Illegal entry is not the same as immigration

Dear Editor,

There were two letters in the April 30 Halston Media email newsletter that were either unintentionally or deliberately misleading. These letters were titled “Stop scapegoating immigrants after tragedy” and “Stop spreading myths about immigrants and crime.”

First, both of these letters equate lawful immigration with unlawful entry. Unlawful entrants are not immigrants; they are illegal aliens. It should be noted that unlawful entry into the United States can be unlawful in civil law as well as unlawful in criminal law. Therefore, illegal aliens are criminals without violating other criminal statutes.

Letter-writer Michael Hickens is entitled to his opinions and should be commended for stating them. However much he is entitled to his opinions, he is not entitled to his own facts. Fact No. 1: a young lady was murdered; Fact No. 2: the murder was committed by an individual not lawfully in the United States; and Fact No. 3: if the illegal alien was not present in the United States, the young lady would not have been murdered by him and would be alive today.

Mr. Hickens also writes about gun control. The possession of firearms is guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the Constitution. The First Amendment to the Constitution guarantees the right of Mr. Hickens to write to the press and the press to publish his writing. Mr. Hickens also tries to vilify Sergio Esposito’s lawful and legitimate business.

Although many people on the left like to state that the firearm available at the time the Second Amendment was written was the musket, I would like to point out that computers, keyboards, email, and high speed printing presses were not available at the time the First Amendment was written, nor was radio, television, telephone or even the telegraph.

As far as “…beating swords into ploughshares…” I believe it was Benjamin Franklin who said that “Those who beat their swords into plowshares usually end up plowing for those who didn’t…”

-Jay Kopstein, Yorktown Heights