Raw milk scare

[Nyboy]

I guess i am a little sensitive on the subject. My fathers parents came from Italy at turn of the century, they did came legally thou Ellis Island ( records where found by researcher) . They settled in a area with high numbers of other Italian Immigrants yet my father tells of all the discrimination he went thou as a child Italians no matter how law abiding where always thought of as gangsters and mafia. I grew up a short distance from NY harbor and the statute of Liberty. Was taught this country was founded on immigration The Statue of Liberty was a welcome. When I hear people, speaking out about immigrant I always wonder how many pasted family members of theirs where Immigrants.

 

[bobm]

... I and my pasted family all came through Ellis Island with just our clothes on our backs and nothing else ... LEGALLY !!!!!!! We worked at any job that we could find. We learned English, worked hard, earned an education and assimilated into this society. I guess that some of you havn't heard of the united farm workers ( ufw) " owned " by ceasar chaves hailed by some as the savior of the braceros. Guess who and his brothers became multi - millionaires by being labor contractors and finding the legal and illegal immigrants day jobs, then providing them with housing, transportation to and from their jobs, food, clothing, etc.at their own housing camps by charging them a fee at each step along the way ? etc., etc. Yea, I, friends, neighbors, owned ranches / farms so we were right there first hand.

 

[seedcorn]

Day labors here get $125 a day, their not working for peanuts. I have never seen a non Latin standing in line for day work.

Are you kidding me? That's less than $25,000 per year with NO benefits. @Nyboy could you live in your area on that?

Understand there is a HUGE difference between legal and illegal immigrants. My family caught it because we were trash southerners in the north. My wife's family because they were polish who spoke no English.

 

[Smart Red]

Hum-m-m-m. Never heard history told that way, but I don't doubt that you're right about Cesar Chavez, though.

@Nyboy, except for Native Americans, we are all immigrants here. Some of my family came over because of German right-of-inheritance laws, some during the Potato Famine, and some early in our Country's founding. Except for the colonial upstarts (and a hush-hush Native American named Adaline), all my 'family' came as immigrants. All came seeking a better life, but all came legally.

Whenever numbers of newcomers arrived on American shores they were subject to prejudicial treatment by some Americans. When large numbers came from one European area they were seen as a threat to working wanna-bees. Irish, Italian, German, Asian all experienced periods of discrimination as they assimilated themselves into American society. And almost every group was ready, by the third generation, to complain about the next wave of immigrants.

It seems that the biggest issue is that so many of Hispanic people coming to America are doing so Illegally. Legal immigration is slowed when this happens. Following the law hinders those seeking American freedoms.

Some of the biggest voices against the current influx of people are those who went through the process legally -- learned English, took American history classes, and went through the Naturalization process. To overlook illegal entry is a slap in the face to every American immigrant who followed the rules.

 

[Beekissed]

Are you kidding me? That's less than $25,000 per year with NO benefits. @Nyboy could you live in your area on that?

Understand there is a HUGE difference between legal and illegal immigrants. My family caught it because we were trash southerners in the north. My wife's family because they were polish who spoke no English.

I was in my 40s before I got up to $25K a year and I've only been able to afford the benefits at one job I've worked at...the rest of my working life I could not. I've been working since I was 14 yrs old. Not kidding you. Actually, that's a pretty high wage for a licensed practical nurse in this state....no matter that we have people's lives in our hands every time we pass a med or do a physical assessment.

This has been so fun! It's a real eye opener of what folks consider a low wage or a high wage.

For the record, one can still work at those wages and receive Medicaid insurance if you have children still under 18 and in school. Yes, Americans...not just the illegal aliens.

And, I don't think the Indians would want Manhattan....I can't imagine anyone wanting Manhattan, even as a gift.

 

[Smart Red]

This has been so fun! It's a real eye opener of what folks consider a low wage or a high wage.

For the record, one can still work at those wages and receive Medicaid insurance if you have children still under 18 and in school. Yes, Americans...not just the illegal aliens.

I spent 15 years of school and working as a teacher before my wages reached my factory pay the first year out of high school -- a few more before I reached $25,000.

While in your area $25,000 is tough, but livable, that same wage would make it far more difficult to get by in south-est, central-est Wisconsin and not even make a good part-time/second job wage in New York City, although it (maybe) might pay the rent there. Even a few miles can make a difference in a living wage. All the prices were higher 15 miles North of here where the Chevy plant was located. So were the wages.

Yes, you can legally get food stamps, free lunches, medicaid, and other assistance if you want to accept it. My son won't seek or accept charity from the County. So I take the grands to the dentist and to the doctor when needed. I buy their school clothes and supplies. I pay for camp and music lessons. Son doesn't see Mom and Dad as charity.

 

[seedcorn]

While in some areas $25,000 might be a fair wage but some how I don't think it is in @Nyboy 's area or in a few other areas of country. IF you can live and raise a family in WV on $25,000, doubt if illegals make $125/day. Every full time working person deserves a living wage-not welfare.

Over years, I've lived on much less than $25,000 but gas was $1/gallon and you could buy a decent house for under $20,000-not now.

DD just got her RN license, just did her cash flow. With NE Indiana expenses, she has to live at home on $25,000/year.

 

[seedcorn]

@ninnymary in your area, what would it take to buy a house, car, etc.?

Had an opportunity for a new job at Morton, IL. Looked at houses, starter home was $100,000 that in Indiana we would have torched and started over. Taxes--cheapest was over $2,000/year. Said no thanks. In KY where folks retired, a $100,000 Indiana house was valued at $50,000. Jobs in that area had terrible pay also. 90% of county was on government aid of some sort.

 

[thistlebloom]

Well my sons would love to make $125 a day and you can bet they'd do whatever illegals are doing to make it.

My husbands and my taxable income are well under $25k/ year.
We are both self employed. We have probably qualified for some type of assistance but it will be a cold day in the hot place before we would take it. We live simply and we get by. We are also content with our life.

What I'm not content with is people thumbing their nose at our laws and breaking in to our country, then riding on the backs of hard working people and getting benefits my family and I never could,

It is often represented that these are all hard working honest people just trying to make a better life. Not necessarily. Many discover the high income that can be had by selling drugs, and with a lot less effort. Pregnant women come up and have their babies so they have a ticket to stay. Their government issues maps on the best areas to break in, and then tips on how to work the system once here.

I have an immigrant background too, like many of you, and there were no programs back then to bail people out. You struggled to make it or you failed. And my great grandparents, on both sides of my family came legally.
The truth is that nothing will be done about illegal entry because a political party finds them a rich resource for votes.

 

[Nyboy]

I think what people are over looking is the cost to come here. I watched my cleaning lady and her husband go from visa to green card to citizenship. The lawyer fees where $10,000 each, so add $20,000 to living expensiveness not many can afford that today.