E-Mail joke about immigration

This morning I received an e-mail from a woman who is very nice and kind. It was a piece of propaganda disguised as a joke, and it was the straw that broke my tolerance camel's back. I am going to have to take her out to lunch and ask her to not provoke me any more. Here is the e-mail:

LET ME SEE IF I GOT THIS RIGHT!!!
IF YOU CROSS THE NORTH KOREAN BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU GET 12 YEARS HARD LABOR
IF YOU CROSS THE IRANIAN BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU ARE DETAINED INDEFINITELY.
IF YOU CROSS THE AFGHAN BORDER ILLEGALLY, YOU GET SHOT.
IF YOU CROSS THE SAUDI ARABIAN BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU WILL BE JAILED.
IF YOU CROSS THE CHINESE BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU MAY NEVER BE HEARD FROM AGAIN.
IF YOU CROSS THE VENEZUELAN BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU WILL BE BRANDED A SPY AND YOUR FATE WILL BE SEALED.
IF YOU CROSS THE CUBAN BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU WILL BE THROWN INTO POLITICAL PRISON TO ROT.
IF YOU CROSS THE U.S. BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU GET
1 - A JOB,
2 - A DRIVERS LICENSE,
3 - SOCIAL SECURITY CARD,
4 - WELFARE,
5 - FOOD STAMPS,
6 - CREDIT CARDS,
7 - SUBSIDIZED RENT OR A LOAN TO BUY A HOUSE,
8 - FREE EDUCATION,
9 - FREE HEALTH CARE,
10 - A LOBBYIST IN WASHINGTON
11 - BILLIONS OF DOLLARS WORTH OF PUBLIC DOCUMENTS PRINTED IN YOUR LANGUAGE
12 - AND THE RIGHT TO CARRY YOUR COUNTRY'S FLAG WHILE YOU PROTEST THAT YOU DON'T GET ENOUGH RESPECT.
        I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE I HAD A FIRM GRASP ON THE SITUATION.  Are WE dumb or what ?????

My answer is below:

Thank you for sending me this little humorous piece about Illegal immigrants. Remember I was a welfare worker for almost thirty years, so I feel capable of answering the author from experience. See my responses below. I am trying not to get angry, but this is an example of someone starting a lie and others building it into prejudice, suspicion and discrimination.
And remember, that SOMEONE let illegals stay in this country for years and years, and so now their children, BORN HERE 18 years ago are now in high school and college. But the CHILDREN are citizens because MOM was allowed to stay 18 years ago.

Let me say that again: 18 years ago. That would be President Bush the elder and the Republican congress. and before that was Reagan and the Republican congress and Ford and Nixon and even Eisenhower. This country has had a messed up "ignore it and it will go away" attitude since 1950. So I want Congress (yes the whole bunch of 'em not just the Dems) to get off their backsides and earn the 150K a year we're paying them. Or I will work to get them jobs picking grapes in California.

And I humbly remind you that my forbears came here without "permission" from INS. And instead of erecting fences, we built Ellis Island to screen out the sick and criminal, but not to prevent anyone from coming in because of quotas or the color of their skin. My forbears mined coal and gold, waited tables, picked nuts and vegetables in the miswest. The others sold vegetables from a cart, collected rent for the owners of tenements, waited tables in delicatessens and worked as housemaids in NYC. Except the color of their skins, I come from people JUST LIKE THE ONES YOU WANT TO SHIP HOME. How far back do you want to go to select the evicted ones???

1 - A JOB, picking cotton or strawberries or gutting chickens. You want that job? I'll get it for you
2 - A DRIVERS LICENSE, NOT TRUE
3 - SOCIAL SECURITY CARD, anyone can apply for a social security card, even if they are out of the country
4 - WELFARE, Nope, not a chance
5 - FOOD STAMPS, nope, also a bald lie
6 - CREDIT CARDS, see social security card. and that is private banking's decision, not yours
7 - SUBSIDIZED RENT OR A LOAN TO BUY A HOUSE, subsidy, nope another bald lie; loan see #6, you socialsit
8 - FREE EDUCATION, nope, only citizens.
9 - FREE HEALTH CARE, which we all should have. Please check with someone from Canada, Panama or South Africa
10 - A LOBBYIST IN WASHINGTON who will represent citizens rights even more vehemently than the illegal visitor
11 - BILLIONS OF DOLLARS WORTH OF PUBLIC DOCUMENTS PRINTED IN YOUR LANGUAGE really? Spanish is not an AMERICAN language? Says who? We should be speaking GERMAN, but that bill lost by 1 vote in 1789. Seig Heil, Meine freunde!
12 - AND THE RIGHT TO CARRY YOUR COUNTRY'S FLAG WHILE YOU PROTEST THAT YOU DON'T GET ENOUGH RESPECT Just like the Irish the Italians and the Swedes do in states a little to the north. HMMMM

Well, I still haven't learned to stop and take a breath to keep from acting out of anger. Someday I will learn. But what part of America was meant for only the first ones to get here? Doesn't freedom lose a dimention when we deny it to "others"? And where will any curtailment stop? What did all those soldiers and freedom fighters from 1776 to 1976 fight and die for if not to be the BEACON OF LIBERTY??