{"id":159,"date":"2003-03-01T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2003-03-01T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/opendna.com\/?p=159"},"modified":"2003-03-01T12:00:00","modified_gmt":"2003-03-01T12:00:00","slug":"la-migra-is-dead-long-live-la-migra","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/opendna.com\/blog\/2003\/03\/01\/la-migra-is-dead-long-live-la-migra\/","title":{"rendered":"LA MIGRA IS DEAD! LONG LIVE LA MIGRA!"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Department of Homeland Security is finally in
\neffect<\/a>. Well, kinda. I mean, nobody
\nactually knows what’s changed<\/a> so we’re doing everything we were doing
\nyesterday. Except we’re instead of answering the phone “INS, Inspector
\nSo-an-so” we’re supposed to say “Bureau of Customs and Border Protection
\nwithin the Department of Homeland Security, Inspector So-an-so”. Go ahead:
\ntry it!<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Hey, someone<\/i> thought that was a good idea.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Anyway, now the INS is officially dead, I’d like to take this moment to
\nshare some thoughts on our dearly departed bureaucracy. It was often
\nfeared, frequently maligned, rarely exalted and almost never understood.
\nThe unfair attacks that were leveled against the INS, may it rest in
\npieces, fill volumes. I now offer a brief frisking of the insults, for
\nyour own edification.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Experts had long noted the fundamental inconsistency of an agency
\ncharged with keeping out many would-be immigrants while helping others
\nachieve legal status and citizenship—and simultaneously doing
\nrelatively little to search for and deport the millions of illegal
\nimmigrants already in the United States.<\/i><\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Personally, I don’t see any inconsistency in having the same people who
\ngrant permissions enforce penalties. Such a situation provides a carrot
\nand a stick to would-be immigrants under a single authority. As for
\nsearching for and deporting illegal immigrants already in the states:
\nthere are more than 9 million illegal immigrants in California alone. Can
\nyou image the sort of police actions that would be required to arrest,
\ndetain and remove 9 million people? <\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\nNo, the “inconsitency” comes from having waivers and exemptions that allow
\npeople who are in the U.S. illegally to jump the cue and avoid adverse
\naction. How are you going to enforce immigration laws when someone who has
\nviolated all the laws about entering the country is still a contender for
\ncitizenship? Blame congress for that one.<\/p>\n

Then we get down to the simple stuff like “it takes so LONG for paper to
\nget processed.” Yeah, well, blame Reagan. It was his idea to let give
\neveryone illegally in the country a green card so they could petition on
\nbehalf of their family members. Applications grow geometrically. Try from
\noutside the U.S. like you’re supposed to.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

“The INS denied my visa\/issued visas to terrorists\/etc.” No, the INS did
\nnot. The State Deparment handles visas. If the INS handled visas they
\nwould refuse them to countries which refused to recieve deported citizens
\nor had high rates of immigration violations. If 60% of your tourists never
\ngo home (as an entirely hypothetical example without any<\/i> reference
\nin real life…) the INS would just close up shop. The DOS isn’t so
\nconcerned.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

“They’re paranoid.” We’re paranoid so you don’t have to be.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

(Hey, I’m going to suggest that be put in latin on the seal of the DHS.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Department of Homeland Security is finally in effect. Well, kinda. I mean, nobody actually knows what’s changed so we’re doing everything we were doing yesterday. Except we’re instead of answering the phone “INS, Inspector So-an-so” we’re supposed to say “Bureau of Customs and Border Protection within the Department of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"webmentions_disabled_pings":false,"webmentions_disabled":false,"activitypub_content_warning":"","activitypub_content_visibility":"","activitypub_max_image_attachments":3,"activitypub_interaction_policy_quote":"anyone","activitypub_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[20,23],"class_list":["post-159","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-on-the-line","tag-immigration","tag-usa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/opendna.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/159","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/opendna.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/opendna.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opendna.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opendna.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=159"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/opendna.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/159\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/opendna.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=159"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opendna.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=159"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opendna.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=159"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}