Gun-related.
The only proper way to begin this post is to recognize and thank Antipitas for doing a job that I have discovered through observation is tiring, frustrating, and often unpopular. Cheers to you for being among the rare few who has the patience to do what you do.
To the point now. Illegal immigration is an extremely volatile issue, as has been demonstrated here numorous times. It is also extremely emotional, as is also demonstrated with startling regularity. And unfortunately, no matter what is said in this thread, those two qualities ARE NOT going to go away. No matter what direction a conversation initially takes, there seems to be always one who cannot control their emotions on the issue (I have been guilty of this as much as any other).
What's going to solve the problem is keeping the forum rules in mind when posting, and it will take the posters, not the moderators, to do that. The most important of those is rule #1, both for the board and the L&P sub-group, which is that all posts MUST BE FIREARMS RELATED.
Yes, the issue has an effect on all of us, and yes it is a topic of debate that has stormed to the forefront of American politics and news media, but that does not change the fact that this is a firearms-oriented board.
If an illegal immigration thread is intiated that relates to firearms, such as illegal importation, immigrant gun-rights, or the effects of immigration on your local gun laws, the thread should stand. If not, it should be closed. The thread turnover rate for L&P is very high, and the volume of content for both members and moderators to sort through is also very high. By removing the threads that don't keep with the mission/orientation of the board, that content can be reduced, and the original philosiphy of a gun-related round table can be retained.
This is not to say that the issue is not important, or that it cannot be discussed WITHIN THE RULES OF THE BOARD. The point rather is that firearms-related immigration issues (of which there are plenty) should remain, and all other discussion on the issue should be done in a more appropriate medium, such as a general politics or immigration-specific forum.
Afterthought: As the boot was dropped on foul language, so it should be with racism. It has no purpose here or anywhere else, and does not serve to favor ANYONE'S image, especially that of intelligent and lawful firearms owners.