I agree that INS needs to certainly enforce existing laws and the government does not need to hand out welfare to those who are here illegally or here legally and capable of working. I do not agree with lowering or eliminating the minimum wage in a society where there is a major shrinkage in the true middle class, allowing the banishment of labor unions or allowing those under the age of 16 to get a job. Taking advantage of young labor got this country into a mess with its young people and families as it was becoming industrialized and way too many kids already bail out of education for every excuse in the book including "why should I go to school if I am working". If a kid cannot be responsible enough to go to school and earn decent grades to better themselves in the long run and stay out of trouble then a job should be out of the question. I have teenagers and I will have to say maybe one percent of their friends that I know are 16 years old are responsible enough to follow through with their education and have a job at the same time the other's are a whole other story. Taking advantage of those who are struggling financially because minimum wage cannot begin to provide support families in the only jobs they can find/do and getting rid of unions will send the legal work force into a tailspin that will destroy families and earnings. Lower minimum wages would drag the wages of others to lower amounts as well. Unions are set up to protect what is fair for an employee. My experience with those against unions has been that they usually have not experienced working with the advantage of a union in place to assure the employees needs are met fairly instead of just their employer's needs/wants. I would much rather see someone working and receiving a fair wage than not working and receiving welfare. Where would we be if, nurses (like my wife) or teachers for example were not supported by unions. I, personally, would not be comfortable if those two professions became obsolete because their employers were crappy and couldn't do right by them. Where would we be without nurses in the ER or teachers in the classroom... and those are just two examples of union supported professions.
Just my 2 cents...
