Last shot at an immigration bill

This week a starkly divided Senate will have another go at a "comprehensive" immigration bill. If no agreement emerges, that will be the end of the story--probably until a new president sits in the White House. (Even if a bill is passed by the Senate, the House promises an even more acerbic fight.)

In the midst of this seemingly endless brawl:

* Some politicians and talk show hosts are constantly stoking the latent (or not so latent) xenophobia and racism that have dogged earlier groups of migrants and immigrants through much of our nation's history.

* It is clear that for decades entire industries and countless citizens have invited migrants to come and work for them. Now, even though only a small percentage are troublemakers, some 12 million of them are being called criminals for crossing our southern border. The adjective "illegal" has been turned into a noun, and migrants thus become "the illegals."

* Few people talk about the fact that half of the undocumented population entered the US with a valid visa--and just stayed.

* Perhaps the worst injustice is that--since the federal government began sealing the traditional crossing points near towns and cities 12 years ago--thousands of people in search of work and survival have died while moving north through our remote deserts. So far this fiscal year, we have documented 126 migrant deaths just along the Arizona-Mexico border.

The whole status quo is senseless, even insane.