Saturday, November 24, 2007

What Do You Think?

Today on talk radio I heard about a nine-year-old boy whose father died two months ago. The boy was riding in a vehicle with his mother on Thanksgiving night. They had some sort of accident, and the mother was killed. They were in southern Arizona, near the Mexican border. The boy was wandering dazed in the desert, when a Mexican man came upon him. The Mexican man was illegally entering into the U.S. He gave the boy his coat, continually assured the boy that things would be okay, and stayed with the boy all night until authorities came the next morning. In other words, the man thought not of himself, but of this boy, and what he needed. What action should we take toward this man?

5 comments:

Jeffro said...

Would it be any different had he robbed a bank?

Bob's Blog said...

jeffro,
Does he seem like the type?

Jeffro said...

No, but my point is aimed more towards using moral equivalence as a tool of law enforcement, rather than enforcing the laws.

Ascertaining the state of mind of someone breaking the law shouldn't be a function of our courts - unless the defendant is incapable of understanding right from wrong.

I know it sounds hartless and krool, but this gentleman was in the country illegally. I'm sure there are lots of criminals that are capable of good intentions, but by definition they have broken the law.

What should we do with him? Allow him to become a citizen - put him on a fast track? How does that jibe with someone from India immigrating legally and spending the thousands of dollars in legal fees to do it correctly?

It is certainly a sad situation, and highlights the harshness of the situation, and the unfairness of some of our immigration policies.

What do you propose?

Bob's Blog said...

jeffro,
If I were a lone border agent, and came across this situation, I think I would have told the man to be on his way, and wished him Godspeed.

Another choice would be to try to ascertain what motivates him. Number one: Is he here to earn money to send home to his family? Or, number two: Is he here because he wants to be a citizen of the U.S.? If it is number one, publicize what he has done, raise lots of money for him, and send him back to Mexico. If it is number two, get him on a fast track to citizenship. We need more people like him in this country!

Anonymous said...

Good question Bob. I've been pondering the same. And then the man accepted his deportation without a second thought. I picture in my mind this lone illegal coming across this young boy and not only not thinking of himself or the consequences of his actions (returning him to Mexico); but was he also thinking of a young boy and wife he had left behind?