It’s difficult to have a civilized debate on the topic of illegal immigration because of the hateful rhetoric that infuses the issue. To even question the situation leaves one open to charges of nativism, xenophobia and racism.

But the truth is neutral; truth cannot be nativist, xenophobic or racist.

Here are some of the inconvenient truths about illegal immigration.

Illegal immigration depresses wages: An inconvenient truths is that whenever an illegal immigrant takes a job for below minimum wages or without benefits, the entire workforce suffers. Why would an employer hire legitimate workers when illegals are so much cheaper? The entire system of using illegal immigrants for labor smacks of the old plantation system of slavery.

Illegal immigration takes jobs from legal residents: An inconvenient truth is that every job held by an illegal immigrant is a job a citizen or legal immigrant does not hold.

Illegal immigration increases crime crime: The inconvenient truth is not whether illegals commit more crime than other groups. The truth is that every crime committed by an illegal immigrant is a crime that would not have been committed if they weren’t here. Whether it’s murder or shoplifting, these are crimes that did not have to be committed.

Illegal immigration harms the education system: This is a huge inconvenient truth. Would there be overcrowding in our local school systems if illegal immigrants were not in those classrooms? How does the lack of English skills impact overall school performance? Even higher education is adversely affected. Every illegal immigrant admitted to a college or university deprives a citizen or legal resident of that educational slot.

Illegal immigration is a health hazard: An inconvenient truth is that much of the illegal immigration population is diseased. One of the major reasons for legal immigration is to observe that certain health standards are met. Those who enter the country illegally bypass this requirement.

Illegal immigration is a burden on the health care system: An inconvenient truth is that public and private hospitals are going broke because of illegal immigration. Illegals seldom have insurance or the cash to pay for health care, so the system absorbs the cost. The cost has been too much in some instances and hospitals are closing their doors to the detriment of all.

Illegal immigration harms the body politic: An inconvenient truth is that illegal immigration is simply bad for American society. The United States is unique in that our nation was founded by ideology rather than by blood, ethnicity or race. Our people came from all across the world from a myriad of societies with absolutely nothing in common. But they did share a common dream of opportunity and freedom unheard of in most other countries and were more than willing to accept the responsibilities of citizenship. The current wave of illegal immigration seems to reject American values and makes demands instead. This refusal to accept common values leads only to balkanization and a splintering of society.

These are but a few inconvenient truths about illegal immigration.

To question illegal immigration is neither nativist, xenophobic or racist; it simply a truth, albeit an inconvenient truth.

Kip Allen is an award-winning broadcast and newspaper journalist currently residing in Southern California. He is a contributor to CaliforniaConservative.org, and you may read more of his work here.

RELATED: Read more on Immigration

1. Alas, those who argue for continued illegal immigration and special treatment for illegal immigrants don’t care about the truth.

   They only care about:

   (1) making money (the businesses who want more cheap illegal slave labor),
   (2) a ready-made pro-socialist voting block
   (3) making themselves FEEL that they are more compassionate and morally superior than the next guy
   (4) their narcissistic, masochistic, suicide-cult need to punish/destroy themselves and their own country.

   Comment by Kalifornia Kafir — November 24, 2007 @ 8:05 pm

2. KK: It’s interesting that you make the point it makes “themselves FEEL that they are more compassionate and morally superior…”

   Since their morality is relevant, how can their morality be superior to mine? Or yours? Or anyone else’s?

   Aye, and there’s the rub with relativism. If one has no fixed point for one’s own moral compass, one cannot be moral.

   Comment by Carlos — November 24, 2007 @ 10:11 pm

3. You last point reminds me of all those who say Im not religious, Oh but Im “spiritual”!

   Huh? How can you be spiritual without being religious? If you say you are spiritual, then you are saying that there is a supernatural or natural law that you follow, because thats the whole point of being spiritual, that you are believe there is a higher order of things. So where does THAT come from? Hmmm???? Who sets the standards of your spirituality, if you say I do, then you are God which is absurd. Unless you say Im a Hindu, Im a Buddhist, Im a Christian, etc etc etc. All of whic are Religions. The left should listen to how moronic they sound sometimes. But i digress.

   Comment by T. A. Gray — November 24, 2007 @ 10:54 pm

4. I do believe illegal immigration is a corrupt, almost slavery-like condition. Employers are always going to complain about shortages of labor as a tool to reduce labor expense, whether unskilled farm labor, janitors, construction workers, nurses or computer programmers (H-1B visas) - I believe it’s all a scam to lower salaries.

   But why is Mexico so incapable of creating a decent economy for it’s people? Why? They have a lot of oil, fertile farm land, great coastlines, yet pathetic economic performance.

   We must insist our leaders do not entagle this nation further in any SPP/North American Union nonsense. This nation was not founded on DEPENDENCE, it was founded on INDEPENDENCE of the person and the country.

   Comment by Jay — November 25, 2007 @ 5:47 am

5. Why is Mexico unable to thrive even though they have oil, minerals, perfect weather and a large labor pool? The true culture of corruption. It saddens me but its the truth. At the individual level you have a large percentage of the society that will lie, steal or cheat for their own gain without any remorse. No, that statement is not racist, its just reality. In every society you have a subset of individuals like that. Here in the US you find them in the inner cities and the trailer parks. Yes, some of the current residents of inner city gettoes and trailer parks are not corrupt, just unwilling to take care of themselves. The problem in Mexico, as in most latin countries, is that there is a general attitude of complacency and lethargic acceptance of corruption and dependency. You grow up expecting to get ripped off and swindling others. “Doing you thang” You rip off your neighbors and the government and find it normal. You do substandard work and are offended when called on it. Stealing from your employer is fully accepted. Eventually the society stagnates and dies.

   Comment by Rey — November 25, 2007 @ 7:10 am

6. I would wish California good luck in dealing with the “invasion” but thanks for Jorge “Open Borders” Bush, all 50 states are being invaded. Our southern border is now in New England, Michigan, Wisconsin, etc.

   Unless something dramatic happens soon, it will be too late, we will be a bi-lingual nation, with a large, unassimilated population of Latinos, who are often loyal to their home countries, who have a record of poor academic performance, high out of wedlock birthrate, high dropout rate from school, etc.

   All because chronically corrupt Mexico can’t get it’s act together decade after decade. It’s only solution is to send it’s peasants north, then set up pressure groups like La Raza, LULAC and MALDEF to pressure for more “rights” of illegal aliens. Unbelievable.

   As a writer in Norway recently said, looking at the situation from far away Norway it looks like the USA is being taken over by the weak, inept country of Mexico, one peasant at a time.

   Comment by Jay — November 25, 2007 @ 8:44 am

7. I don’t know how many times I have said this, but here it goes one more time: Mexico is a SOCIALIST country!

   That said, what is the big question about why, with all of their population and natural resources, can’t it thrive economically?

   Is anyone (other than a couple of frequent commenters on this site and every tinfoil hat) surprised by these results of socialism?

   And finally, given the abject failure of every socialist experiment in history, why is this once-proud nation of ours racing in that direction at 100 mph with nary a fear of the results?

   When Mexico gets rid of its socialism and gives incentive to workers to produce and excel, then the flood of slaves will stop.

   And when our elected “representatives” get over themselves and do the same here, we will once again be a beacon of hope for the rest of the world.

   Comment by Carlos — November 25, 2007 @ 8:59 am

8. Now we need solutions. Make the Fines on the Illegal employers Immense 10,000.00 For first offense per illegal alien employed 25,000.00 second offense and 100,000.00 each for third. from then on double it. Also The illegal employer will be liable for all costs to the taxpayer to feed clothe incarcerate and transportation to the country of origin.
   That might dry up the market for illegal employees and the incentive to hire them as well.

   Comment by David Sullivan — November 25, 2007 @ 9:12 am

9. And exactly who in the “illegal employer” company will be responsible?

   If one makes the CEO responsible, then he could make a legal, binding document with all his HR people saying they will personally be responsible for any illegals knowingly hired, and my guess is that in the meantime such a document would stand a court test.

   Now, to the other real downside: My next guess is that the insurance companies will cash in on this, driving up costs for everyone simply because there are some people who are more interested in skirting the law than in upholding our own nation, because a dollar is worth more in today’s world than all the patriotism you can muster.

   Traitors. And vipers.

   Comment by Carlos — November 25, 2007 @ 2:15 pm

10. Almost right Carlos. Mexico is a Narcotocracy; a corrupt Socialist government propped up and paid for by the Narcotics syndicates whose main source of income is the US illegal drug market, yet another inconvenient truth.

    Comment by T. A. Gray — November 25, 2007 @ 7:23 pm

11. Yes, the Mexicans have always revered the Nine Commandments - you know, the ten we use, except they dropped the one that says “Thou shalt not steal” because it was such a drag…

    Comment by Carlos — November 25, 2007 @ 10:33 pm

12. The inconvenient truth about ending illegal immigration:
    It will be expensive.
    Have a look at the cost of the war on drugs - http://www.drugsense.org/wodclock.htm
    and ask yourself if the government is winning.
    If they can’t win that; how are they going to win on immigration?

    Comment by uk visa — November 29, 2007 @ 10:06 am