0
0

Alabama Economy Being Hurt by New Anti-Immigrant Law


 invite response                
2011 Oct 24, 3:17am   3,747 views  11 comments

by corntrollio   ➕follow (0)   💰tip   ignore  

To crib a post I made on the housing forum, more and more we are hearing that Alabama's economy is being hurt by its new anti-immigration law. Yes, more undocumented immigrants are leaving the state, but so are documented immigrants, because they don't want to deal with this nonsense.

State governments are still using this ideological BS to attempt their own immigration enforcement, which is hurting their economies. Just today, there was another report on NPR about how Alabama's new regulation has resulted in undocumented immigrants leaving the state, and farmers are now having trouble harvesting crops and sowing the next crops. Without migrant farm workers, Alabama's agricultural economy is being destroyed, and with it the suppliers of seed, fertilizer, and farm machinery.

Here's an article from a couple weeks ago:
http://www.npr.org/2011/10/08/141183030/can-the-u-s-economy-really-function-without-undocumented-workers

Here's the update from today's Morning Edition:
http://www.npr.org/2011/10/24/141638999/labor-worries-rise-as-planting-season-nears-in-ala

Peturis says he's tried to hire through the state unemployment office before, but didn't have much success.

"Two of them left in 30 minutes; didn't even tell us they [were] going to leave," Peturis says. "One worked an hour and says it was too hard on his back."

The Impending Planting Season

In Baldwin County on the Gulf Coast, strawberry planting season is just a few weeks away. Farmers are wondering if they'll have the crews to get the plants in the ground.

"We need help doing it and we need help that's going to come back every day," says Mark Krupinski, whose family farms about 900 acres in Foley, Alabama. He says the work is hard, and when local people ask him about a job, they want to drive tractors, not labor in the fields.

"That isn't the kind of job most of us want to do," he says. "I don't blame them for not wanting to do [it], but somebody's got to do it if we're going to keep eating for the price that we are eating at."

You heard it -- Americans just want to drive around in tractors, but undocumented migrant farm workers are the ones who are willing to do the real work.

#housing

Comments 1 - 11 of 11        Search these comments

1   leo707   2011 Oct 24, 3:38am  

corntrollio says

somebody's got to do it if we're going to keep eating for the price that we are eating at

I think that this is the key here, pay... what are they paying to do this work?

It is not so much that Americans are afraid of doing back-breaking labor, but they don't want to do it for what amounts to minimum wage.

If we are going to get rid of illegal immigrant labor we need to motivate Americans to take the jobs by either:
1. Paying more to do the work.
2. Impoverish and starve Americans to the point where they, and their families, will starve to death if they don't take the work.

2   zzyzzx   2011 Oct 24, 3:45am  

ust today, there was another report on NPR about how Alabama's new regulation has resulted in undocumented immigrants leaving the state,

Of course an extremely liberal news source is going to take what's essentially a temporary situation and try to portray it as a catastrophe. They will find Americans to do that type of work, they'll just set up a bus system to do it. The TV clips I saw said that's what they were planning on doing.

3   leo707   2011 Oct 24, 4:19am  

zzyzzx says

Of course an extremely liberal news source

Oh, has some new information become available about NPR? Did they have a sudden shift in their programming? Because in-spite of allegations NPR has never been actually shown to have a "liberal" bias.

I can understand how a FOX news junkie, or even a CNN-head would become confused when confronted with actual relatively balanced and fair reporting of the news. But, whenever NPR/PBS programming content has been analyzed/studied no significant bias, liberal or conservative, has been found.

So, please if you have evidence to support your claim (other than a Bill O'Liely comment) please do post it. I would be more than willing to adjust my view given actual evidence.

P.S.- NPR has also been accused of having a conservative bias.

4   Huntington Moneyworth III, Esq   2011 Oct 24, 5:41am  

America should just make their Army do the work like every other Third World country.

5   leo707   2011 Oct 24, 6:30am  

MarsAttacks! says

leoj707 says

But, whenever NPR/PBS programming content has been analyzed/studied no significant bias, liberal or conservative, has been found.

You are serious about this, aren't you? Denial is a wonderful thing...but only if taken in moderation.

Oh, so you are saying that you have evidence of NPR's "liberal" bias? The anticipation is killing me, why didn't you just post it with your flippant reply? I can't wait to see it!

***Hmmm... now why wouldn't shrek just post his evidence and prove an NPR bias... Hmmm....***

Oh, wait... I get it... you, like every other conservative/liberal who accuses NPR of bias, don't have any actual evidence to support your position. You are just upset that NPR/PBS does not shovel the same swill as your favored propaganda outlet. Hmmm... yes it all makes sense now.

6   Vicente   2011 Oct 24, 8:09am  

I think Alabama should appeal for Federal disaster aid.

None of their Teabaggers could have seen this coming.

7   leo707   2011 Oct 24, 8:11am  

MarsAttacks! says

Just as much evidence as me saying that 'the sky is blue' should that topic come up for discussion, too. One but just has to open their eyes to see whether I am telling the truth or not.

Ah, shrek --er... I mean Mars-- thanks for bringing up that you think "the sky is blue", as an analogy example! It is just like someone saying that the color of a prism is "rainbow".

That is indeed something that would be said by someone who is uninterested --or perhaps intellectually lazy-- in ascertaining the "truth", and remains content with relying on unsupported answers based on ill-conceived notions.

Now it is more clear than ever why you would refuse to provide any actual proof of bias by NPR.

FYI - Speaking of "clear" the sky is actually clear, yet it appears, at times to be blue because the short wave length of blue light (coming from the sun) is more easily scattered by the atmosphere.

Ah, ha ha... and I suppose you would think that the color of the night sky is "black", ah ha ha, your so funny!

8   corntrollio   2011 Oct 24, 8:27am  

MarsAttacks! says

Furthermore, there are two issues here. Whether NPR is biased or not and about the actual situation at hand.

I am not mixing the two up -- as evidenced in my two completely different comment postings talking about each in its own context.

But Controllio just did. I can't reply to such illogic other than to point it out.

How did I mix the two up? By writing about them in the same post?

Now you're just trying to deflect because you have nothing here.

Again, show us why this is biased, show us that NPR is normally biased, and show us your evidence of both of those and evidence that it's not the case that Alabama farmers are having problems that would either require them to shut down their fields or for people to pay significantly more for produce. Otherwise, it's a lot of hot air, shrek.

After all, I'm sure the Alabama Agriculture Commissioner is a flaming liberal commie pinko socialist:

Alabama Agriculture Commissioner John McMillian says there's no doubt the immigration law has left farmers in a lurch. He says they're concerned about where the labor is going to come from since legal immigrants are leaving along with the illegal ones. [emphasis added]

9   leo707   2011 Oct 25, 7:30am  

MarsAttacks! says

MarsAttacks! says

corntrollio says
show us that NPR is normally biased

Show me that pigs fly first...especially since ALL news organizations hold bias. All of them.

Yes, if you want to wax philosophical all news(and other) organizations will have some bias. NPR is just the news outlet with the least amount of bias, and has been show at times to have both slight conservative and slight liberal biases. Hmmm... perhaps the lack of bias is only coincidental that it is also not a wholly corporate owned entity like other news sources are.

MarsAttacks! says

I EVEN clarified that in this post when you tried to libel me as saying so in the first place.

**sniff** *wipes tear from eye*

Ahhhh... fond memories...

I remember when you... er... uhhh... I mean shrek got booted. Shrek's loss of civility, that accompanied his ban was preceded by frustrated accusations of libel.

Mars, perhaps you should take a deep breath, and maybe a break from the keyboard, before you head down the same road that "shrek" traveled. The way you seem to get so emotionally invested, and wound up, I would not even suggest taking it outside.

Just looking out for your best interests buddy.

10   leo707   2011 Oct 25, 7:44am  

corntrollio says

...It's certainly not libel to say what I said, in any case, and in your recent post, it looks like you just misquoted me, but I'm not about to poop myself about it:

MarsAttacks! says

But you'd rather just keep spouting "That is indeed something that would be said by someone who is uninterested --or perhaps intellectually lazy-- in ascertaining the "truth""

Um, yeah that was a quote from me. I think I will follow corn's lead and not poop myself over it either.

However, just to clear some things up, Mars seems to attribute my quote as a response to his comment here:
MarsAttacks! says

What will happen is what is long overdue to happen: More investment in agricultural automation to raise productivity high enough to justify paying ag-workers more money.

But because this is way overdue, the adjustment period will be 'wrenching' to say the least.

Actually I more or less agree with this comment. In order to attract Americans to agra jobs they need to pay more, and one way to do this would be to increase automation. And, yes, any "adjustment period" will probably be "wrenching".

When I said "...someone who is uninterested --or perhaps intellectually lazy...." I was responding to Mar's avoidance at providing any evidence of NPR's bias, by using his silly "the sky is blue" analogy. Not at all having to do with the discussion of farm workers.

11   zzyzzx   2011 Oct 31, 12:30am  

Interesting how the liberal media conveniently forgets about all the unemployed American construction workers, restaurant workers, hotel workers, and janitors who will be able to get jobs in Alabama now.

Please register to comment:

api   best comments   contact   latest images   memes   one year ago   random   suggestions