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Ear to the Ground

Utah Immigrant List Terrorizes Residents

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Posted on Jul 14, 2010
Flickr / las - initially (CC-BY-ND)

Utah authorities are investigating an “illegal immigrants” list sent anonymously to the media and law enforcement. The document contains 1,300 names along with private information such as home addresses and even pregnancy due dates. Needless to say, Utah residents who suspect they might be on the list are panicked.

New York Times:

The list, which contains details and notation about each person — from home address and telephone number to date of birth and, in the case of pregnant women, their due dates — was sent to law enforcement and media outlets on Tuesday. A spokeswoman for Gov. Gary R. Herbert said Wednesday that an investigation was under way to see if state employees might have been involved.

The letter accompanying the list said that it was from “Concerned Citizens of the United States” and urged immediate deportation proceedings against the people listed as well as publication of their names by the news media. The letter said that more lists and names would be forthcoming and added: “We will be listening and watching.”

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By Carl, July 15, 2010 at 8:04 pm Link to this comment

I understand the outrage cited in this article. If I snuck into a foreign nation and committed fraud by collecting funds intended for their poor citizens, I would be angry to think someone had IDd me. Have they no decency! I would be afraid of this “terrorist” tactic. Can’t they just leave criminals alone!

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By Carl, July 15, 2010 at 8:01 pm Link to this comment

Jean below repeats the classic attack on American workers from the billionaires who have ruined America. If you oppose their efforts to flood the nation with cheap desperate foreign labor, you are a racist, so shut up! Then he cites the ultimate goal, to cut back the economic differences between the two nations, by driving down wages in the USA. He’d be pleased if we could cut wages to $2 a hour and bust unions. Yes, I agree that would solve most of the illegal immigrant problem.

Perhaps Jean means well, but living in his “extremely wealthy” gated community with security guards and cheap illegal nannies and landscapers makes him think all of America is “extremely wealthy” in his words.

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By mab, July 15, 2010 at 2:11 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

Please everybody but the parasites, dump NAFTA.  Solve immigration problems and restore jobs in one move.

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By jean gerard, July 15, 2010 at 9:48 am Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

One of the main tactics of terrorism is the listing of names accompanied by veiled
or implied threat.

Another is the toleration of intolerance regarding ethnic, economic, religious,
cultural differences.

Another is the intent to criminalize and/or expel by force.

Are we there yet?

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By Leon, July 15, 2010 at 6:28 am Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

The government can find these people just as easily. This list should show this fact to the American people.
The time has come to force the government to uphold our immigration laws. 20 million Americans are out of work and miilions more are becoming homeless by outrageous taxes in part for support of illegal aliens.
To all the liberals, the immigration laws allow YOU to sponsor an immigrant and YOU can pay their support.
I have enough to support MY family.

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By Carl, July 14, 2010 at 9:16 pm Link to this comment

Why does Truthdig reprint BS from America’s corporate propaganda rag? Its just a rumor that someone is demanding that foreigners who committed felonies by applying for money set aside for America’s poor have been ID’d. Note that the NY Times pretends there is nothing wrong with such criminal activity, because it’s trying to spin this as another reason to provide amnesty for these criminals to encourage more mass illegal immigration.

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Artsy's avatar

By Artsy, July 14, 2010 at 8:48 pm Link to this comment

NOTHING IS CONFIDENTIAL FOR AMERICANS. It should be the same for illegals who land here. ILLEGAL is NOT the same as RACIST. Regardless of what color a person is, what religion they are, or where they came from, if they are here ILLEGALLY, they should be asked for ID, arrested, or removed. The same laws that govern all Americans should apply to illegal aliens.

If you want a job in Florida for example, (now practically non-existent) the employer may ask you for your pee, your hair, your blood, your saliva, and your credit report. They may also also want to know your religion, political leanings, and contact info for everybody you know. That is a lot to ask for a minimum wage position. You must submit to much more invasive background check too. They do not care what color you are either. That includes Native Americans.

Illegals enter the back way. They find work, without having to pee in a tube or even speak the language. They work cheap, don’t pay taxes, and ship the money out of the country. This leaves more poor Americans without a legitimate way to earn a living. The corporate cons just get richer which is the real reason is happens. Slave labor comes in all forms.

In Florida, when an American is arrested for any reason, it is published. It does not matter if the person is innocent or not. If you are ILLEGAL, and arrested, there is no proof of who the person is so they are released. Mostly, law enforcement lets them go because it is too much of a hassle to convict them.

I seriously doubt that the 15 obviously illegal aliens that live nearby answered the census. They should be required to produce IDs. They are picked up every day by construction trucks from companies that receive taxpayer’s money for road projects, etc. That represents 15 more Americans without jobs. Nothing in the mix makes any sense.

I grew up on a Native American reserve. The Seneca’s are generally peaceful, loving people. It is obvious to most that I am NOT a racist.

“It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare, it is because we do not dare that things are difficult.”

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skulz fontaine's avatar

By skulz fontaine, July 14, 2010 at 6:58 pm Link to this comment

That “illegal immigrant” list is domestic terrorism by design. To intimidate those
that are ALREADY behind the scenes. Kept out of sight except when it comes
time to hit the old time clock. INS is horribly broken and corrupt. Which is by
the by, also by design. Some racist swine in Utah’s Work Force Services stole
that very confidential information and away the histrionics go.
Intimidation is exactly the pogrom used by Nazis on Jews in the run up to WWII
the really big one. Utah’s Klanners United Against Beaners are using the exact
same modality.
The argument that “illegals must get out” is unrealistic. That ‘get out’ argument
is also myopic and blatant racism. If one is not Native American, as in America’s
First Nations well, you a freaking “illegal immigrant” and you’d better clear out.
I’m certain that America’s First People wouldn’t object to that.
That “white Utah” wants to keep their hotel/restaurant/farm labor types under
wraps and under control is no surprise. That “white Utah” would resort to
“anonymous” intimidation is simply cowardice of the lowest order.
A question would follow, who’s next? Who would be next for persecution by
“anonymous” Utah racist freaks that haven’t the balls to let the world know who
they in fact might be AND how in the hell did they happen to gain access to
“confidential” information that is ‘allegedly’ confidential.
You see, I can say those things. I live in Utah.

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Artsy's avatar

By Artsy, July 14, 2010 at 5:13 pm Link to this comment

If you are ILLEGAL in this country, become legal or GO HOME as quickly as possible.

The open back door policy in this country stinks like the rotten politicians who intended it to get out of control. They are using it as another tool to take down the country.

The plan will work unless we stop them. State by state, we need to take our country back.

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By jean gerard, July 14, 2010 at 3:50 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

How clear must the evidence of racism be before we admit that it resides at the
root of the immigration problem?  It would have been openly revealed in this
article if the NYT had examined the majority of surnames on that list.

More than anything else, such tactics indicate panic, and it is this panic that
has to be addressed if the problem is to be solved.  Increase in unemployment
fuels that panic, so more jobs would help.  Stopping corporate exploitation of
cheap labor would help.  Cutting back on the promotion of fear of “terrorism”
fear of drugs fear of strangers etc. etc.  would prevent people from getting
hysterical.  But even all of these together would not eliminate the problem for
the long run. 

Policies between Mexico and the U.S. must be adjusted in some way to cut back
on the huge economic differences of extremely rich and extremely poor
societies, either domestic or foreign, living next door, with the poor country
exploited by the rich in deals over trade and debt.  No person with any guts will
let his family starve if he can get a job next door and send his paycheck home.

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By call me roy, July 14, 2010 at 3:33 pm Link to this comment

So what’s the problem?

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