WEBCommentary Guest

Author: Barbara Anderson
Date:  July 23, 2008

Topic category:  Other/General

Tarnishing the Golden Arches


McDonald's golden arches are easily one of the most recognizable icons on the American landscape. They promise fast food, reasonably priced.

However, now they can also be recognized as aiding and abetting illegal aliens. If you have eaten in a McDonald’s lately you may have noticed some of its employees speak little or no English. You may also be forgiven for thinking that these employees have not been in the country for very long because they have not picked up enough English to carry on a basic conversation.

Proof of this now comes in an article in the Reno Gazette Journal,July 17, 2008, written by Martha Bellisle. Ms. Bellisle reports:

“Mack Associates Inc, which owns 11 local McDonald’s restaurants raided by immigration officials last September, pleaded guilty Wednesday in federal court to felony charges of encouraging illegal immigrants to remain in the United States. It will pay a $1 million fine.”

Other executives, one current and one former, pleaded guilty to one felony count each, and each could be imprisoned for up to five years and fined $250,000 at sentencing on October 15.

There are several issues at play here. One is the blatant breaking of this country’s laws in pursuit of profit by Mack Associates. We are told that these are jobs that Americans will not do, but many young people looking for a Summer job will tell you differently. Also, if Americans will not work at a certain job, it is probably because the pay is too low. Employers wishing to enrich their bottom lines can use illegals because they will work for lower pay and no benefits. They are held hostage to these jobs because they can’t complain about their treatment for fear of being turned in to immigration authorities and deported. It is to be hoped that McDonald’s did pay the illegals a minimum wage.

Again, according to the comprehensive story by Martha Bellisle:

“The corporation pleaded guilty to conspiracy to encourage or induce an illegal immigrant to remain in the U.S. and aiding and abetting the person’s stay, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.”

This means that the corporation knew these were illegal workers but continued to employ them, indeed, to encourage them to stay in this country illegally. While this article did not mention a common practice of employers, providing fake I.D. in the way of Social Security numbers, the employees would have certainly had to produce some sort of identification to be employed.

And, according to Breitbart.com. in an article posted July 17, 2008:

“A company that owns 11 McDonald’s restaurants in Nevada was fined one million dollars Wednesday after pleading guilty to employing 58 illegal immigrants. The company, Mack Associates Inc, knew the employees were illegal immigrants and had offered them names and social security numbers belonging to other people, the U.S. Justice Department said.”

This is not a victimless crime. Having your Social Security number stolen causes massive headaches as you need to go through all your records endless times. Were your names and records stolen? If so, you may not know about it for months, even years. If someone is using your number you may not be credited with information to give you entitlement for your benefits. This is a cruel punishment visited on people who rely on their Social Security benefits. It means for many getting help from an attorney. Social Security numbers are sold regularly, even on street corners, with no thought as to the bureaucratic hell they are putting people through. Legal citizens have no need for stolen Social Security numbers.

Now that we know that some McDonalds’s restaurant engaged in fraud on the American people by hiring illegals and helping them avoid obeying our laws, can we expect the corporate heads to issue a statement that they will be closely monitoring their franchisees to see that it doesn’t happen again?

McDonald’s has always been on the side of the corporations that want more cheap labor and lobby for amnesty for illegals. Those joining them are the hotel/motel industry, which also depends on illegals for their labor, to a large extent.

It is especially troubling that some people who are handling our food are not here legally. Our once vaunted laws that protected the public against certain diseases are in disarray. In years past food handlers were required to be tested and were given courses on correct handling of food. It is hard to imagine that people who cannot understand basic English conversation would have gone through such scrutiny.

Diseases once known only in third world countries are now being treated here in the U.S. Chagas, Malaria, Dengue and Leprosy are among those. Leprosy was almost unknown here and was considered somewhat an exotic disease. Not any longer.

The United States developed medicines to use against Tuberculosis and we saw fewer and fewer cases. However, now we need to fear this disease again. It has come back with a vengeance in an especially virulent strain of Tuberculosis. It is drug resistant and requires concentrated treatment. This can cost $250,000 or even as much as $1,200,000 per person.

Hepatitis A-E is rising. Those with this disease could infect many people if they were working in a restaurant. In 2004 more than 650 people contracted Hepatitis A in just one Chi-Chi’s restaurant in Pennsylvania. Four people died.

Do you think McDonald’s is doing a better job at screening out those who may be infected? They did not do a good job at screening out those who were here illegally and working in some of their restaurants. They will not do a better job until people realize they are not any longer the trustworthy McDonald’s whose golden arches were a welcome sight to the hungry. Our government is doing a poor job, so it is up to us to use our judgment as to the safety of what we and our children are exposed to.

Those golden arches of yesterday inspired trust, but it has been tarnished along with the famous golden arches.

Barbara Anderson


Biography - Barbara Anderson

Barbara regularly writes for CapitolHillCoffeeHouse. She also appears in California Chronicle, Border Patrol, and Citizens Caucus. Her primary interest is illegal immigration, but she writes about other subjects as well.

Barbara lives in a large city on the West Coast. Her loyalties are with God, family, country, heritage and borders.

She enjoys music, painting, poetry and song writing.


Copyright © 2008 by Barbara Anderson
All Rights Reserved.


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