Illegals not so bad...

[NellieBly]

Very interesting studies.

Two new studies by California researchers counter negative perceptions that immigrants increase crime and job competition, showing that they are incarcerated at far lower rates than native-born citizens and actually help boost their wages.

A study released Tuesday by the Public Policy Institute of California found that immigrants who arrived in the state between 1990 and 2004 increased wages for native workers by an average 4%.

UC Davis economist Giovanni Peri, who conducted the study, said the benefits were shared by all native-born workers, from high school dropouts to college graduates, because immigrants generally perform complementary rather than competitive work.

As immigrants filled lower-skilled jobs, they pushed natives up the economic ladder into employment that required more English or know-how of the U.S. system, he said [...]

Another study released Monday by the Washington-based Immigration Policy Center showed that immigrant men ages 18 to 39 had an incarceration rate five times lower than native-born citizens in every ethnic group examined. Among men of Mexican descent, for instance, 0.7% of those foreign-born were incarcerated compared to 5.9% of native-born, according to the study, co-written by UC Irvine sociologist Ruben G. Rumbaut.

[iplaw]

Do you have links to the studies?

[NellieBly]

here is a lengthy story about them in the LA Times --
http://www.latimes.com/business/careers/work/la-me-immigstudy28feb28,1,5086860.story?coll=la-headlines-business-careers

[iplaw]

Eh.  It's asking me to sign up first.  I'd rather wipe with the LA Times than read it anyways.  I'm sure the studies have been thoroughly misinterpreted and/or misrepresented.

[Conan71]

...or paid for by a Hispanic rights group.

[sgrizzle]

Non-subscription:
http://www.kfmb.com/stories/story.82271.html

[NellieBly]

What don't you use to wipe with rather than read?

[Conan71]

Here's an interesting stat:

http://www.libertypost.org/cgi-bin/readart.cgi?ArtNum=177927

Here are the flaws I see in the stats of the report that Nellie quoted, I didn't click the link either.  If I gotta join or pay to read something, forget it:

Average wages for non-aliens increased by 4% from 1990 to 2004- just a hip-shot here, I've not researched it yet, but isn't that lower growth than the national average for the same period?

What about criminals being deported or fleeing back across the border after committing a violent crime, or do they just blend back into their community and not get caught?  Doesn't really take that into account.

[Stephen Colbert]

Illegal immigrants are clearly on notice..

[Conan71]

AHA!  Here's the catch:

"The workers who lost earning power due to new immigration were foreign-born workers who came earlier and did compete more directly with the newcomers, the report said."

See, it isn't all good, it's unfair to the illegal immigrants who came across earlier.  Oh, the tragedy!  I'm going to call my congressman to protect the original illegals immigrant workers![xx(]

Irony of the day:

'"The immigrants that have been coming are responding to legitimate demand," said Johnson. "It's just unfortunate that a lot of that demand is being met by people who are outside the immigration system." '

[USRufnex]

Why do you insist on looking for an "aha!" moment?

hmmm... so illegal immigrants don't commit crimes because it's a sure way for them to get deported???  ...and the people more likely to lose jobs/income are going to be newer  Americans who don't speak english very well-- forcing them to compete for those same low-wage jobs???

Well, knock me over with a feather...
Who knew?

/sarcasm

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=36498
"Their search for a better life is one of the most basic desires of human beings. Many undocumented workers have walked mile after mile, through the heat of the day and the cold of the night. Some have risked their lives in dangerous desert border crossings or entrusted their lives to the brutal rings of heartless human smugglers.

Workers who seek only to earn a living end up in the shadows of American life, fearful, often abused and exploited.

When they're victimized by crimes they're afraid to call the police or seek recourse in the legal system. They are cut off from their families far away, fearing if they leave our country to visit relatives back home they might never be able to return to their jobs.

The situation I described is wrong. It is not the American way."

--George W. Bush

[Conan71]

It's all about "aha" moments USR!