61–70 of 337 posts
Terrific story. I can't understand how even the most heartless xenophobe could possibly support the deportation of a someone who graduated from a US university. Utterly self-defeating from a social and an economic standpoint.
Crime has consequences, no matter how nice/good/smart you are. Do the paperwork, follow the process, come in legally - like my wife did.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
America remains the most meritocratic country in the world This needs a citation. America-is-great chest pounding aside, the only reputable reference I remember seeing about this was from the Economist, who claimed that the correlation between your wealth and that of your parents is stronger in the US than in many European countries. So it seems that, at least measured in that way, the US is not a particularly good m…
That would not be strong refuting evidence. Given both genetics and environment factors (smart successful parents have more to teach, perhaps), I would expect successful children from successful parents. On the other hand, in a society where success were arbitrary, I would expect high incoherence between parent and child success. I suppose by "anyone can make it" we could literally mean, "irrespective of your abiliti…
This is an assertion which, conveniently enough for those on the top, is entirely indistinguishable from a class society. It could be that you are right and that all the low-wage workers in the U.S. are low-wage because they are just plain dumb and not at all because they never had any of the opportunities growing up that children of well-off parents do. Personally, I don't put nearly so much power in genetic determinism.
It's really courageous of him to come ahead with his story. I really hope he gets shipped back to the Philippines. Go ahead and call me a xenophobe now. Whatev. I think it is in poor form for the NYT to print this manipulative article that tries to make me feel bad for the gay, minority, do-gooder author and excuse his years of criminally fraudulent behavior. Sure, call me heartless. But, this guy is cheating you, an…
It's really courageous of him to come ahead with his story. I really hope he gets shipped back to the Philippines. Go ahead and call me a xenophobe now. Whatev. I think it is in poor form for the NYT to print this manipulative article that tries to make me feel bad for the gay, minority, do-gooder author and excuse his years of criminally fraudulent behavior. Sure, call me heartless. But, this guy is cheating you, an…
Hence, he is cheating[1].
[1] Wikipedia defines cheating as, "... the breaking of rules to gain advantage in a competitive situation." That seems to be a accurate summary of the author's activities. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheating.
I have no beef with this guy who was basically forced into breaking the law before he could have responsibility for his actions. But overall I just feel that the compassion about immigration is misplaced. I don't understand why all the pro-immigration people say "look at these poor undocumented immigrants -- we should make life better for them." I think the people we should have compassion for are the people who are…
How is living in limbo for a decade, with literally no single piece of paper identifying you as a human being is "cutting in line?" And why can't we tackle these problems at the same time? Why can't we even tackle these problems _one_ at a time? The Dream Act has been under review since 2001. It is a bill that can be voted on and passed in literally two days. Why not? ... I'll answer. Our impotent Congress, two year…
Because other kids who might have liked to live in the US and go to a top university didn't get to. You got what you wanted faster because your family broke the law.
I still believe that children who are brought here illegally should get a lot more leniency because they weren't responsible for their actions.
It's really courageous of him to come ahead with his story. I really hope he gets shipped back to the Philippines. Go ahead and call me a xenophobe now. Whatev. I think it is in poor form for the NYT to print this manipulative article that tries to make me feel bad for the gay, minority, do-gooder author and excuse his years of criminally fraudulent behavior. Sure, call me heartless. But, this guy is cheating you, an…
What years of criminally fraudlent behavior? He was brought into the country at age 12. Legally, he wasn't even capable of committing fraud because he hadn't reached the age of criminal responsibility. You can't even hold someone under the age of 18 to a contract, which is why most companies require an adult co-signer for any minor who wants to enter into one.
But, he was not a minor or forced against his will when he decided to check the citizen box on the I-9, or when he decided to pursue a writing career in New York instead of Manilla, or every time he decided as an adult to stay in the USA while knowing he was here illegally.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Crime has consequences, no matter how nice/good/smart you are. Do the paperwork, follow the process, come in legally - like my wife did.
The point at which law becomes a hinderance and not help is when it gets changed or broken. Basically, all you are suggesting is: go find a "citizen" to trap in matrimony in order to be a legal immigrant? The matrimony route is especially relevant, since in the US it is the one of the faster means to obtaining citizenship compared to other methods immigrate legally. Here is the reference: http://reason.com/assets/db/…
I'm in the same boat. It's been difficult. I cannot express how grateful I am to Jose Vargas for writing this story. I was brought here as a kid 13 years ago. I'm 24 now. I also graduated from a "top" university -- like that matters. I guess my parents weren't smart enough to get a fake social security card for me back then, I wish they were. I've also been fighting for the Dream Act for what feels like an eternity.…
I have no beef with this guy who was basically forced into breaking the law before he could have responsibility for his actions. But overall I just feel that the compassion about immigration is misplaced. I don't understand why all the pro-immigration people say "look at these poor undocumented immigrants -- we should make life better for them." I think the people we should have compassion for are the people who are…
Spouse of first-generation immigrant to the United States here. And back in the 1990s I used to be an immigration lawyer for a small law firm on the west coast. Yes, the personal story of Jose Antonio Vargas is rough on him personally, but a better basis for setting the policy of immigration in the United States would be the stories of the many people who patiently wait in line to be admitted to the United States thr…
[1] Second paragraph of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigration_to_the_United_State...
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Well, even if you leave, if you've been present illegally in the US for more than a year, you're subject to the lifetime bar. So, no, they really don't have a statute of limitations.
That's inaccurate. Illegal presence greater than 6 months and less than a year subjects a departing alien to a 3 year bar on re-entry absent a waiver. Illegal presence for longer than a year ups that to a 10 year bar. There are also lifetime bars on re-entry but they are reserved for much narrower and more egregious violations, like election fraud, aiding terrorism and so on.