My Nomination for Newspeak Phrase of the Year for 2007

The newspeak phrase for 2007 that irks me the most is "undocumented immigrant." The left wing has worked hard for the last 2 years to get the correct legal term "illegal alien" replaced, to the point that this phrase has pervaded the mass media and has effectively created confusion in the average person's mind of what the real issues are. The forces of political correctness are going to label this piece a thoughtcrime, so be careful, or you could be next.

The United States has an immigration policy in place. Period. The laws are on the books. These laws are not a myth or a story about the boogie man. These laws are in place for several reasons. Anyone convicted of breaking these laws is a felon. Why does every nation on earth have laws regulating immigration?

Anyone wanting access to any country, not just the United States, is required to show a legitimate reason for entering the country. They have to submit themselves to some form of background check, and register their movements as a visiting alien within the borders. Anyone entering a country without getting permission, both from their home nation and the one they want to visit, has committed a crime (usually) in both countries.

Secondly, the immigration laws of the United States were created to prevent a sudden influx of a single ethnic group, so that assimilation of that group within the larger culture would be economically viable, and not overburden the tax-funded systems of education, welfare, and health. The idea of the "great melting pot" is a sound one in a nation made up of immigrants - where the cultures get gradually assimilated and become part of a larger whole.

Thirdly, the immigration laws are in place to protect a nation's citizens from a massive influx of cheap labor, so that the overall standard of living is not suddenly shattered.

NAFTA worked over the economies of both Mexico and the United States, forcing hundreds of thousands of people on both sides of the border out of their previous means of making a living. Manufacturing moved south of the border for the cheap labor and lack of environmental controls. People in Mexico who relied on agriculture were forced off their farms because they could not compete with the mechanized mega-farming subsidies in the United States.

And what happens when the immigration laws are enforced in the United States? One example - businesses in Chicago have been forced to close their doors by protestors blocking access to them. Why the protestors? Because those businesses had the temerity to report the dozens of illegal aliens gathering in their parking lots looking for under-the-table day labor jobs. With an Hispanic population of roughly 15%, about half of which are illegal aliens, there is a massive clout in having dozens of angry people screaming at potential customers.

Unfortunately, the Immigration and Custom Enforcement people have only focused on the laborers in their round-ups of law breakers, and haven't set up stings to arrest the American citizens knowingly and illegally hiring these people. There doesn't seem to be an organized effort at arresting the citizens giving reason for illegal aliens to flood into the country.

The people of Illinois are going to have the joy of funding a defense against the U.S. government for passing a law that effectively blocks employers from checking the citizenship status of job applicants. In a recent press announcement, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan said Illinois will not enforce this law; however, that has not stopped the suit brought against the state by the U.S. Attorney General.

The governor of Illinois, Rod Blagojevich, has run an under-the-radar campaign to promote more and more illegal aliens to come to the state. The taxpayers have funded everything from programs teaching illegal aliens how to circumvent the route to citizenship, to printing millions of dollars in official literature and signs in Spanish, to his desire to give illegal aliens health and housing assistance. Governor Blagojevich uses the phrase "undocumented immigrant" on a regular and frequent basis.

When you hear the phrase "undocumented immigrant" coming from the radio or television, or you read it in the newspaper or internet, I implore you to contact that broadcaster's publisher or editor, and ask them to discontinue their newspeak policy.

George Orwell knew what he was talking about. Fight back, while you can.