Vigilanteism, or concerned citizens?

[darrelx]

A group in Oceanside (North County San Diego) is going to spend a month "camping out" along a 20-mile stretch of the Arizona-Mexico border that has been dubbed the largest hole in our border security with Mexicohttp://www.nctimes.com/articles/2005 ( Read more... )

Comments

[draggo]

It looks more like Mexico is still quite corrupt even though President Fox is doing all he can to get rid of such corruption. Also if they are going to file civil suits against the minutemen then it seems like Mexico doesn't want their own poor citizens in their own country and they want them to illegally move to the US.

[darrelx]

I think what Mexico doesn't want to admit is that their highest grossing export is probably their citizens who send some of the money they make here (tax free) back to their families in Mexico.

1.2 Million illegal immigrants entered the country in 2004 through the mexican border. 51% of them entered via Arizona.

At least the Border Patrol is sending 500 more officers to the area where the Minutemen will be camping out. That's a good thing.

I'm all for immigration IF IT'S DONE LEGALLY. I'm against all these cash-paid under-the-table jobs given to illegal immigrants because they avoid income tax, disability insurance, etc. which make MY taxes higher to support them.

[draggo]

Something that would help a lot is for the Federal Government to force all state governments to deny all public services to illegal immigrants except for a free trip back to the country they came from. I know California is a huge offender for this kind of stuff.

[farlo]

Totally.

I was once in a position that the only heathcare that I could afford was a local free clinic. The majority of the room was mexican citizens, and this was in El Cajon (east san diego county).

[agt]

If a layman witnesses a hit-and-run collision, it's straightforward for him to determine both that a crime was committed, and by whom.

If a layman witnesses a brown-skinned individual walking through the Arizona desert at night, it's much less obvious that a crime is being committed. Perhaps that person is just out for their evening constitutional.

[agt]

NB, I fully support the Minutemen and their activities.

I also believe they are correct to leave the arrest operations to trained and deputized peace officers. I don't like the idea of joe-random-citizen being allowed to forcibly detain me just for being unable to produce identification. Hell, I'm not entirely comfortable with sworn peace officers being able to do that.

[esprix]

Agreed. It's the border patrol's job to patrol the border, not Joe Schmoe's, and I would be deathly afraid of EVERYONE'S civil liberties if they were allowed to do so.