Wednesday - December 13, 2006

Manuel Labor

I have a question: if an illegal alien steals my identity and goes to work somewhere, are the social security deductions credited to me? If so, that might be a good thing because it would increase my payout if I manage to reach retirement age, right? Can someone clarify this for me?

Regardless, this problem just gets worse every day. I blame both the American and the Mexican government and it’s a problem that is not going to go away. Have any of you noticed that this problem seems to have been totally lost in the past few months.

Do any of you want to take bets on whether the Democrats will do anything when they assume control next month? I’m giving 10-1 odds they don’t because the Donks don’t want to offend Hispanic voters either. Both they and the GOP are courting the Hispanic voters. As usual, they figure they can screw the rest of us as long as they get re-elected.

Illegal Workers Arrested In 6-State ID Theft Sweep
_{(WASHINGTON POST) - Wednesday, December 13, 2006}

Federal agents targeting illegal immigrants raided meatpacking plants in six states yesterday, arresting hundreds of workers on the uncommon charge of identity theft and shutting down the world’s second-largest meat processing company for much of the day.

About 1,000 U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents with search warrants entered plants owned by Swift & Co., of Greeley, Colo., charging that “large numbers” of workers illegally assumed the identities of U.S. citizens or legal residents by using their Social Security numbers to get work, ICE officials said.

Company and union officials said agents, some dressed in riot gear, locked down six beef- and pork-processing plants early in the morning, segregating workers into groups of citizens and non-citizens after questioning. Some illegal workers were bused to detention facilities hours away, labor officials said.

ICE officials would not say how many people were arrested, pending a news conference today in Washington. About 90 percent of Swift’s 15,000 U.S. employees work in three shifts at the plants, company officials said.

Although many illegal workers by definition commit document fraud to get jobs, the government’s use of identity theft charges could reframe the immigration debate for the public and spotlight how sharing Social Security data could fight such abuses, she said.

In a brief teleconference with reporters, Julie L. Myers, assistant secretary of homeland security for ICE, said that “the signal we’re intending to send here is, ‘We’re serious about work site enforcement, and those individuals who steal identities of U.S. citizens will not escape action from us.’ “ She said the government would also pursue vendors of fake documents, former workers and legitimate residents who sold their Social Security numbers.

Raids took place in plants in Greeley; Grand Island, Neb.; Cactus, Tex.; Hyrum, Utah; Marshalltown, Iowa; and Worthington, Minn.

ICE spokesman Marc Raimondi said investigators will decide whether those arrested will face immediate deportation, prosecution or detention pending other legal proceedings. U.S. officials noted the participation of the Federal Trade Commission, which routinely shares data on identity theft victims with federal and state law enforcement agencies.

- More ...

UPDATE:

The United Food and Commercial International Workers union said it would ask federal judges in all six states to halt the raids. Union spokeswoman Jill Cashen said attorneys were gathering details before filing the requests.

No charges had been filed against Swift. In a written statement, President and CEO Sam Rovit said the company has never knowingly hired illegal workers and does not condone the practice.

Immigration officials last month informed Swift that it would remove unauthorized workers on Dec. 4, but Swift asked a federal judge to prevent agents from conducting the raid, arguing it would cause “substantial and irreparable injury” to its business.

Swift estimated that a raid would remove up to 40 percent of its 13,000 workers. After a closed hearing, a judge on Thursday rejected Swift’s request, clearing the way for the raids.

The six Swift plants targeted Tuesday represents all of the company’s domestic beef processing capacity and 77 percent of its pork processing capacity. Greeley-based Swift describes itself as the world’s second-largest meat processor with sales of about $9 billion.

- More ...

Posted by The Skipper     on 12/13/2006 at 10:48 AM   
Filed Under: • Illegal-Aliens and Immigration •  
• Comments (6) • Trackbacks(1)  Permalink •  

DISCLAIMER

THE SERVICES AND MATERIALS ON THIS WEBSITE ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND THE HOSTS OF THIS SITE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF SATISFACTORY QUALITY, MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, WITH RESPECT TO THE SERVICE OR ANY MATERIALS.

Not that very many people ever read this far down, but this blog was the creation of Allan Kelly and his friend Vilmar. Vilmar moved on to his own blog some time ago, and Allan ran this place alone until his sudden and unexpected death partway through 2006. We all miss him. A lot. Even though he is gone this site will always still be more than a little bit his. We who are left to carry on the BMEWS tradition owe him a great debt of gratitude, and we hope to be able to pay that back by following his last advice to us all:

1. Keep a firm grasp of Right and Wrong
2. Stay involved with government on every level and don't let those bastards get away with a thing
3. Use every legal means to defend yourself in the event of real internal trouble, and, most importantly:
4. Keep talking to each other, whether here or elsewhere

It's been a long strange trip without you Skipper, but thanks for pointing us in the right direction and giving us a swift kick in the behind to get us going. Keep lookin' down on us, will ya? Thanks.

THE INFORMATION AND OTHER CONTENTS OF THIS WEBSITE ARE DESIGNED TO COMPLY WITH THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. THIS WEBSITE SHALL BE GOVERNED BY AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND ALL PARTIES IRREVOCABLY SUBMIT TO THE JURISDICTION OF THE AMERICAN COURTS. IF ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE IS CONSTRUED AS BEING CONTRARY TO THE LAWS APPLICABLE IN ANY OTHER COUNTRY, THEN THIS WEBSITE IS NOT INTENDED TO BE ACCESSED BY PERSONS FROM THAT COUNTRY AND ANY PERSONS WHO ARE SUBJECT TO SUCH LAWS SHALL NOT BE ENTITLED TO USE OUR SERVICES UNLESS THEY CAN SATISFY US THAT SUCH USE WOULD BE LAWFUL.

Copyright © 2004-2015 Domain Owner