ILLEGALS: Work first, collect later

Just read about the new immigration law in Alabama. The new law allows police to detain people indefinitely if they are suspected of being in the country illegally and requires schools to check the status of new students when they enroll. It also targets employers by forbidding drivers from stopping along a road to hire temporary workers, bars businesses from taking tax deductions for wages paid to illegal workers and makes it a crime for an illegal immigrant to solicit work. Congratulations, now all those on welfare and dependent on free food and shelter can get jobs and become contributing members of society.

Next thing that should be considered is how to put through a law that forces welfare recipients to perform at least 32 hours of labor BEFORE they are granted any benefits! There's so much work out there that they could perform even if it is only cleaning weeds and litter (or shoveling snow) from alleys and alongside sidewalks! Assign them a section then only allow them a meal, shower and laundry after the work is completed. Over time, each vagrant would either do the work or leave the area. If all states enforced "work before freebies," people would learn they have to contribute just as the rest of us do.

There should also be a law that if a female (of any age) becomes pregnant and applies to the state to pay for her child she should have to submit to reversible sterilization (tube tying or annual sterilization injection). If the female is under 18, her parents should be held responsible for paying back any state benefits. (Parents would then teach their children about the consequences of "free" sex as they would be the ones paying for it). Further, both the father and mother should be required to pay the state back within 18 years or be jailed. The father must pay child support as well and the mother should be required to submit detailed receipts to show that the money was only used for the child and not herself. I truly believe if these laws were strictly enforced they would put a stop to promiscuity especially if it is used to get state benefits.

S. WILLIAMS

Coeur d'Alene