A Note from the Editors:

Alexa And Google Toolbars

Toolbars are a helpful way to find information on the Internet without going to a search engine. One of the most popular toolbars is Alexa. The Alexa toolbar is a free toolbar by Amazon and powered by the Google search engine, offering a number of useful add-on features, including:

• Block popup ads (you can also choose to allow the pop-up)
• Related links (provides links similiar to the webpage you are visiting)
• Archived copies of favorite sites (you can see changes over the years)
• Site info (contact information, average traffic rank, year started)

• Block popup ads (you can also choose to allow the pop-up)
• Limit your search results (just Government sites, dictionary, etc)
• Info option (one-click access to similar pages, links pointing to the page, translation into English, cached page)

We welcome readers to share their opinion and ideas on this topic with us by writing to weeklyeditor@ilw.com.

ILW Highlights

Frustration At USCIS Service Centers

Many of today's frustrations in immigration law practice are with issues connected with USCIS Service Center benefits processing. ILW.COM's new seminar series "Grant Me This Much: Obtaining Immigration Benefits From The USCIS Regional Service Centers" will provide immigration attorneys with the tools necessary to alleviate at least some of these frustrations. The speakers are a mix of government officials and distinguished immigration practioners.

The deadline to register is Tuesday, May 25th. For more info, including detailed curriculum, speaker bios, and registration information, see: http://www.ilw.com/seminars/may2004.shtm. (Fax version: http://www.ilw.com/seminars/may2004.pdf.)

Articles

Asylum Resource Series: Honduras
USCIS Asylum Resource Information Center offers asylum information on Honduras.

What You Should Know About The IRS, SSN & ITIN
Mahsa Aliaskari, Esq. writes "What was once available to the majority of people legally and physically present in the U.S. with minimal documentation, is now an elusive and much coveted item that seemingly requires giving up your soul to the Social Security Administration."

Immigration And Poverty: How Are They Linked?
Jeff Chapman and Jared Bernstein of the Economic Policy Institute write "The growing immigrant share of the US population was neither the sole, nor even the most important, factor in the relatively flat poverty rate from 1989 to 1999; in fact, poverty rates fell faster for immigrants than for natives."

Not Just Any Immigration Case (Green Cards For John Lennon And Yoko Ono)
Leon Wildes shares his personal anectodes as immigration counsel to John Lennon and Yoko Ono.

Immigrant's Weekly Feature
Tax Rules Of The Road
Paula Singer, Esq. writes "The most complex and least well-defined tax rules are those that apply to transactions of foreign nationals."

This week's chat schedule

ILW.COM announces that as of Feb 3rd, all chats will be held at 5:00 pm Eastern Time.

When	Attorney
Logon for chat Next Chat: Thu, May 20, 5:00 PM ET (New York Time) Questions will be accepted starting 15 minutes before the event.	To Be Announced
Tue, May 25, 5:00 pm Eastern	To Be Announced
Thu, May 27, 5:00 pm Eastern	Lisa Brenman, Esq.

Letters to Editors

To write to Editors, send emails to weeklyeditor@ilw.com.

Dear Editor:
In response to recent Editor's comments, we don't want immigration, we hate jobs outsourcing because we hate to compete freely. Like it or not, we can't. We live in a more and more globalized world. The only way to stop immigration and jobs outsourcing is by collapsing all political borders and abolishing all immigration laws worldwide. Let the market rule and let the people and business entities be free to move from one to other places for survival and seeking better life and opportunity without risk to be called as criminals, illegal aliens or the "undocumented" people. We shouldn't ignore 8-12 millions people who are already in the USA. Their potentials, contributions and purchasing power. Giving them legal status means they can go to school and get new skills, invest and open new businesses instead of bringing their hard earned money back to Mexico, China etc. We see many of the previous undocumented immigrants who got amnesty in 1986 and also refugees who are now succesful and good US citizens because USA has given compassion and opportunity to them to reach their best potentials. Why should we deport them, if they could contribute positively here and in fact, we need them? Congress should really study the impact of any amnesty both positive or negative. It's an excellent idea to invite those who got amnesty in 1986 and also ex refugees to testify in front of the Congress, a before and after testimonial. Is it worse or better? We talk about this immigration reform for years. It's time for action not just endless debates to eternity.

Sugiharto
Philadelphia, PA

Dear Editor:
Have you ever wondered how does a relative of a US citizen or Legal Permanent Resident feel, when a new law is approved to allow illegal aliens to become legal residents, even when they entered the country recently, while the relatives who are in the Preference categories, must continue to wait for years for their cases to be current? As a practitioner of Immigration law, I have seen that too many times already and that is why I feel powerless and dismayed to see how in Congress there are currently five proposals, which aim to provide some kind of legal status for the almost 8 million illegal aliens in America, while families with petitions, are not able to find short term relief and are being broken apart for the long wait. Even with the creation in 2000 of a law that reduced substantially the wait for family preferences, by providing their relatives with a Non Immigrant Visa to wait for their residence in America, The ones who benefited the most as usual, were the illegal population, with Section 245I. According to the actual law in Sections 201, 202 and 203, Congress assigns a total of 226,000 visas per year to relatives of US citizens and residents and another 140,000 based on employment related petitions, with a top 7% per country limit. By duplicating the quota every year, 500,000 new legal aliens would enter the country. Wouldn't be easier to allow all relatives of US citizens to obtain immediate relative status and for Permanent Residents to reduce their categories in half, thus creating an immediate opportunity for new legal residents to enter the work force, without going through all kinds of considerations, as it happens with the illegal aliens? One of the major problems with the family preferences petitions is the long wait for spouses of Legal Permanent residents. By reducing the wait to a half, and allowing them to enter the US with an approved application on a V visa in a year and half, more legal residents will be available for work in America And it will discourage families from entering illegal to avoid the long wait. Another criteria that it should be used on the new laws currently pending in Congress is that if the illegal population is going to be allowed to obtain legal status, those who entered legally and overstayed should be given preference, over those who did not. It is time for Congress and the Executive Branch to come together to bring families in a more expeditious and rational matter.

Roque Leonel Rodriguez, Esq.
Dominican Republic