Sometimes when you find yourself in a hole, the best thing to do is to stop digging. Arizona legislators and Republican Congressman seem to be digging a big hole for themselves regarding immigration reform and should stop.

Arizona is the border State which has attempted to enact tough legislation to prevent illegal immigration. They have come up with some harsh and unique measures. Fortunately United States v State of Arizona saw the demise of some of Arizona's proposed legal remedies.

The State of Arizona seems to have a problem with immigrants, whether legal or illegal. I miss the old days when life was so much simpler. We live in a complicated world where we trust no one.

Immigration does continue to be a hot topic across the pond. Talking smack about immigrants takes everyone's mind off Gulf Oil spill, Tax increases and an unpopular foreign war. Proposed legislation includes denying citizenship to children of foreign born illegal immigrants who happen to be born here. These children have rights. Rights are called Rights for a reason. They're not freebies or privileges, but guaranteed rights... Right!

Germany tried this same social programme in the 1960s with their imported Turkish labour and now the children of these immigrants are stateless. 'Gastarbeiters' (guest workers) have overstayed their welcome, and Germany would now like them to leave. The children are neither German or Turkish and have nowhere to go.

I wouldn't recommend Arizona.

The 14th Amendment to the US Constitution guarantees citizenship to everyone born here. This was enacted by the Republican Party after the Civil War to ensure African American former slaves would be recognized as citizens.

Native Americans were not included as they fell under Tribal Law and not US Law and did not get citizenship until 1922. Tribal Lands today are separate but 'Dependent' Nations.

The Republican Party now wants to amend the very Law they enacted in 1868.

Diplomats, foreign military and enemy POWs are excluded from this law of course by Treaty. I'm not sure why enemy POWs were added to the exclusions, but they made the list.

Amending the Constitution is a measure which shouldn't be taken lightly. Prohibition was the 18th Amendment to the Constitution and that turned out to be a disaster. The Volstead Act made Al Capone, Jim Beam and the Kennedy family very wealthy.

Re-writing the Constitution when it becomes politically expedient isn't what the US Founders had in mind.

Denying Citizenship to children born in this country raises a whole set of new issues. These children would be from birth essentially stateless. Do they pay taxes? Serve in the military?

We don't really need to create a Palestine refugee class of residents here.

The US Military has roughly 28,000 foreign nationals serving, including yours truly for twenty years.

These service members are immigrants who volunteer to serve in their adopted nation's armed forces. In a strange irony it is a felony for US citizens to serve in foreign military.

This time next year, Immigration, just like the Gulf Oil Spill will be forgotten.

Across the Pond