrictionist universe.  Thankfully, most voters are practical people and not ideologues and understand that this issue will only find resolution when reasonable people sit down and make reasonable compromises. 

Unfortunately, Brittney, there are very few politicians who are aware of the situations faced by families like yours, and fewer still who are willing to expend any political capital on behalf of U.S. citizen spouses and children of people who have already been deported.  One of the goals of this blog is to change that.  You help by telling your story and letting the rest of us know this is not right.  Mark is not representative of most voting Americans, don't let him discourage you, in fact I wouldn't waste any more time even talking to him.

Well I'm glad to get my story out there. I'm only 18 years old I've never dealt with something like this ever. It's literally killing me to be here without him. I can understand that there are laws against illegal immigration. However, I still do not see my fiancee as a criminal. I've been through so many tears and I feel like I'm really going crazy. I'm about to be a mother, and the father of this child cannot be here, however much he wants to, still cannot. I wish he could just buy a plane ticket and be here within a day or so. But he cannot. So I am faced to try and be patient, deal with my emotions, and try to stick it out. I miss him terribly. And since he was deported, it's going to make it a thousand times harder to get him back home with us where he belongs. Unless we wait out the ten year bar. But that is a very very long time. I just feel so lost and hurt, and so confused. I feel like I have no idea what to do. When all I want is for the love of my life to be here with me.

See talking about this is making my eyes all teary.

Mark is very hard headed and very stuck on his opinions, I guess I can respect that.

However, I'm very stuck on my opinions as well.

Thanks for reading my story Dave. I sent you a message. I don't know if you got it.

"Unfortunately, Brittney, there are very few politicians who are aware of the situations......One of the goals of this blog is to change that."

Mr. Bennion maybe it's not wise to ask an open ended question, but are you aware that I'm on the ballot as an independent candidate for Governor in New Jersey?  Never mind I'm probably never catching on, the fact is that I'm there if anyone wants to register their disapproval of the status quo.   Have you read any of my threads on the "NY Times profile of Kris...blah, blah?"

And one other thing, although I'm a Republican I did take a swipe at Mr. Lindley the other day, then he made some sense in one of his other threads, but now i see he's torturing Britney, who's what 18, I skimmed through (yet i expect people to read what I write closely?)

the web site is http://steinforgovernor.com

Ok I apologize I couldnt think of another word. But if they do not see him as a criminal... why did they lock him up, for like 2 and a half months, just waiting until it was convienient for them to have a plane ready for him to fly back to El Salvador.

It really doesn't matter what you say, it only matters what the government decides.

I only pray that they will have some compassion in their hearts and try and understand the negatives that come from immigration.

I really feel like I'm going insane.

Sometimes I feel like I want to just fall down on my knees and ball my eyes out. I don't know how much of this I can take.

I seriously just want him back home with me.

I'm scared my labor is going to be long and painful because I'm so depressed that I am not motivated to do much of anything... only sit at home. I see everyone around me just going on with their lives, and it makes me feel so sad. I know they don't feel my pain, how could they? But it's just so strange to me, to be here without him, after a whole year of being together 24/7, and then all the sudden he's just gone... thousands of miles away.

Some people may say it's my fault for getting with him, some of my family say why couldn't he just be American. But you know what, I don't care what anybody else thinks. I'm in love with an illegal immigrant, and he got taken away from me. And it hurts.

"Yes, our government has been lax  in the enforcement of our immigration laws"  I assume that was in response to my comment about our screwed up government but I'd go further because I buy into the argument that we looked the other way for years in order to satisfy big business.

I am running on a platform of amnesty, but it's not going to get me elected because for one, I ain't got no money.  And even if i did I'm still lacking in a lot of other departments, charisma for one.  Brutally honest though might get me a small following and maybe I'd start something some one else could finish.

Have you looked at my web site http://steinforgovernor ?  What's wrong with amnesty, if that plus a boycott of Mexico could be the linchpins to fixing what's wrong with Mexico i.e., corruption?  They'd listen hard if the money wasn't heading south any more.  The good folks would rather stay there if they could, we all know that.  that country is rich but it's being wasted.  The wall doesn't address the continuing problem of poverty in Mexico.  We have enough Mexicans and Hispanics here to really put the screws on Mexico if we'd all get together.

I sincerely hope Mr. Bennion is not "too busy" to respond to the other thread where I asked him a question and also mentioned your name.  I appreciated your time and response.  You or he tell me where I'm wrong?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9B8z2zPmSM

oh brother, I posted this comment down below by mistake...

"look which one comes out as a proper link, no charisma"

 http://steinforgovernor.com

Brittney,

It is NOT your fault.  In fact, you have made a very eloquent appeal that should demonstrate to anyone with a heart why these laws are unconscionable and cruel.  Dave is right: Mr. Lindley is an ideologue with an agenda (why else would he spend so much time on a pro-migrant blog?).  As such, he is incapable of understanding your situation, much less displaying any compassion.  I wouldn't waste even two minutes of your valuable time worrying about him or debating him (it just gives him a forum for his hate).  You don't have to justify yourself to anyone, Brittney. 

I admire your courage and your commitment to your relationship. And I understand that you are going through a very traumatic ordeal, and you are very young, which is hard.  I'm about ten years older, so I hope you'll forgive me for offering a bit of advice. I think it's vital that you find people who can support you emotionally at this difficult time.  If your immediate family isn't able to do that, then you should look to others who have a better understanding of what you're going through.  You are not alone...there are many young women and families who are going through very similar traumas.  You may want to connect with some of these folks. Check out Families for Freedom: 

http://www.familiesforfreedom.org/

I also recommend that you find a counselor at your school, or some older person you trust to talk to.  Anyone who blames you or makes you feel bad about yourself is not worth your time.  You are obviously a bright and sensitive young woman. Choose someone as caring as you are and you will be in good hands. My heart goes out to you and I wish the best outcome for you. Let us know how it goes.

Analisa glad to see you back, and your comment to Brittney was very sweet.  I wish Mr. Bennion would finish what he started and answer my thread.  I was to the Mexican consulate in Philadelphia in the old Bourse building many times, I'm sure he's familiar with it practising immigration law in Phily.

Thanks, Gary.  Listen, I can't speak for Mr. Bennion, but in a way, it looks like you're using this blog to promote your own agenda, which is your campaign for Governor.  That's not bad if you're willing to listen and engage in the topics that Dave has posted.  But you yourself have admitted that you don't like to read - that you just skim posts.  That's a problem that most of the nativists appear to share.  Listen, I'm willing to engage you if you will kindly take the time to read at least one of the articles I posted.  For instance, if you would actually read Laura Carlsen's piece Behind the Latin American Food Crisis, you'll find that it does treat the crisis in Mexico and not just Haiti.

http://americas.irc-online.org/am/5236

Forgive me for saying this, but how can you think of running for office if you don't like to read or bring yourself up to date on a major issue like this?  I'm guessing that Dave probably doesn't take you seriously, and that's why he's not responding (but I could be wrong). 

 Listen, I'm willing to continue the discussion, but please show me that you're serious first.  I suggest you actually take the time to read Dave's blogs and respond to the topic at hand. Stop trying to promote your campaign so much...be willing to listen and learn. Then you might have a more receptive audience. Just a bit of friendly advice: Waving amnesty around like a carrot is unlikely to garner you much support here.  I realize I'm giving you a hard time right now. But if you're serious about running for office, you're going to have to answer some of the tough questions, right? Please don't take offense. I'm doing you a favor by pointing this out.  I will soon stop engaging you if I get the idea that you're just here with an agenda like the other nativists.  Peace. 

Hi Ana Lisa I am back! I see the guy who is running for governer in NJ is actually posting here. Both of the candidates Chistie and Corizine are both on the pro platform with Immigration so where does Gary Stein differ from the others?? Just curious?? because he is going to get hit with direct questions and unlike other elections around 62% of Americans happen to be for the amnesty part of reform so when a candidate waves a carrot around they better make sure they do not anger the minority vote in NJ.

"Both of the candidates Chistie and Corizine are both on the pro platform with Immigration" are you saying they're for amnesty?  prove it to me please and anilisa have you skimmed my web site or read it closely?  When I said I skimmed the links you provided I thought I said enough about their content to indicate to you I didn't think you proved your point.  The one talked about a food crisis in Haiti not Mexico.  I'm going to bed, the candidate has to rest, will look forward to talking with you ladies in the morning.  I work nights and I'm off on Mondays.  Some candidate heh!

thanks analisa. :)

I cried reading your comment. I'm very emotional right now. It's been so very hard without my fiancee here with me. I extremely dislike immigration and I hope they hurry up and change things. I really do.

I know that God is with us. And with Him all things are possible. So I'm praying and praying every single day.

I can't believe it has been 4 months I have been without my fiancee, and I can't even talk to him on the phone as much as I would like because it's so expensive. It's so hard.

And because I'm pregnant, and I got in a serious relationship, I got pretty distant from my friends, and my family is going through their own things but I know if I need to talk they'll listen.

Brittney,

It must be terribly hard to be without your fiancee when you're about to give birth.  But I'm very relieved to hear that your family will listen if you need to talk.  You can email me if you would like.  I sent you a friend request.  You are a very eloquent advocate for immigrant rights, Brittney.  Thank you for sharing your story with us. :-)

Okay Gary, since you don't like to read, I will help you out just this once.  But if you are running for office, this is an issue you can't afford to be ignorant about:

In January of 2007 tens of thousands of Mexicans marched in the streets to protest a leap of 50% in the price of corn tortillas. Although many analysts have attributed the sudden spike to a rise in international prices due to demand for ethanol production, the root cause is far more complex and predates the biofuels boom.

The Bank of Mexico reports that in 2007 Mexico paid $5 billion dollars more for 127 basic foods and agricultural inputs than in 2005—a 62% increase. Two-thirds of the increases were for five products: corn, wheat, soy, powdered milk, and seeds. The cost of Mexico's food dependency totally cancelled out its windfall earnings from high oil prices.

Here's the link:

http://americas.irc-online.org/am/5236

Gary, you should be aware of what the peasant farmers themselves have to say:

 Without Corn there is no Country National Campaign

*Mexico is a country of malnourished people, where the right to food is systematically violated. On one side, 20 million Mexicans are under-nourished and suffer from anemia. As in sub-Saharan Africa, they are principally children under five-years-old who live in rural areas and are members of indigenous communities.

[...]

*Thanks to the neoliberal social and economic policies that have deepened with NAFTA, inequality in Mexico has gone up (the richest 10% of the population controls 65% of our national wealth; president Calderón can boast the proud record of having one of the richest men in the world as a Mexican while at the same time we have the lowest growth rate of all of Latin American and the Caribbean).

*In sum, NAFTA was negotiated by and for the large corporations of North America. In Mexico, NAFTA was negotiated badly and implemented even worse.

*We have lost our sovereignty and become a dependent country; the agreement has only benefited large corporations and a small minority of agro-exporters, making losers of our farmers, our workers, and our environment.

It is worthwhile to read the solutions they propose, too (scroll to the end: Our proposal for the renegotiation of NAFTA and the construction of a new era of cooperation for sustainable development.

well, my tags for italics are a bit squirrely today.  Anyway, here's the link for that post:

http://upsidedownworld.org/main/content/view/1824/68/

Hey Mary,

Glad to see you're back :-) I missed you!  You know, I was asking myself the same question.  I don't really see how Gary's platform differs from the other candidates.  Anyway, this issue is a non-starter, as far as I'm concerned. We are well aware that amnesty isn't even on the table right now.  The trade-off appears to be between a strenuous and punitive "path to citizenship" in exchange for stepped-up enforcement measures. But, as you know, this will only serve to perpetuate the the same problems as before, while solving very little that's wrong with the system. We are looking for sensible, humane reform, not just an amnesty or a "path to citizenship." Any reforms must be comprehensive and address the entire system which is broken. 

I'm not sure that he really understands where we are coming from in the grassroots -- not that we all think alike, but we share many of the same concerns. Any reform bill that is truly comprehensive should address the raids, private (for-profit) prisons, racial profiling and other issues of deep concern to immigrant communities. We are willing to compromise, however we do not wish to enter into a faustian bargain that criminalizes hard-working immigrant families while dangling the carrot of "amnesty" (or "path to citizenship") in front of our noses.  Anyway, I'll let Dave debate him if he feels so inclined.  I tend to lose patience with pols who don't care to educate themselves on the issues. 

I'm sorry I can't read what that says.

Looks like a bunch of jibberish to me.

You're a very negative person I can tell that, I wish you the best with whatever it is you do in life.

Brittney I thought maybe you might enjoy this song from a favorite singer of mine with her little boy back in the 60's.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hv7VSbYkjDo&feature=fvw

you asked "why should we suck it up and reward illegal entry?"  because for one thanks to the unintended consequences of building the wall (which I along with you support) the folks aren't going home, even for a visit, knowing there not going to get back so easy if at all, so inevitably we are going to reward them because you can't deport 12 million people. 

No opinion about what I said about a boycott and the holding back of remittances- then amnesty?  Every one wants to focus on the extreme left or right position and not a  (my)compromise that's staring them right in the face.

I am sympathetic to your two years of banging your head against the wall--that is what I feel my last three years of immigration practice have been.  But it's just my day job not my life like it is for my clients.  People get worn down over time and give up.  But the tide is turning ...

I live by the Bourse but havne't been to the Mexican consulate.  I respect any candidate who titles their position "pro-amnesty"--I seriously doubt the other candidates have done that.  But I haven't reviewed the other details of your position.  Also I won't be bullied into responding to anyone.

Mr. Beninnion, Empty threats, bullying that's what I've been reduced to and it's so easy to do on the internet; you're not face to face with anyone.  You should see some of my e-mails I send out to hot shots in the media, the sarcasm, it didn't start out that way, but they never respond and I never stop e-mailing.   I just hope they're slightly amused and they’ll respect the persistence over time.  All I want is one reporter to travel with me to Mexico and write the best story they’ll do all year, but I can't make ant headway with analisa or Mr. Lindley, why should any news outlet listen to me?  Ana lisa might be surprised to learn that I feel the same way she does about the term “illegal alien.”  It makes me cringe, probably because I’ve known so many and developed personal relationships with them, but most Americans haven’t.

Anyway I’m thrilled you responded, and I’m glad you’re smarter than me and try and limit your efforts to working hours, that’s much healthier.   I’m nuts.  Something happened to me when I visited Mexico, deep in the countryside- I came back processed, a madman.  I was back 3 more times and it was indirectly tied to my (our) many visits to the Bourse building to get documentation, (and the 6 pair of free roundtrip tickets I received on US Airways,  thanks to the US Customs Agency.)

Ana lisa knows I’m using this blog in some way or another to campaign, and she also doesn’t think I read enough.  I’ll give myself a plug wherever I can.  I’m halfway through a 600 page book titled “A World of Trouble,” The White House and the Middle East- from the Cold War to the War on Terror, by Patrick Tyler.  Let’s hope immigration reform fairs better than that mess. 

If anyone is looking for a light but incrediably informing summer read, I recommend a book (analisa) that tells the story of  how the world has managed to feed 6 billion people after all the experts at the turn of the 20th century warned of impending mass starvations by the second decade of the new century.  There’s a revelation on every page.  Ever wonder why there was mass starvation in China in the 50’s and 60’s when the rest of the world was feeding their citizens?  If I remember correctly that was answered in I think only one or two paragraphs. (and food scarcity has more to do with transportation than any shortage of food)

http://usfoodpolicy.blogspot.com/2008/07/thomas-hager-alchemy-of-air.html

I guess this wraps up my thread Mr. Benion, I’m nuts, I’m shameless, and I’m not looking for any new accounts for our business like I should, I’m not doing my chores around the house and I’m stubbornly going to see this thing through and not let my friend in Mexico down.

I’ll respond to the ladies a little later on with more excess, maybe you could just listen in.  This stuff is important to all of us trying to get immigration reform.  Thanks. and p.s. to Mr. Lindle, I doubt anyone is messing with your post, maybe you're transferring your message over from "Word," like me, and you didn't delete all the computer script from the field.  Tisk , tisk.

Do we want to go the way of a police state?  everyone chooses to ignore what i said about a boycott and illegals holding back remittances to try- just a try- at changing the culture of corruption down there.  Has any one been there who's blogging besides me?  The damn country is better positioned than we are, and certainly better than Canada.

Who's been there?  I asked the other day and I said Cancun and the border region don't count.  Anybody?

I recall you wondering aloud in another thread why our crowd wasn't for e-verify if it was just a matter of documenting who's here in the country.  Were you being a little disingenuous?  Be honest.

I was outside in a separate building (couldn't wait to come back and check my e-mail, face it we're addicted) at our home where the record collection is and I had the Airplane on.  Reminded me of a link I'd put into a story I wrote on the left wing blog the daily kos.  It was in a sentence with the word "illegals" I found the link and recopied the address, here it is

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYZ_p63JAiQ&feature=related   

My friend worked for 4 years at a pre-cast concrete plant.  He paid income taxes and never once asked for a refund.  Put that in your pipe and smoke it.  Another friend deliberately stayed away from the local hospital emergency room knowing how others took advantage.  When his family had to go they insisted on paying the bill off in installments.   On the latter, eventually, like any one would in their position they did use some of the free programs available.  My wife is on the other end of that equation, she desperately needs a lot of doctoring diabetes, cancer survivor, heart condition- she doesn't go yet we have in our hearts to have some compassion for our friends in the community.  My wife has taken another woman from her set of friends (my good friend and his and my friends to my north, her group to the south, just happened that way) to the hospital for free care, gall bladder, and served as an interpreter (so the woman could understand doctors directions completely) yet we hold off going ourselves.  The whole thing is very complicated sir, the best thing is to put Mexico on notice and the path to reform by boycotting.  Give the damn amnesty to those here already. Everybody avoids discussing that boycott theme of mine.  I wonder why?  probably because they're more comfortable arguing their narrow position, left and right.

Gary, I respect the fact that you stood up for Brittney and your friend Beto.  I'm sorry, I'm a bit moody today.  I would like to understand why you are running for governor?  Is it to get publicity in order to help your friend?  You'll have to forgive me...I'm a bit suspicious of politicians.  They appear to be selling us down the river on CIR.Anyway, it sounds like you have a lot on your plate. I wish you the best for you.  I truly do. 

analisa, hi, go to

http://immigration.change.org/blog/view/10-year_bars_split_up_families

I suggest to you that our long term security is threatened more by out of control spending on bull shit then by "illegal immigrants" who if they got amnesty would be propping up the social security system for the next 20 years till it got screwed up yet again.  They've propped up enough dying towns in New Jersey, it's a fact, I don't need any convincing.