GREAT FILM: But two beefs with it

You must be a cop to defend them like that, or you must be a white boi who lives in a upscale neighborhood. Cops are A$$hole$! And everyone knows it.

My dislikes for cops started when I was a kid and they searched me only because I was in front of my house sitting in the stairs. Cops searches me and tells me that he saw me throw something in the floor. He however never found something. Funny thing is that I'm dressed like a preppy, how freaking embarrassing. In front of my neighborhood and lying to my face.

I never been in trouble with the law. But when I hear about a cop getting killed, my first question is: "What did that stupid cop do to get himself shot", and if a cop shoots someone, I" know they excess their power to intimidate and they somehow use their gun to make their point".

So when you talk about cops being professional or "MOST" of them being that way, you really have no idea what you are talking about.

right: LEGAL immigrants are more likey to be on welfare or work for the government (practically the same thing). illegals are more likely to be working and contributing to the economy.

are you sure there are very few incidents of corruption or brutality in the LAPD. it has a long reputation of honesty and integrity? have you seen LA Confidential? (opening incident based on a true story)

There is a big difference between legals and illegals. Most illegals do contribute to US society but they also hurt it by taking jobs away from legal citizens. Don't get me wrong, I think our government is very unfair to illegals and that's why they're forced to live in such circumstances, but that is part of the consequences of their being here. I find the courage and work ethic of illegal immigrants very admirable and it's unfortunate the stakes that are set against them.

I'd like to say cops are good, but I just can't. I was once pulled over for going 8 miles over the speed limit, and the cop that pulled me over added ten miles to the speed I was going! I knew that was definitely not right, but what could I argue? I guess it's not so bad since I only ended up with a warning, but still- cops can excise their power because they know they usually won't be argued with. I really don't think the cops in the film were portrayed that badly either. They had to chase Enrique down because he was running from them. I think all in all they were portrayed as just doing their jobs.

As for the PO box, I thought the same thing. I guess the pay phone was just a safer bet.

If you argue correctly, you're never wrong.

Addressing the OP, I do make the simple distinction between legal immigrants that follow the procedures of the sovereign nation that they are entering and illegal trespassers who don't, just as on a more local level, I can readily make the distinction between someone who stands patiently in line and buys a ticket, say to a movie like La Misma Luna, versus someone who cuts into line or just sneaks in.

That being said, I am all in favor of documenting and "normalizing" the status of economic opportunists from neighbouring nations because it is blatantly obvious that we NEED them. I daresay, California would not run without this vast shadow underclass. This would identify them (for security), license them (to drive safely and pay insurance), protect them (from employer abuse), re-unite separated families or allow hassle free visitation, and have them paying taxes, which would justify (without complaint) providing services (healthcare, education, fire, police, etc.) just like everyone else.

As for the LAPD, just as any other organization, it's composed of individuals with individual backgrounds, motivations, prejudices and politics. I thought that it was a reasonable, balanced portrayal of the LAPD in the film. We the audience with empathic paranoia of course are thinking "immigration status", but realistically, the movie cops were probably genuinely concerned about the welfare of a minor sleeping alone on a park bench, and as for Enrique, well unfortunately, battery for throwing the beverage (only later would their status become apparent). I have been a member of other government organization(s), even once assigned to the Arizona border region, that for the most part focused on doing our jobs professionally, and could care less about issues that were not part of our mission (i.e. immigration status). In fact, my impression was that we (most people that I worked with 2 decades ago) tended to be more sympathetic to illegals (unofficially providing water/food, reflectors/cyalumes for the highway, and even transportation out of the deep desert).

I thought about the P.O. Box thing too, but unfortunately it was the weekend. I'd say, she likely wouldn't check her mail until Monday afternoon at earliest. If they were sure that it was EAST L.A., then I would have started with the Yellow Pages, looking up Domino's Pizza franchises. There are less than 5 in that area (according to a quick internet search), which would have rapidly narrowed the search down. The laundromat would not be much help, but the "party supply store" might have been another good lead. Perhaps language might have been a problem, but a payphone with a hand full of change might have saved a lot of legwork. "Party Supply Store", "Hi, are you the Party Supply Store near that Domino's?"

FIRST OF ALL, NONE HUMAN BEING IS "ILLEGAL". Only Nazis and people like that used to speak about human beings in such terms.

Now, some immigrants have entered illegally (the procedure was illegal, THEY ARE NOT). And the only reason they stays illegally is because it's almost impossible to get the citizenship for most of them. Some immigrants have 10-15 or even more years trying to get the citizenship in vain. 15 years of behaving like good citizens, contributing MUCH MORE than plenty of lazy "legal" residents. Yet that's not good enough. Why? Because they aren't europeans like Arnie? because they are latinos? Why?.

If "Arnie" were latino he'd be still washing dishes and running away from the "Migra" (INS).

My grandpa told me that during WW2 USA ran short of hands to work in the fields, so they hired mexican workers. They used to go for 3 to 6 months and then came back to their families in Mexico just to return next year until WW2 was over and they were no longer welcome. I am sure that MILLIONS would be happy if a similar system could be applied nowadays.
Will the hardcore conservative and racist dudes allow this? USA needs these workers probably even more than during WW2. Will them accept such system? I highly doubt it.

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I completely agree that, "Not every cop would react so horribly in this situation." I think the film attempts to satirize the abuses that some police officers in LA commit.