Illegal is different from legal

Dear Editor:

In the July 31 issue of the Nevada Daily Mail, a letter to the editor was submitted entitled "A Lesson from History." This article was intended to give you and me a lesson on immigration, and why we should not be worried about any group of immigrants taking over America. The writer of the article missed the whole point of the debate in our nation today concerning immigration.

Nobody has any problem with immigrants coming to the United States to become Americans as so many of our ancestors have done. Legal immigration is what made this country what it is. You see, the problem we are experiencing now is illegal immigration. To make it clear, illegal means not legal. It means people are entering our country without permission, without following the laws established for immigration.

The debate is not about nationality. As Americans, we can understand why people from Mexico, or any other nation, want to come to this country and work for the American dream. We welcome all who come legally; and by the way, we already celebrate Cinco de Mayo.

To all the legal immigrants -- Hispanics, Germans, Irish, Slavs, Poles, Czechs, and immigrants from every other nation not named, we welcome you to become one of us. What we don't welcome are people who break the law. Our career politicians may turn a blind eye to the illegal immigration problem, but the majority of the citizens of this nation do not. The majority stands with the governor of Arizona in defending our border. It is time that those who were elected to protect us do so instead of continuing to protect their political careers.

Mike Hutchens

Nevada