The Costs Of Illegal Immigration

By Scott Knutson

I have read some of the comments and articles in The Island Guardian regarding the "illegal" immigration issue, and I share the views of others that this is a federal issue and that the US immigration laws should be fully enforced. I generally remain quiet about these issues, but the fact that the social issues created by illegal immigration are festering in the San Juan Islands is--how shall I say it--disheartening.

I was born is Seattle in 1960 and grew up in Kent, and I own property on Orcas. Although I currently live in California, my roots in Washington where my parents still live, as well as my two brothers and sister; and my daughter is a freshman at UW

As a 20+ year resident of Southern California, I have witnessed the illegal immigration madness first hand. What is happening here and in other small resort communities in Southern California should not be allowed to occur in the San Juan Islands. Down here, there has been a slow erosion over the past 15 years in the quality of public services (medical, schools, etc.) and infrastructure as this area has embraced the mass migration of uneducated, unskilled labor. The question I always ask myself is why is this occurring?
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