If Mexico passed a referendum that stated they would like to be annexed by the USA, would you be for or against the annexation? Please explain your position.
Not that its ever likely to happen in this reality, but if they passed such a document, and if I could be convinced that the vote was at least semi-legitimate (and if I could see which factions actually supported it and decifer WHY they wanted to be annexed) then I would certainly support the US annexing Mexico as a series of new states. It would probably be a pretty painful process on both sides (this is a vast understatement), but I think in the long run it would be very good for Mexico and for the Mexican people.
It would also be good for the US both medium and long term as it would give US manufacturing companies a place within the US that they could set up plants, would allow for a huge influx of foreign companies who wanted to manufacture goods to sell in the US without paying tarrifs (and the other side of that would be a lot of new jobs in Mexico with a much higher environmental standard than currently…the pay would be more than today but probably less than US workers in the wealthier parts of the nation, healthcare would be better than today, etc).
I wouldn’t hold my breath though…I think Canada is more likely to join the US than Mexico is. Of course, when I say ‘more likely’ its a snowballs chance in a furnace as opposed to a snowballs chance in hell. 
-XT
Can’t see that happening. Mexico is too proud a country, and what would they want to be a part of the US for, anyway? I agree with xtisme on most of it. There does exist the possiblilty of an EU-sort of arrangement between the US, Mexico and Canada, but that wont happen until the countries are all on some sort of equal footing, which is highly unlikely in the foreseeable future.
Actually silenus I agree…I could see an EU type arrangement between the US, Canada and Mexico. I don’t think its likely, but its much more likely than complete annexation (which is what the OP asked), and we have already taken the first step with NAFTA (after all the EU started out as simply an economic trade union…they added all that other stuff later).
-XT
Like others have said, it’s never going to happen. But if did I would be for it. The cultures and that much different, the language barrier is the biggest one and its easy to overcome.
As for a EU type of thing I think Mexico would probably join one with the rest of Latin America before making one with the U.S., mostly because there’s just too many bad memories between Mexico and the U.S. for such a big hook-up.
That shoulbe: The cultures aren’t that much diferent.
Inasmuch as we should do what we can to blur and eliminate National borders, and the United States is at the heart of the world economy as well as a military power to be reckoned with, we’re the best shot at WorldGov.
Hell yea.
Well I don’t think joining the US is necessary, but lessening trade restrictions and immigration restrictions would overall be a good thing. One sticking point is the drug war. We need to stop caring about the drug war, let the pot and cocaine flow freely, it’ll find a nice equilibrium.
As Noctolator said, I am all for the blurring of national borders, and I think American foreign policy should be focused on uniting ALL of the states of America, and then we’ll look more at Eurasia and Africa. I think a united America from the Cape to the pole would be overall a good thing. I think that economic inequities are largely created by the borders, and would even themselves out as the controls were relaxed.
Also latin American countries are much more prone to collectivizing, which is not a bad thing in a capitalist system. There is no reason that they need to fit the American nuclear family model.
While I don’t think joining America as more states means anything, I definitely think that America and Mexico should be working toward less border restriction, not more.
Erek
Yes I should have made it clear theat it is a completely hypothetical situation. It would never even be debated seriously in Mexico let alone voted on and mucho menos accepted.
Wouldn’t the US annexing Mexico be pretty expensive for us? I mean, Mexico’s standard of living is pretty far below the US, the infrastructure isn’t as good, and things like labor costs are lower. To bring all of that up to US standards is going to cost a good deal of money, isn’t it?
Not to mention fighting all the graft and corruption in both Mexican industry and the Mexican government.
So Captain and JT, are you for or against?
I’m against, at this point. I think it would be expensive and, although it would benefit Mexico, not benefit the US very much.
You could have said all of the same things about the southern US a few decades back.
Yeah, but we were stuck with you at that point. 
And it did take a pretty large expenditure of money to bring living standards in the southern US up to the rest of the country.
But lifting up the South ultimately benefited the country by adding a new region of ravenous consumers.
I disagree that it wouldn’t benifit the US. The very fact that its poor and IN the US (if Mexico joined us) would be a huge draw for foreign capital (think about the foreign companies who have opened plants in the South to use the example you listed). In addition there are a lot of natural resources in Mexico that would be attractive to US exploitaion (oil for one). US companies would also be attracted to using the new Mexican states for ‘outsourcing’ instead of re-locating manufacturing halfway around the world (better logistics)…and it would open up new markets for US companies for goods and services.
This isn’t to say that such things wouldn’t be expensive (they would be…especially to get the infrastructure up to scratch in a lot of places), but there would be benifits to the US in annexing Mexico as well as benifits to Mexico. Probably at least as many benifits as, say, West Germany annexing East Germany (well, I suppose they didn’t ‘annex’ it but still).
-XT
I would be for it if Mexico were for it, but I can’t see Mexico being for it, the oligarchy there has too much to lose in terms of social power and prestige. They’d get richer, but they wouldn’t be so … important, if you get my drift. And that sort of thing matters to oligarchs.
As a matter of fact, there already exists one they could join: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_American_Community But to join the South American Community of Nations, Mexico probably would first have to pull out of NAFTA, and I suspect that would disrupt their economy too much.
As others have said, it will NEVER happen. The U.S. might or might not be open to it, but Mexicans would NEVER voluntarily give up their sovereignity.
Look, even after a century as a U.S. possession, Puerto Ricans aren’t sold on statehood. If Puerto Ricans aren’t willing to make that leap, MExicans sure wouldn’t be.
Worst case scenario: suppose Mexico (or Puerto Rico, for that matter) joined the Union, in hopes of gaining some kind of exonomic benefits. After a decade or two, those benefits haven’t materialized. Is it hard to imagine a large, revitalized independence movement? How eager would Americans be to spill blood to keep either land in the Union?
Nope. Not even conceivable.