Barry Wong wants to cut off utilities to illegal immigrants

[Oscar Wilde]

From our good friends Fox News

Three guesses what state

Ratcheting up the debate over immigration in his state, a candidate for the Arizona utilities commission is threatening to cut off power and gas to illegal immigrants if he's elected.

"It is not a right. It is a service," Barry Wong, candidate for the Arizona Corporation Commission, told The Arizona Republic.

The Republican candidate argues that the policy would be a cost-saving measure for consumers.

Though it would cost money for power companies to check immigration status, he said it would ultimately save money because power companies would not have to build new plants to serve the illegal immigrant community, presumably passing on that savings to consumers. His plan, if elected to the five-person commission, would be to require utilities to check immigration status.

"There is a cost ratepayers shouldn't have to bear because of the illegal immigrant population," he said, while acknowledging the idea would probably attract "criticism about human-rights violations."

Though Arizona has drawn praise and criticism alike from all corners of the country for its new law making illegal immigration a state crime, support was hard to come by for Wong's proposal.
None of the other candidates for the commission would endorse his idea. The CEO of the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry also blasted Wong in a column in the Republic, accusing him of trying to "score cheap political points" while marking a "new low" in the state's immigration debate.

"To deny someone access to electricity based on his or her immigration status is not only a wrongheaded policy proposal, it's just cruel," Glenn Hamer wrote, calling the candidate's economic argument "absurd."

Wong, who was born in the United States, is the son of Chinese immigrants. He previously served in the Arizona House of Representatives.

It's not the first time the issue of Arizona's power supply has come up in the immigration debate.

After the Los Angeles government decided to boycott Arizona in May over its law, Corporation Commissioner Gary Pierce wrote a letter to Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa threatening to cut off power to the city. Los Angeles and Arizona officials later acknowledged that the state could not unilaterally sever those power contracts.

Let's "fix" illegal immigration by taking measures that in reality do nothing to prevent more from coming over illegally and absolutely not fucking fix legal immigration!

[Darth Tanner]

So do illegal immigrants get a discount on their electricity over residents, because my impression of the USA was that your power grid is not subsidized.

But seriously how many illegal immigrants can there be that they even think there will be a saving related to not building a power plant! Surely if there was any saving it would be more than taken up by forcing utilities to check your status to be in the country legally every time you moved house or changed supplier!

[Kanastrous]

Yeah, utilities services *are* just that - services.

For which an illegal immigrant customer is presumably paying exactly the same rate on his monthly bill, as any other customer. And is therefore entitled to the same service, as anyone else. Unless utilities companies are now in the business of enforcing immigration laws.

Gah.

[General Zod]

Targeting companies that hire illegal immigrants would be a lot more effective and probably get support. Hire illegal immigrants? No power for you!

This law is just stupid though; if you know with enough certainty that someone at a certain address who's paying for services is an illegal immigrant, wouldn't it make more sense to send the Feds to that address and deport them than cut off their services? Ugh.

[Kanastrous]

A lot of the impetus for Arizona etc to push these laws comes from the perception that the Feds don't fulfill their obligations when it comes to enforcement, so the 'send the Feds' bit is probably a non-starter with them...

[Qwerty 42]

Should McDonald's start checking immigrant status, too? After all, a Big Mac is a service, not a right.

[General Zod]

Should McDonald's start checking immigrant status, too? After all, a Big Mac is a service, not a right.

Hospitals should start checking immigration status as well, before they perform any kind of surgery, emergency or otherwise.

[Einzige]

Isn't it funny to hear the erstwhile "small gub'mint conservatives" champion laws that would dictate to utility companies how they sold their services?

But, of course, they're fine with that, as long as it's indulging the passions of their populistic white trash constituencies.

[Alyrium Denryle]

If this gets implemented, it will just end up killing a lot of people.

[jcow79]

If this gets implemented, it will just end up killing a lot of people.

Sadly, that's probably not far from the intent.

[Kanastrous]

If this gets implemented, it will just end up killing a lot of people.

Elaborate?

[General Zod]

If this gets implemented, it will just end up killing a lot of people.

Elaborate?

Alot of people die from heat exhaustion every year. Imagine that being exacerbated by the power company shutting off power to run AC in one of the hottest states in the US.

[Crossroads Inc.]

If this gets implemented, it will just end up killing a lot of people.

Elaborate?

From about June till August in Phoenix arizona its often over 100degrees. And during the peek months it hits 110+ for weeks on end. Denying electricity and thus air-conditioning to people would result in waves of people dying from heatstroke.

Last year my condo lost its cooler. I was able to stick out only one day before moving back in with my parents till it was fixed. During that one day I collapsed twice while inside form the heat.

[Thanas]

And I also think it will end up with a lot of power-stealing, which is just bad for everyone.

[jcow79]

If this gets implemented, it will just end up killing a lot of people.

Elaborate?

A lot of people die from heat exhaustion every year. Imagine that being exacerbated by the power company shutting off power to run AC in one of the hottest states in the US.

AC's, fans, refrigerators... Heat exhaustion and spoiled food will likely lead to increased illness and death. This proposal illustrates how these people view immigrants as less-than-human.

[Gil Hamilton]

Hospitals should start checking immigration status as well, before they perform any kind of surgery, emergency or otherwise.

Actually, the same conservatives want this too. Denying health services to illegal immigrants is a big old fight that has been going on for a while.

This is silly though. It mostly comes from the wellspring of the notion that you can abuse illegal immigrants into making them go home and also because it makes the people pushing the laws sound tough. The problem is (A) the illegals are paying costumers, it's not like they roll up and steal electricity and gas, so utility people have no idea who is illegal or not and (B) they are paying costumers and the utility companies are going to be taking the hit. Barry Wong's excuse "well, we can, uh, save on power plants! Yeah!" is tissue thin BS and he knows it, he just doesn't want to say that his self-righteous proposal will be taken from the sides of utility companies. Exactly how many new power plants does he think the state is building whose power is being drained by illegals, anyway?

[Kanastrous]

Utilities and ER services are not interchangeable, though, in that one can rack up an insanely gigantic ER tab in no time flat, and bail to leave the bill in the hospital's/state's lap. Toting up that same value in electricity usually takes quite a bit longer, and since you have to give the address at which you're receiving the service in order to get it, you're a little bit easier to track down if someone needs to pursue you for non-payment...

[Broomstick]

If this gets implemented, it will just end up killing a lot of people.

Elaborate?

Alot of people die from heat exhaustion every year. Imagine that being exacerbated by the power company shutting off power to run AC in one of the hottest states in the US.

That's on top of the dozens who die every year trying to cross the border through the desert. That's because the easier routes have been largely blocked. Oh, and the charming trick some coyotes (that's a term for human smugglers, not just a small native cannid) have of stranding their "customers" in said desert because they don't give a damn if they live or die. Some months the border patrol have recovered more bodies than they made arrests.

Actually, even WITH air conditioning Phoenix gets heath deaths every year. Cutting off utilities will only make it worse.

[Broomstick]

Utilities and ER services are not interchangeable, though, in that one can rack up an insanely gigantic ER tab in no time flat, and bail to leave the bill in the hospital's/state's lap. Toting up that same value in electricity usually takes quite a bit longer, and since you have to give the address at which you're receiving the service in order to get it, you're a little bit easier to track down if someone needs to pursue you for non-payment...

Whose to say illegals aren't paying? You think illegals who are here long term don't pay their bills? They're usually pretty careful to keep up to date to avoid attracting attention.

This isn't about cutting people off who are delinquent - it's about cutting people off who aren't in the country legally even when they pay their bills. Cutting off AC in Phoenix in summer is equivalent to cutting off heat in Montana in the middle of winter. It's intended to cause suffering and misery. Pretty fucking nasty attitude if you ask me.

[Kanastrous]

I meant that the likelihood of people skipping on power bills and leaving huge deficits for states to make up seems negligible compared to the odds of their doing the same at a hospital.

[Broomstick]

Well, yeah - because if you don't pay your bill the utilities can already cut you off (with some states saying they can't cut your off in certain seasons, but that's only a few months at most).

But this has nothing to do with delinquent bills. In fact, it would require a company to cut off paying customers for reasons having nothing to do with business.

[Gil Hamilton]

Utilities and ER services are not interchangeable, though, in that one can rack up an insanely gigantic ER tab in no time flat, and bail to leave the bill in the hospital's/state's lap. Toting up that same value in electricity usually takes quite a bit longer, and since you have to give the address at which you're receiving the service in order to get it, you're a little bit easier to track down if someone needs to pursue you for non-payment...

Not only that but the electric guy comes to your house to read your meter. You can't avoid it.

However, typically, the argument isn't that illegals are running up huge ER bills and bailing (normal citizens have been known to do that anyway), but the people who are concerned about this don't want them treated at all and the ER should refuse to take them, with very much the same rational as this guy wants to cut off utilities to illegals. They shouldn't be here, so they shouldn't have access to medical care while here. It's part and parcel with the notion that these guys think its the duty of all companies and individuals to make life completely unpleasant for illegals while here and justify it by saying that if they weren't here, no one would be unpleasant to them.

[Broomstick]

If people would just stop hiring them 90% would go home next week at the latest. But actually put people in jail who employ illegal aliens? Hell no! Instead, treat them as subhuman... while employing to watch your children, mow your lawn, or work in dangerous/unpleasant conditions.

[Kanastrous]

It's the same basic fail at simple problem-solving that gave us the War on Drugs.

Come to think of it, it's almost surprising that we haven't heard about a 'War on Illegal Immigration.' Given the American penchant for casting damn near everything in terms of warfare.

[Alyrium Denryle]

If this gets implemented, it will just end up killing a lot of people.

Elaborate?

From about June till August in Phoenix arizona its often over 100degrees. And during the peek months it hits 110+ for weeks on end. Denying electricity and thus air-conditioning to people would result in waves of people dying from heatstroke.

Last year my condo lost its cooler. I was able to stick out only one day before moving back in with my parents till it was fixed. During that one day I collapsed twice while inside form the heat.

There was a time when my mother was an idiot/lost her job/got taken in by a con artist all at the same time and we lost power.

I had to move to Utah to live my aunt and uncle for two months while she got her act together.

Fuck what they say about living for a few days without water. During the summer in Arizona, you cannot live without some form of air conditioning. Homeless shelter in storefronts for example.