Looking at the law-breaking

Star-Telegram | Linda P. Campbell:

“It seemed that maybe seven of every 10 other vehicles on the roadways completely disregarded the posted speed limits by five, 10 or even more mph, making us feel like we were running in place as we cruised at 65, even 75, depending on the maximum allowed. And we worry about illegal immigrants breaking the law, I thought. How is that worse? ... In order to have meaningful immigration reform, we must get beyond the flawed notion that all illegal immigrants are merely criminals who must be locked up or deported.”

Ed Cognoski responds:

Imagine if we took the same attitude towards highway speeding, underreporting of tip income and scratch-off lottery winnings, failure to pay employment taxes for nannies and housekeepers, and all the other law-breaking habits millions of Americans are guilty of every day. We couldn't build enough prisons and, even if we could, the results would be disastrous and hugely unpopular. So, why do so many persist in thinking that this approach would be any different if the targeted group is Latino instead of Anglo? It's folly.