www.CostaRicaTicas.com

Just my personal opinion:

If Costa Rica changed it's immigration laws to welcome US expatriots and make it easy for them to work, the quality of the services, banking and customer service at retail stores would likely improve. The expatriots might take some Costa Rica jobs in the short term, but in the near term would likely create new jobs and the overall wages in Costa Rica would likely increase. Some in the US view Latino immigration as causing a net job loss, but in fact all economic studies show it as an economic stimulant, providing you don't force them into an underground economy. Unfortunately both the underground economy of gringos in Costa Rica is similar but smaller than the Latino underground economy in the US. Both government's restrictive immigration laws are designed to be protective of their people, but actually are just bad economics. In Costa Rica, the only ones who benefit from the status quo are the six controlling families whose businesses benefit from low wages - similar to the construction and big farming industries in the US.

Are you proposing that we just open the border to everybody who has had a tough life?

First the "K*ds" will be let in, become citizens or permanent residents, then they will import their whole family and US tax payers can support them.

Maybe then the government can take 80% of my paycheck (instead of the 40% it takes now) to support all these illegals.

Unfortunately, America can't be everybody's white knight. We have enough of our own citizens that are dying of hunger in the streets that need help before we allow a bunch of illegals to enter the US.

Please, let's don't make this a political topic.

1) (many here illegaly don't pay taxes).

2) If we solve the oil question - in other words, produce the energy we need domestically through a combination of conventional an non conventional sources - and I really believe we can - we can wave a farewell to the countries of the middle east who want to live in the 600's as well as the jerks in places like Venezuala.

Damn near everything has been illegal in the US at one time or another; what's the problem with these k!ds and their parents gaming the system for a good cause? Just because our own system is all ways woefully overloaded due to funding starvation due to taxation's mild existence in rich folks lives (and I'm especially including corporations, as they are legally considered persons)? When did compassion leave the planet? Most of these wretched refuse, these refugees settle in areas of the US that we stole/bludgeoned from Mexico--they are merely taking it back by passive means. No huge amount of respect fot Mr. Arias but I think he's hit on something here.

No doubt American's are kind hearted and generous. I am proud to be one. But the truth is that we as a country don't do nearly as much for the disadvantage of the world as many other countries. In dollars, sure, we help the most. As a % of GDP, not really.

The saddest truth is our drug policies are at the heart of this particular problem. Our policies have done a lot to cause the problems and not much to solve it.

So, let's clean up our mess and solve our immigration problem at the same time.

(April 2013)

To provide an alternative perspective, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development also lists countries by the amount of money they give as a percentage of their gross national income. The list includes international giving through official channels that qualify as Official Development Assistance, and national charitable giving. This list is as follows:[1]

Luxembourg – 1.00%
Sweden – 0.99%
Norway – 0.93%
Denmark – 0.84%
Netherlands – 0.71%
United Kingdom – 0.56%
Finland – 0.53%
Ireland – 0.48%
Belgium – 0.47%
France- 0.45%
Switzerland – 0.45%
Germany – 0.38%
Australia – 0.36%
Canada – 0.32%
Austria – 0.28%
New Zealand – 0.28%
Portugal – 0.27%
Iceland – 0.22%
United States – 0.19%
Japan – 0.17%
Spain – 0.15%
South Korea – 0.14%
Italy – 0.13%
Greece – 0.13%

if you don't do something to decisively stop this it will only get worse
the coyotes are reaping a windfall advertising to and then taking the money from the families sending these K*ds
any thoughts about what happens to them on the way through mexico?
if anyone really cared about those K*ds even a little bit the first thing they would do is send back the first wave to stop any further poor decisions by desperate people
guaranteed these K*ds are being raped and exploited as part of the spoils for the unscrupulous coyotes and thieves out there "guiding" them to the border
not to mention starvation, heat and drowning hazards
how hard is that to figure out?

We already have student visas to enter the U.S.

The underground economy is alive and well, especially here in So. Fla. One thing that is rarely talked about is the outflow of cash from the US to the relatives, loan sharks, drug cartels and gangs in Central and South America. Go anywhere that has Western Union and you will lines of Latinos sending US dollars south. This money is spent in those countries and usually does not make it back to the US in terms of goods and services purchased. It goes to pay rent, utilities, food, cheap junk products or to pay back the local loan shark. The concept of using money to create wealth through transactions stops.

Written by a man who's never been truly desperate. That's one solution, piss-poor as it is. Would you say that that to those trying to escape the USSR or Nazi Germany? Or Cambodia under Pol Pot? Or many of the African countries wracked by historic strife? How about vetting the K*ds and providing safe transport to those 99% who qualify?