Papers please...

Well, it seems the main topic rolling around here in the Azores has been the news coming out of Canada of their government preparing to deport some 15,000 Portuguese immigrants who were living there illegally. Not a day goes by where I don't see a report on the local news of some poor schlep and his/her family of 10, worried about what to expect now that they are gonna be shipped back to Portugal. That atop of more news coming from the States of Congress ready to pass reformed immigration laws where it would actually be a felony to be an illegal alien in the states. Ok, my view on this isn't that of some Xenophobe who thinks that all immigrants should be either shipped out or shot, nor is my view that of some bleeding heart who thinks that illegal immigrants should be coddled. My viewpoint is relatively simple to understand. I believe in LEGAL immigration. See, my father moved to the states in 1971, knowling little to no English whatsoever. He spent the first few years in California working as a janitor, and then in a steel mill, pouring 3000º molten steel into molds. He became a US citizen a few years after moving there and also learned English as well and got his Bachelor's Degree at Cal State-Hayward. I routinely use him as an example as to how ANYONE can make it in the states as long as they put some effort into it and if they do things the right way, but going there legally and doing the right things at the right time. Now, you have the other side of that spectrum which are people that decide to curb the system by going ilelgally and never legalizing their situation. So when the immigration services of that country come knocking at their door, they become all flustered and scared because they were caught red-handed. People start pulling up statistics and numbers saying how illegal immigrants contribute to the economy, and how we should give exceptions to them. Well to these people, a few points: 1) What about those who wait months, if not years, for their paperwork to be processed? Or try many times to get approval through legal means? See, those defending illegal immigrants never mention those who try to come in legally because it defeats their argument. If you're gonna facilitate illegal immigrants, you should also facilitate the legal process for those who have been waiting. You can't have one without the other. Either deport the illegals or get rid of the borders and let everyone in. Doing anything other than that is blatant hypocracy. I know that, if I were going through the legal process of immigrating and seeing those who went there illegally being given residency, I'd be hopping mad. 2) Alot of illegal immigrants complain that the country they are living in are only giving legal residency status to people of certain professions that the country needs. To which I say: So? It is their country, which means they can set the rules as to who can move there and who can't. This isn't fantasyland folks, welcome to reality. If you want to get a better shot at moving legally to the states or Canada, get yourself skilled in a profession they are looking for. 3) There's an interesting trend I have seen with most of these cases of illegal immigrants that are being deported back here. Alot of them come from poor sections of Portugal and say how they have it bad here. Sorry folks. Coming from personal experience, I can tell you that your life here in Portugal is HOW YOU MAKE IT OUT TO BE. There are opportunities to do what you want and when you want. And to top it off, the government here gives more subsidies than the US government would ever give and the credit system here is so lax that you can finance OVER 100%. Hell, I bought an apartment for €75,000 and even managed to get an extra €11,000 to pay the escrow of the place, pay off my car and get furniture, and the loan is laid out for 40 years at 3.5%. You couldn't get a loan like this in the states, at least not from any reliable credit institution (trust me, I tried). See, the same people complaining about being deported back to Portugal are normally those I see here, on TV, with a 1 room house and 5 kids crying "If only the government could give me a house". For those living in the states, I could not make this up. That is EXACTLY what they say! They want the Government (ie, my tax money and the tax money from everyone else here) to pay for a brand new house for them. This isn't cash poor, this is mentally poor. Yet, when they move to the states, they work like slaves and actually save cash. Why? Simple, the US government doesn't give handouts like the Portuguese government does, so they (the immigrants) are pratically obliged to work for a living. So, for those being deported back, just do what you were doing in the states or Canada and you will be fine here. Hard work pays off here too. It's not the end of the world. In conclusion, I'm no xenophobe. We're in the 21st Century and we live in a more globalized community nowadays than we did 50 years ago. However, one must always respect the rules and regulations of the country he/she lives in or is moving to. If you want to immigrate to a place, look up the immigration laws and see what you need to do to move there and moreso, see if the move is really worth it. And if you're one of those being deported back to the Azores, do not fret. There are many opportunities for you here too. You can go back to school to get better educated, or you can start up your own company and the bank (with government assitance) can help you out there too. In any case, welcome back.