I would go with the bold option, and disagree with the non-bold part at the end. Yes it would cost us some money, most solutions to problems do. The real questions are would it cost more or less than the current system and if more, then could it be paid for in a reasonable way.
So basically make it easier for the people who sneak into the theater than for the people who wait in the line like they're supposed to. That's the solution to people sneaking in, make it easier for them to do it? Why would anyone wait in line at that point?
If your answer is "They won't! That's the great part! No more lines!" Then we're right back to the original problem, only now the line is at both doors and you just are now paying for clerks to be inside moving around after the fact rather than at a booth at the front. In addition, the metal detector is completely useless now too.
Eh, I don't really feel like arguing this point, it's not important anyway. Let me just take different approach. If you're really just stuck on the idea that undocumented immigrants need to be punished in order to deter others from doing the same thing in the future then why does the punishment have to be deportation? Why can't it be a fine? In fact, that actually sounds like a great way to pay for the costs that you seemed to be worried about up above.
Because if a punishment is just a fine, why would anyone wait for the proper authorization to come to the US? If you're Swedish and want to immigrate here, why not just go to Mexico and hop the border since you'll just get a small fine and become a citizen anyway? Those suckers who go through the regular process have to wait years!
I really don't understand your proposal for a system here. We don't deport people who come in illegally and make them citizens instead, but we don't just let anyone in (no open borders). What in the world is your ideal immigration system? I can't make heads or tails of what you're getting at. Or maybe you don't have a system in mind, and like just picking out isolated pieces of systems and criticizing them in a bubble.
What are you talking about? Why would it necessarily be easier for the people who are already here? We get to design the pathway to citizenship however we want. If we want to put them at the end of the (hopefully newly improved, shorter) line then fine, let's do that. If you want to do all of the security checks that are normally required then fine, let's do that. If we want to make them pay the normal fees plus extra because they came here before they were supposed to then fine, let's do that. If you want to require that they've held a job for a certain amount of time before they can apply then fine, let's do that. If you want to deter others from coming here illegally by punishing those who do then fine, let's do that. If you want to improve border security at the same time that we're doing all this then fine, let's do that. None of this requires deporting people.
Let me ask you something. Have you ever sat down and thought about why you want to deport people and then thought about how you might accomplish those same goals without deporting people? It's sounds like it would be a useful exercise since you live in a country with other people who don't want to deport people.
I jest of course, because that's what we just did together. I asked questions to get at the underlying goals that you were trying to accomplish by deporting people and then offered alternative solutions to accomplish the same goals. But all you heard is that I want open border for some reason, even though I've never said that. In fact, just so we're clear, here's the closest I actually came to espousing a specific system.
I just don't see why we can't take steps to further secure our borders, improve the currently broken immigration system and provide a path to citizenship for those already here all at the same time.
No, I'm not saying we should have open borders now, I'm trying to accomplish your goals in a way that is acceptable to me and others like me who don't want to deport people. Personally, I think this is the biggest problem we have in politics right now. For every goal that you're trying to accomplish by deporting people I can think of an alternative way to accomplish that same goal, but you don't seem to be interested. It gives the impression that you haven't actually thought through this issue and/or you have some other unstated reason for wanting to deport people. I'm not saying either of those things are true, but it's the impression that I (and probably others like me) get.
The reason I'm down for deporting, is because without it we essentially have open borders.
Pretend you're considering coming to the US.
Option 1, go through all of the paperwork and wait in line to get a visa to live here, and wait for citizenship once you're on the list. This will take awhile.
Option 2, hop the border. You get to live here off the books until you decide you want to be a citizen, then apply without fear of any consequences.
Why in the world would anyone pick option 1 in this case? If you know there's a good chance you'll just be shipped back if you sneak in, you might be more likely to try to get in the official way. Additionally, what do we do with the people who hop the border, but don't pass the test for us wanting them here?
As a scaled down example, let's say there's one spot left in the country. There's someone who came over illegally who has no criminal background, but doesn't have a job or any marketable skills, and has 3 kids. There's another person who just submitted their application for citizenship from India who is a medical doctor, and has a hospital that's already offered him a job if he can get citizenship. Do we deport the illegal person, or do we tell the medical doctor he's got to wait another year because someone already snuck over?
There are a finite number of immigrants the US can handle at a time. Why not have them all go through the same process to see if they're actually wanted/needed here?
If you want to propose we do a one time "hey everyone, if you're in the US right now you're good, but from now on people coming in will be deported" I could maybe get behind that. It gets us over the practical hurdle of tracking everyone down who's already here, while still discouraging people from breaking the law as their first act in our country.