Isn’t it funny how any given child seems to have more common sense than your average liberal? One of the most basic concepts a child learns — and will happily regurgitate — is that people who break a law should be punished. If you were to explain that society rewards people who break the law, a child would think either that adults are nuts, or just plain stupid.

If we reward illegal immigrants who, by definition, are breaking the law by just being in this country, then I suppose we are those things.

Such people are in the United States illegally; they are committing a crime by simply being here. Why on Earth are we rewarding them for breaking the law? They are certainly not entitled to the substantial UC fee break that they will soon receive.

California residents at UC schools will save $3,691 in the course of a quarter — not because California citizenship is a mark of nobility, but because they and their parents have contributed to the federal and state income taxes that make such a discount possible. Illegal immigrants do not pay such taxes, and therefore don’t deserve to reap any related benefits.

Based solely upon this year’s statistics, upward of 400 students would benefit from the University of California’s new tuition policy, saving each undocumented student approximately $11,000 over the course of the school year. This means that the state will lose $4.4 million, despite a widening deficit, just so illegal immigrants get a free ride.

Once the new tuition policy takes effect, more undocumented immigrants may be encouraged apply for admission, costing taxpayers far more money. Think about how much money $4.4 million is — especially in light of the fact that UCSD just can’t seem to find enough money to provide students with adequate parking, facilities or student life activities.

Moreover, the tuition break is not fair to students from other states, who will continue to pay the steep nonresident tuition rate. At the very least, they pay federal income taxes — yes, bitter liberals, your tuition is also subsidized by the federal government — and some students pay California income taxes if they work part time while at school. These people work hard just like everybody else to pay their tuition, so I fail to see how it can be fair to grant in-state tuition to those who pay no income taxes.

What concerns me most about this new, intrinsically flawed program is that it is yet another state-sponsored encouragement of illegal immigration. Undocumented immigrants reside in the United States and use public services free of charge: We educate their children from kindergarten through 12th grade in our overcrowded public schools. Public services exist through the taxes that we pay, which they do not.

Why, some naive liberals ask, don’t we just tear down our borders and let everybody come here freely? I think that Sept. 11 provides any necessary explanation of the role that the international border plays in national security, since there are people who come to this country with the most malicious of intentions. We need to know exactly who is walking into the United States because lax protocol was partially responsible for the Sept. 11 terrorists being in this country in the first place. Not to make anyone feel uncomfortable — God forbid — but all indications have pointed to the U.S.-Mexican border as a major entry point for terrorists, and at San Diego as a base of operations.

It especially amuses me when people tell me that we owe undocumented workers for the cheap labor they provide. What an innately flawed argument, especially because it usually stems from self-professed socialists. Such labor could certainly be provided by unemployed U.S. citizens, especially perennial welfare dependents. If Americans were to do the work currently done mostly by illegal immigrants, they might demand higher wages and thus redistribute some of our nation’s wealth for spending in the United States rather than in Mexico — which is where much of the “”cheap earnings”” wind up. Be a good socialist and do what’s good for our nation’s working class and the economy as a whole: Reserve American jobs for Americans.

I have a lot of respect for those who come here illegally. Once they arrive, the first thing they look for is a job.

Some people in this country legally can trace their own American lineage back for centuries, yet don’t have the least bit of drive to find a job and thus will never succeed.

I have nothing against undocumented workers, personally; I would do the same thing if I were in their position. These are hard-working people whose descendants can someday prosper in this country, just as the descendants of the first European settlers in North America did in the 17th century.

Yet they must come here through a controlled, legal process and pay for the services they receive, just like any other taxpaying U.S. citizen.