Reply #22: From your Miami Herald link

[Billy Burnett]

Comments by U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Chris O'Neil.

Bold is mine.

He attributed the deaths mostly to the recklessness of smugglers.

``You have these go-fast boats jammed with 30 or 40 people. When they're going at high speed, they start flooding, and people panic.''

Citing the July 2006 death of a young Cuban woman who suffered head trauma when she fell inside an overcrowded speedboat, O'Neil also said that folks on such packed vessels have no way to steady themselves, making the trip even more dangerous.

''Why do people think it's OK to pay a felon for endangering the lives of their loved ones when there are legal avenues available?'' O'Neil said. ``These smugglers don't care about safety. But they operate with the tacit approval of the community.''

U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Chris O'Neil is playing dumb for us. He knows that legal US immigration visa applicants have to pass the US performed background check. If they fail due to a criminal record that would disqualify them from gaining a legal visa, then US policy grants them instant entry into the US (paroled onto the streets of Miami in under 24 hours) if they are smuggled to US shores. No matter what their criminal history might be. Child abusers, rapists, murderers, thieves and bandits, assault and battery, etc etc - all paroled onto the streets of America within 24 hours.

The smugglers operate directly because of the US wet foot/ dry foot policy. If these illegal entrants knew they would be deported back home like Haitians and other illegal migrants are, instead of being on the receiving end of hyper social US taxpayer supported programs and perks (for Cubans only), they wouldn't be coming over by these illegal means in such numbers.