We did ignore the problem for too long and have not done nearly enough to prevent the flood of illegal immigrants from coming into the country, but when the Mexican government is essentially shoving them in the back it doesn't help. Their former president openly encouraged people to come into this country illegally and there still isn't jack being done about the anarchy going on in some of those border towns.

I agree with FranksWildYears.  WE, as Americans, are the ones letting the Illegals in.

It's America's problem, not Mexico's.  American's are providing them jobs and shelter because they are willing to work off the books at lower wages and without benefits and live in substandard housing.  Blaming the Mexican government for these things seems pretty unreasonable.

Mexico should be charged for every illegal immigrant which crosses the border. Make THEM pay for their inability or refusal to offer decent labor condition to its citizens.

i think border states should put a lean on Mexico's foreign aid fund to pay for all the service being used...

If our gov't was serious about the problem, it could utilize a large array of options to penalize Mexico for not doing its part in protecting its side of the border. However clearly it's not a priority for Mexico, as they get to rid themselves of expendable segments of their own population (the poor, uneducated underclass who are already very OVER-represented in that country) whilst for the most part, their educated, professional class is largely retained. Further, as most know, illegal workers in the U.S. send back millions to their homeland which further fuels the Mexican economy, all the while, U.S. citizens predomanently foot the bill for expenses incured by non-taxpaying illegal workers for everything from hospitals to prisons to schools to welfare. The fact that many illegal aliens are actually "good" people, "hard" workers, "loved by God," etc. is hardly the point. We need to secure our border, period, and in this post 9/11 world of ours, no amount of race-baiting or guilt-tripping should obscure this basic issue at hand.

They should start paying a set amount per person that comes here and pay settlements every time one is dumb and commits crimes.

Yeah, well, start by not making press conferences with Vicente Fox where you don't bother to criticize him nor his corruption. Then maybe meet with some of the opposition, even if they have political philosophies that don't quite fit into your social milieu.

Governmental corruption is most certainly a great inhibitor of social progress and a large cause of the perpetuation of the deplorable conditions those crossing the border are fleeing. Elimination or even substantial lessening of the corruption in the Mexican government would be of great benefit, as the United States and other nations could contribute additional funds to the nation for infrastructure improvements and economic development activities. Such investments are ineffectual now because there is little assurance that any funds received by the Mexican government will be used for the appropriate purpose--- the benefit of their citizens. A more accountable Mexican government is most certainly a good idea in theory, but it is both unlikely that it will be reformed from within and highly impractical for the United States to presume that it has the authority to reform it from the outside.

How?

Hey this is an idea why not make a country accountable for the actions of its people and its lack of security at the border. Wow more counties should do this it might actually make things more secure.

Absolutely. Currently we are the equivalent of "enablers" to a substance abuser. Without the current situation (the U.S. being home to 8 or 9 million Mexican nationals in the country illegally), that country could not exist as it does. Money sent home by undocumenteds is the second biggest source of Mexican national revenue. Just behind Pemex (the government owned oil company). It's a great deal for Mexico. They don't have to provide social services and public education to millions of their own poor and members of their lower classes, and in return the country reaps billions of dollars in profit. If every border hopper left the U.S. and went home, the country would be in a state of economic and social pandemonium. Mexico is not a poor country in comparison to other nations. It's just not as wealthy as its immediate northern neighbor, and it is thoroughly corrupt. There are a few dozen wealthy families who own about half of the country's total wealth, a small middle class, and a large underclass. Currently, the U.S. is a safety valve and source of money to Mexico. We have never hit that country with economic sanctions or told it to clean its act up. Perhaps we should send them a few bills for the (illegal alien) Mexican children we have been delivering free of charge in hospitals and for the instruction we have been providing them in our public schools.

How? The way we helped Iraq?

TBone is, of course, correct. This isn't gonna happen in any of our lifetimes, though. The corruption is so firmly seated with so many beneficiaries, every reform movement results in a hail of gunfire and a pile of bodies. If you believe the US will get any help from the Mexican Government in solving this problem, you'll be waiting a long time.