For one undocumented UC Berkeley junior, a scholarship has meant the opportunity to dream again.
Born in Japan, the student — who asked to remain anonymous to protect her immigration status — had a less-than-perfect childhood. After her family moved to California about 20 years ago, her undocumented father was diagnosed with cancer and could not access treatment without a health care plan. Shortly after, he died.
She spent years feeling trapped, relying on friends for transportation, ineligible to get a license or a job without documentation.
“I must blend in, keep quiet and not get in trouble with the law or I will be removed from the country and sent back to a place where I barely speak the language and to a culture that is completely foreign to me,” she said.
When she applied to college, she found herself trapped once again, faced with ineligibility to receive loans, most scholarships and financial aid.
The California DREAM Act changed that.
Since Jan. 1, UC Berkeley has awarded approximately 140 scholarships to students under the first part of the act — otherwise known as AB 130 — according to campus spokesperson Janet Gilmore.
AB 130, which was signed into law on June 25 of last year, allows undocumented students who meet certain criteria to receive private scholarships awarded by public California colleges and universities.
The Berkeley Undergraduate DREAM Act scholarship reflects the campus’ sentiment — posted on the campus financial aid website — that “students who attended and graduated from high school in California, but are not legal residents … should not be disregarded or their future jeopardized because of their immigration status.”
Just under 150 students applied for the scholarship this semester, according to Rachelle Feldman, assistant vice chancellor and director of financial aid and scholarships. Of the scholarship recipients, just over 20 did not meet the 3.0 GPA requirement and were granted the scholarships based on appeals, said Feldman in an email.
Approximately $1 million in scholarships — funded by a combination of private gifts and endowments — was awarded in total, with each award amount varying by each student’s financial need. Most awards “generally covered tuition and fees,” Feldman said in the email.
“The generosity of donors and the leadership of our administration and students made an incredible difference in students’ lives,” said Gladys Castro, co-chair of the student group Rising Immigrant Scholars through Education and a student on campus. “It’s eased the worry of how one would cover tuition, books, rent and food.”
For the undocumented junior from Japan, the scholarship did more than just ease her financial worries — it acted as a personal reward, proving to her that “all (her) hard work has paid off.”
“Despite the barriers that I have faced, I have made it to this school and have been awarded for getting over those obstacles,” she said. “Without (the scholarship), I would probably be stuck in an under-the-table job for the rest of my life.”
In October, Brown signed the second part of the DREAM Act — AB 131 — which allows undocumented students to apply for and receive state financial aid, such as Cal Grants. At the beginning of April, applications opened for state-funded grants and scholarships for AB 131 students.
The DREAM Act — especially AB 131 — has faced strong opposition from Republican groups since its inception. In January, Assemblymember Tim Donnelly, R-Twin Peaks, led efforts to put a referendum to repeal the act up for vote. The campaign fell short of the 500,000 petition signatures needed to place the referendum on the ballot.
On its website, the group leading the campaign, which calls the legislation the “California Nightmare Act,” says the law is one that “undeniably rests on a larger scheme of amnesty.”
But campus Vice Chancellor for Equity and Inclusion Gibor Basri said that the scholarship helps to keep students with particularly difficult financial situations on the track to graduation.
“These students are from underrepresented groups … many of them have amazing stories, which other students greatly benefit from getting to know better,” Basri said in an email.
Feldman said that “it is the goal to award every eligible student” by covering tuition and fees for those that need it most.
For the undocumented junior, the DREAM Act scholarship is more than just money — it is a step closer to achieving her goals.
“I believe everybody has the right to dream and no person is illegal,” she said.
Geena Cova covers academics and administration.
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Yay jerry, continue making your threats to cut UC funds if we don’t vote to pay even more taxes, but go ahead and pass legislation to spend more money. DreamAct is heartwarming to be sure, but seriously, is DA appropriate in these economic times? especially for california? But I guess I’ll take out more loans and work more jobs to pay for tuitions of these illegals.
> The war in Afghanistan costs $200 million A DAY. Are you saying
> that killing women and children (and, fuck, men too!) in some obscure
> mountain country 10,000 miles away is worth THAT MUCH MONEY???
There are plenty of things I could say about your moronic comparisons and total cluelessness, but here are a few little bits of information that you need to stuff in that skull full of mush of yours.
#1 -Afghanistan isn’t an “obscure little country” to anyone who has spent any time in the US Armed Forces, studied military history, or paid attention to current events over the last decade or two.
#2 – We’re not out randomly “killing women and children”, in fact our Armed Forces (despite your libelous assertion) to what they can to minimize such deaths. We’re fighting a WAR, one that we didn’t start. Defense is a legitimate and mandated function of the US Government.
#3 – Funding for defense does NOT come out of the States’ budget, that’s a federal spending issue. Therefore, insinuating that California’s fiscal problems are the result of “war spending” is ludicrous, and merely shows your ignorance.
#4 – Show me one place in either the US Constitution or the California State Constitution where we are obligated to provide college funding for people who came to this country as a results of somebody violating our country’s immigration laws – you can’t.
The rest of you histrionic blathering can be dismissed that the emotive ravings of someone who is incapable of critical thinking.
[It's not absurd, because part of the issue about whether or not we should have the DREAM act is about the human and moral aspect. If we were here to just debate what is legal or illegal, then this woman is in blatant violation of the law, and boom, discussion over.]
So in essence you agree she’s violating the law, and therefore we’re not obligated to fund her education, right?
[The law is really not an absolute]
We have a process in this country for changing the law when the people believe the law is unjust, which is intended to balance the will of the majority with the rights of the majority. As imperfect as it may be, it has worked pretty damned well for nearly a quarter of a millennium. OTOH, people like you think you have some special insight as to which laws are just and which ones are unjust, and can pick and choose which laws you care to follow. If this is the type of garbage that’s being taught in the schools these days in lieu of “civics” or “government”, it’s simply another good argument to privatize the educational system and get a bunch of professional left-wing indoctrinators off of the government payroll…
Act 2011
Where Dreams Come True!
Bringing Hope & Promise
To Our Children -
The Future of
America
Welcome to the Dream Act of 2011!
Providing up-to-date information and resources on the new Congressional Bill to
bring legalization to millions of immigrant children across America. This
long-awaited immigration initiative has broad bi-partisan support and promises
to finally bring our immigrant children “out of the shadows” to pursue thier
hope and dreams, attend college, undertake military service and live the
American Dream!
Remember that your support for this Bill
is very important, so please click on this link to Contact your Congressional
Representatives and express your support for the DREAM
ACT of 2011!
Overview of the new DREAM Act of
2011
The original Bill, called the Development, Relief and
Education for Alien Minors Act (The “DREAM Act”) is a long anticipated
Immigration Bill which was just introduced in the US Congress (both Senate and
House) on March 26, 2009. This original legislation was proposed to provide
millions of immigrant children who graduate from U.S. High Schools the
opportunity to receive U.S. Residency (a “Green Card”) after so many years of
being left in the shadows by State and Federal laws. The new legislation will
provide immigration benefits to those who arrived in the United States as
children, before the age of 16 and who have been residing in the U.S.
continuously for at least five years prior to the Bill being enacted into Law.
The DREAM Act failed to pass in 2009 and even though
Senator Reid brought it up to the floor twice: the first time, pre-midterm
election 2010 where it died with a defense authorization bill; and the second,
in December 2010, when it fell five votes short of passing.
Recently, in 2011, Democtrats in both the House and
Senate re-introduced the DREAM Act. Both Bills continue to await Congressional
action.
CLICK BELOW TO READ THE 2011
BILLS:
HOUSE BILL (H.R.1842): Development, Relief, and
Education for Alien Minors Act of 2011
SENATE BILL (S.952): Development, Relief, and
Education for Alien Minors Act of 2011
Click Here To See What Wikipedia Says About The
Dream Act
Click Below Links to Read Recent News
About the new Dream Act Bill
HUFFINGTON
POST
NEW YORK
TIMES
The 2009 Bill had very generous provisiions, giving
children who qualify the opportunity to “earn” Permanent Residency. This meant
that students wouldl be issued temporary Residency for a period of six years,
which is conditioned upon meeting certain educational or military requirements.
Within the six year temporary Residency period, a qualified student must attend
college, and earn at least a two year degree (AA), or serve in the U.S. Military
for two years in order to maintain immigration benefits. Once the immigrant has
met all of the conditions at the end of the 6-year conditional period, they will
be granted Permanent Residency, which will lead to U.S. citizenship. However, if
the student does not comply with either the college requirement or military
service requirement, the temporary Residency will be taken away and student will
be subjected to deportation
However, the re-introduced Bills are more conservative,
in line with the more restrictive Bill which died in the Senate last December
2010. The following are the main requirments for qualification:
General
Requirements:
Under the new DREAM Act, immigrants may
qualify in part, by meeting the following requirements which have not been
finalized by Congress:
- Must be between the ages of 12 and 30 at
the time the Law is enacted
- Must have arrived in the United States
before the age of 16
- Must have resided continuously in the
United States for a least five (5) consecutive years since the
date of their arrival
- Must have graduated from a U.S. High
School, or obtained a General Education Diploma (GED)
- Must have “Good moral character” (no
criminal convictions)
Current Immigration Laws Regarding
Immigrant Children:
Under current immigtation regulations, children who
immigrate to the United States from another country can only obtain permanent
status through their parents and may not independently apply for Residency. Such
children are allowed to attend and complete public education, but upon
graduation, are not allowed to attend college in many States. Further, without
proof of legal immigration status, such children are generally not issued
Driver’s Licenses, Social Security cards and cannot legally work.
Background of the Dream Act
pre2009:
Several different versions of the current Dream Act were
introduced into Congress in 2001, 2005 and 2007, but never made it to passage.
Much of the Dream Act text was also made part of several
other failed immigration-related bills, including the Comprehensive Immigration
Reform Act of 2006 and the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007 . The
failure of these past immigration reform efforts was largely blamed on
Republicans, who generally oppose immigration reform. However, in recent years,
Senator McCain and other prominent Senate and House Republicans have signaled a
shift by supporting such initiatives.
The current Dream Act was re-introduced by both chambers
of Congress on March 26 2009 in a bi-partisan effort to mend the injustice
inflicted on millions of immigrant children, innocently brought to the United
States by thier parents and in no way responsible for their current illegal
immigration status. The current Dream Act Bill were introduced by Senators Dick
Durbin (D-IL) and Richard Lugar (R-IN),Representatives Howard Berman (D-CA) and
Lincoln Diaz-Balart (R-FL), and in the House, Representatives Lucile
Roybal-Allard (D-CA), Devin Nunes (R-CA), Anh “Joseph” Cao (R-LA), Ileana
Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL), Jared Polis (D-CO), John Conyers
(D-MI) and Zoe Lofgren (D-CA).
Be sure to follow the Links on the toolbar
for Recent News, Immigration Newsletter and valuable Resouces.
ILLEGALS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This is fine. On the other hand, if she had chosen to come here illegally or if she were not qualified, then this would be an issue. Otherwise, helping her out is just being a decent person.
If you are decent to her, you give up the opportunity to be decent to someone who is here legally. Resources are finite.
“They are leeches who then contribute to the American economy after
getting a college education and a job. 40% of Fortune 500 companies were
founded by immigrants, or the children of immigrants.”
LEGAL IMMIGRANTS are NOT the same as ILLEGAL ALIENS.
$14.5 million will buy you nothing on a state-wide scale (besides maybe helping 140 kids).
You’re chanting the same old mantra here. Once again, why can’t this money go to help citizens or legal immigrants, instead of people who broke the law?
Lets say some idiots decide to take their baby on a robbery spree. Is that baby liable for their actions? Don’t think so.
Imagine if you were her. Trapped. If you go back, you’re an idiot because you don’t speak the language and if you stay here with no DREAM act money, you probably don’t go to college and work a tough job for the rest of your life.
The law isn’t always right. If that were the case, all we’d ever need is a police force to enforce it. No president, no congress, etc.
”Lets say some idiots decide to take their baby on a robbery spree. Is that baby liable for their actions? Don’t think so.”
So if you break the law, you get the taxpayers of the country you entered illegally to pay for your education? Having spent enough time in Japan and knowing how that country works, I can assure you that if my parents had violated their immigration laws, there wouldn’t be any debate whether or not I should be allowed to attend college on the Japanese Government’s dime, because upon being discovered, I would have been deported along with my parents. Same for Mexico, China, India, or just about every other country on the planet. You clearly have no clue how the rest of the world works.
“The law isn’t always right.”
So you think immigration laws are wrong. Care to tell us why as a nation we have no right to control our own borders?
[The law isn't always right.]
Care to tell is what specifically is wrong about our immigration and citizenship laws? There is a legal process to come to America and obtain citizenship, and in fact this country naturalizes (gives citizenship to) about 700,000 people per year. That’s pretty generous compared to many countries in the world, certainly in light that we’re still suffering through a major economic recession and double-digit unemployment in areas of the country with high immigrant concentrations. You care to tell us why we should just open the borders and let anyone come here, without checking to make sure that the people coming here aren’t terrorists, criminals, disease carriers, unemployables, or other individuals who may be nothing more than a burden on our already overtaxed health care, social services, schools and criminal justice system? You have any rational argument, or is the same old emotionalism and liberal guilt driving your fanatical disregard for our country’s immigration laws?
I wonder how many of the scholarship recipients used stolen social security numbers to enroll here.
There’s a good chance that law-abiding, tax-paying American citizens are going through the nightmare of identity theft because of these “innocent victims”.
Yeah that makes a lot of sense except for the fact that it doesn’t. I’m pretty sure someone along the line would have noticed if a person applying for a scholarship for undocumented students had an SSN.
”Yeah that makes a lot of sense except for the fact that it doesn’t. I’m
pretty sure someone along the line would have noticed if a person
applying for a scholarship for undocumented students had an SSN.”
You really think so?
Are you an idiot? Just because they didn’t use a SSN on their dream application doesn’t mean that they haven’t used stolen SSNs on many other occasions.
[Are you an idiot?]
I have plenty of disagreements with LAWLS, but unlike some of the foamers here, I wouldn’t say he’s an idiot. However, he is exhibiting a prime example of the state of mental confusion that is the result of blind adherence to liberal Political Correctness.
“$14.5 million will buy you nothing on a state-wide scale (besides maybe helping 140 kids)”
So why not help American kids instead of illegals?
Or can you even answer that question”?
I don’t think it’s a simple as you make it out to be. They’ve already provided support for all “documented” students that have the same economic status. It’s about taking care of kids who have been put in a bad place – the kids didn’t choose to come here illegally.
Naturally this money isn’t going to undocumented students who are super-rich.
”They’ve already provided support for all “documented” students that have the same economic status.”
Oh really? Then WTF are all the Occupy Cal protests about?
Lib morons do this all the time. They yammer about FAIRNESS. Who said we should be FAIR to illegals and give them money?
This view derives from pathetic Lib guilt.
Personally, I do not suffer from that affliction.
[I don't think it's a simple as you make it out to be.]
Their families broke the law, and you think they should be financially rewarded for doing so. That’s a recipe for economic suicide. Doesn’t get any simpler than that…
“She spent years feeling trapped, relying on friends for transportation,
ineligible to get a license or a job without documentation.”
Guess what? The DREAM Act won’t change that. She still can’t get a driver’s license and she still can’t get a job even with a shiny new Cal degree in computer science or microbiology. She is taking up a spot that could have gone to an American citizen or wealthy foreign student. Her only hope is to meet a sympathetic Asiaphile grad student or professor who is willing to marry her before she graduates. Then her education would pay off for California’s economy.
Actually, with a college diploma she can apply for citizenship and be MUCH more likely to be accepted, since in America we value intelligent people (lol did I even say that just now?). This is how it works (I know that Canada has a “point” system, where you put in all of your information like education, job experience, family size, yadayadayada and if you have at least a minimum amount of points then you can get citizenship). So yeah, a college education is actually a great way for her to have a better life.
Paid for by the same American taxpayers whose children would probably like to receive a scholarship as well? Since when in the hell do ILLEGALS get preference over American citizens?
See my comment above and stop spewing your illogical BS
Answer my question, you sniveling little coward. Not all American students receive scholarships to go to college, even if they or their parents are taxpayers. Why should illegal aliens get preference over American citizens?
Why don’t YOU stop spewing and tell us why, during a time that all you left-wing types are protesting a lack of funds for higher education, why we are handing out scholarships to people whose families broke the law? Do you not realize that you’re merely providing another economic incentive for breaking the law, or do you simply not care?
This is why I will not donate a dime to Berkeley after I graduate.
Was the sob story about the Japanese girl really necessary? She’s breaking the law– that’s it. Go back to Japan instead of mooching off of American tax dollars.
The part about her dad dying of cancer because he didn’t have insurance was a real tear jerker. Slipped in to generate sympathy?
Like, what, they should just make out that she had a great life in a safe suburban neighborhood with nice parents and a posh lifestyle? Like we shouldn’t mention in history textbooks that black people were enslaved because, you know, maybe we’d be all like “oh, that sucks”?
No, because that would be incorrect. That’s why they put in what actually happened…because it happened. It may be different than Fox News or something, but sometimes, stories are true.
If you think that the real world is propaganda, then you are looking into reality through your own biased screen.
Yeah, it’s reality, true, but it still doesn’t change the fact that she is here illegally. That’s why it’s absurd of them to include her dad’s illness in the story. It’s irrelevant.
It’s not absurd, because part of the issue about whether or not we should have the DREAM act is about the human and moral aspect. If we were here to just debate what is legal or illegal, then this woman is in blatant violation of the law, and boom, discussion over. Not even really worth an article, you could probably fit that into a tweet. What people debate ABOUT laws is whether or not they are “right” or not, and that’s more of what this article is about: if the DREAM act is right, if US immigration policy is right, if US immigrant legal status and recourses are right, etc. I see many conservatives missing this with the Occupy protests (“They broke the law for protesting, so they should go to jail”). Even the protestors don’t generally dispute that they broke the law; it’s about whether or not they think the law is right or not. The law is really not an absolute: we used to have laws that allowed slavery and denied women the “right” (note the current connotation) to vote.
They are leeches.
”It’s not absurd, because part of the issue about whether or not we
should have the DREAM act is about the human and moral aspect.”
We have NO moral obligation to fund college scholarships for people who come to this country illegally. That certainly wouldn’t happen in Japan or Mexico, so why should it happen here?
They are leeches who then contribute to the American economy after getting a college education and a job. 40% of Fortune 500 companies were founded by immigrants, or the children of immigrants.
http://www.nyc.gov/html/om/pdf/2011/partnership_for_a_new_american_economy_fortune_500.pdf
And so what about the HUGE leeches on our economy, like corporate welfare, the military-industrial complex and wars, and the private insurance industry? That totals in the TRILLIONS of dollars, not millions. See, this is all comparative. If we spent NO OTHER money on ANY other “leeches”, then we might need to take a hard look at immigration and see if we really think that it is morally and economically worth it for us to provide scholarships for those who live and work in the country, but are not ‘citizens’. But while we are spending MILLIONS of times more money on other equally (or more) dumb things, talking about such a small issue is just flat irresponsible.
Oh, and cool fact for all the Latino-phobes: the net immigration between the US and Mexico is now zero. Yes, we have officially become just as shitty a country to find a job in as Mexico.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-04-24/calderon-says-mexico-reduced-net-migration-to-u-s-to-zero.html
IMMIGRANT does not equal ILLEGAL. “40% of Fortune 500 companies were
founded by immigrants, or the children of immigrants”–these individuals
may very well have undergone necessary procedures to secure citizenship
to this country. It’s not about being “latinophobe”–stop crying victim
and racism whenever this issue is talked about. It doesnt matter if an
illegal is Latino or Canadian. If you’re here illegally, youre mooching
off our tax system. Yes, the huge corporations are also corrupt, I agree
(I even think we should keep our jobs in the US), but that doesnt make
it OK to completely excuse the fact that illegal immigrants are draining
our country.
I hope you are a Christian, or at least a theist, cause if you’re not, I’m surprised by your comments about morality and right/wrong.
Also like Stan said,
a college education is not a right. It is a previlege. Our generation has a serious problem with entitlement, thinking that the world owes them something.
”Like we shouldn’t mention in history textbooks that black people were enslaved”
No native-born black American applying for a college scholarship today was ever held in slavery, so your comment is irrelevant.
Do you understand the concept of cause and effect?
Obviously you do not, because you have NO freaking clue that we’re NEVER going to control illegal immigration if we provide economic incentives to break the law.
IMMIGRANT does not equal ILLEGAL. “40% of Fortune 500 companies were founded by immigrants, or the children of immigrants”–these individuals may very well have undergone necessary procedures to secure citizenship to this country. It’s not about being “latinophobe”–stop crying victim and racism whenever this issue is talked about. It doesnt matter if an illegal is Latino or Canadian. If you’re here illegally, youre mooching off our tax system. Yes, the huge corporations are also corrupt, I agree (I even think we should keep our jobs in the US), but that doesnt make it OK to completely excuse the fact that illegal immigrants are draining our country.
Angry….. and Ignorant, not to mention Prejudice. The Dream Act is an attempt to protect children of illegal immigrants not immigrants who knowingly and intentionally came into this country illegally. The question that needs to be asked is the following: Should we hold your children responsible for all the wrongs that you have committed?
The reality is children DO suffer the consequences of the actions of their parents…that’s life.
The question that needs to be asked is, how do we stop the flow of illegal immigration to the US? Do we do this by financially rewarding illegal activity? Doesn’t this just provide another incentive for millions more to cross our borders illegally? The dollar amount to fund the educations of these students today will rise exponentially as millions in foreign countries will learn what the minimum requirements are to obtain a free college education in CA. After all, who wouldn’t want a college education from the prestigious UC Berkeley fully funded by the CA taxpayers?
[Angry..... and Ignorant, not to mention Prejudice.]
What’s so “ignorant” or “prejudiced” about objecting to someone receiving an economic benefit from breaking the law? Do you really think the Japanese would let someone remain in their country illegally, let alone provide their family members with scholarships?
Would rather see a program in place to make people like this girl citizens, rather than loaning money to those that might very well be leaving the country via deportation or some other reason. The repayment risk for this population is way too high, and with the college debt crisis already as bad as it is, it was improper for California to pass such a bill.
Let’s just give everyone handouts! Funny that they wont do the same for AMERICAN CITIZENS if we try to get an education FOR FREE IN THEIR COUNTRY.
I say expand the scholarship program. We charge Dream kids out of state tuition, and then give them full scholarships from these generous donors. The university gets several hundred more students with paid out of state fees, and the cost is picked up by the wealthy Dream Act supporters.
Let’s only admit illegals. Cal would have mucho dinero then.
My tax dollars should not being funding an institution that is helping people who are breaking the law
I’m not exactly a sympathizer, but citizenship has always seemed arbitrary to me. I say free markets all the way.
Like all things related to the government, immigration has a lot of excessive complexity. However, the process tries to avoid unduly burdening the citizens. A free market approach won’t sound so good to you once the country is filling up with millions of people escaping from the rest of the world and expecting you to take care of them. The jobs market won’t grow to handle all the people who will come to California. So we will have a lot more people to support with the California budget. That means your tuition will go up to private school levels, because education expenditures will be cut back heavily to direct money to help all our new citizens who can’t take care of themselves. And good luck to students getting an apartment in Berkeley when the city is filled with year long residents. You can stay in the dorms all four years. Of course, your dorm charges will increase dramatically, because they will be needed to help fund the school.
stop paying taxes then? I don’t exactly agree with how my federals tax dollars also. Iraq, Afghanistan, oil subsidies,etc. Oh, but wait, these actions “aren’t breaking ANY law”. nope, never. nothing to see here people, just republican propaganda
As usual, lefties foam when they can’t offer facts and logic. There are no such things as “oil subsidies”, given that not only do oil companies pay corporate income taxes, but taxes on gas and diesel fuel used by people on the nation’s highways pays for mass transit, NOT the other way around. You refuse to deal with the central point, which is that the California taxpayers are paying for people who are either here illegally, or whose parents are here illegally. Why don’t you keep this is mind the next time you and your Occupy Whatever idiot friends are out there whining and moaning that we don’t have enough money for education?
“There are no such things as “oil subsidies”"
Yes. There are. The government annual pays out about $12 billion to oil companies in subsidy money. This doesn’t include the huge amount of money we spend on military power to maintain the flow of international oil as well (Kuwait, Iraq, Iran, Libya, etc.).
http://www.eli.org/pdf/Energy_Subsidies_Black_Not_Green.pdf
“Why don’t you keep this is mind the next time you and your Occupy
Whatever idiot friends are out there whining and moaning that we don’t
have enough money for education?”
Honestly, look at the numbers here. Let me quote: “The state’s Department of Finance estimated that 2,500 additional
students would qualify for Cal Grants as a result of the law, at a cost
of $14.5-million, or 1 percent of the total budget for the state’s main
financial aid program.”
http://chronicle.com/article/Californias-Dream-Act/129330/
Yeah. 1%. You are really, really, really freaking out over the amount of money that a single person can spend on a Lake Tahoe house???????? This raises your taxes by about $0.40 a year. Oh no. And by the way, by closing tax loopholes and having the federal government stop killing brown people across the globe, we could save more like on the order of a couple trillion a year (federally). A trillion is a million million in case you didn’t know. That’s like enough to make a million people in the US millionaires. :P Plus, I have morals, and kicking out kids who have had a tough life already and just want to do well for themselves and others by getting an education and a job is just WRONG.
The cost is not $14.5 million. The true cost is what else you could have done with that money. Did you ever take an Econ course? If not, look up Opportunity Cost.
1) $14.5 million will buy you nothing on a state-wide scale (besides maybe helping 140 kids). What, are you going to use that to somehow magic a zillion jobzz or something?
2) The war in Afghanistan costs $200 million A DAY. Are you saying that killing women and children (and, fuck, men too!) in some obscure mountain country 10,000 miles away is worth THAT MUCH MONEY???
WHERE’S THE OPPORTUNITY COST THERE?
TNT
You could fund $14.5 worth of scholarships forUS citizens.
Your yammering about Afghanistan is off topic. How about the 500,000 dollar cost of Mooshell’s vacation to Spain. Or Ofraud’s jetting around and going to a NCAA playoff game.