Posted on 02/11/2002 6:40:47 AM PST by rightwing2
Solving the 'immigration problem'
© 2002 WorldNetDaily.com
Alan Keyes,2-11-02
If all has gone well, by the time you read this, the world will have gathered in Salt Lake City for the beginning of the 2002 Winter Olympics. Of course, there is nothing new about the world coming to America. Indeed, the Olympics seem an apt metaphor for the country itself. We are a community of people drawn from many nations, united in friendly competition, but united more in friendship and mutual good will. And like a permanent Olympic Village, Americans delight in a friendship and good will that – in defiance of the ages of tribal war and racial conflict around the world – transcend the divisions of race, creed and culture to be truly a community of human persons, as such.
America stands for more than herself in any time, but now more than ever. As the tattered flag from the World Trade Center concretely demonstrated in the opening ceremony, the American flag is a symbol of all humanity. In our diversity, America is of universal significance – all mankind is concerned in the fate of America, and we, in turn, have a concern in the fate of all mankind. For America is a community of all mankind. And our current conflict with the forces of terror is a struggle against a threat to all human beings.
For these reasons, it is ironic that some argue we must respond to the threat of terror – and to the longstanding challenges of immigration – by abandoning America's tradition of openness to the world. In this moment of unexpected renewal of America's significance for the world, we must take care above all not to lose sight ourselves of the legitimacy of the aspirations of millions of people around the world to participate in the dignity of self-government that is preeminently found in American citizenship. God willing, it will always remain true that the dream of becoming an American will inspire people everywhere, because it is one way to lay effective claim to respect for the dignity all men share. Immigration into America will remain a legitimate hope for millions, so long as America remains a beachhead of human dignity in a world of tyranny and oppression.
Successful incorporation of immigrants into the American body politic is important not just for their sake, but for the vindication it represents of the fundamental American faith that dignified self-government is the vocation of all people, everywhere. We take the tired, the poor, the huddled masses yearning to breathe free, and we turn them into free men and women. And each time we do so, the rulers they left behind are convicted again by this proof that it is not the people who are unfit for liberty, but the governments that are unworthy of the people.
The immigration "problem" in America today is not a question of numbers, but of our failure effectively to welcome those who do come by educating them in American principles, and evoking their real commitment of heart to the unique American way of life that represents a hope for the destiny of the world. We have largely abandoned the process of educating newcomers in the special principles of the American way of life. This failure, of course, is the natural result of the even deeper problem of our own retreat from these principles – for how can we demand of newcomers what we scarcely acknowledge in ourselves? Our own schools have retreated from our commitment to that special understanding of principle, of human dignity, of human justice and of free enterprise that constitute our unique identity and represent a universal appeal for the world.
A renewed dedication to civic education as part of the immigration process would solve a multitude of problems, and renew our national understanding that immigration is not a curse, but a blessing. It would help weed out those who are coming simply for economic reasons, and are unwilling to accept the real discipline of American citizenship – of responsible liberty. And it would, as well, provide a first broad form of security against those who wish to enter America to do us harm. Most importantly, a return to generous but disciplined extension of the citizenship privilege would renew our own hearts. For like the blessings of friendship in the pursuit of excellence that are the best fruit of the Olympics, we cannot extend the blessings of liberty to others without offering them more effectively to ourselves.
It is civic education which the commies robbed us of during the 1960s and 1970s through to today, replacing it with environmentalism and diversity training.
The smartest man in America has a solution.
No.
Only true refugees and technology/brain providers need to apply. Other impersonators and illegal immigrants will be prosecuted and deported to the full extent of the law.
Now, take the oath.
Even as solid a conservative, Chicago School economist as Milton Friedman avers the obvious, that without labor syndicalism in the 20's and 30's, there'd be no mass middle class that gave Nixon and Reagan the White House. One has to have enough of a stake in the system to have something to lose if the wheels come off, and therefore to be a conservative.
Without the mass labor movement to redress the imbalances in the labor "market" (which was always in oligopsonous imbalance in the 19th century, however much the people who professed to admire classical economics may have praised Adam Smith and the idea of a market-clearing wage), workers would never have participated sufficiently in the creation of wealth in the economy, to begin to become conservatives. In the early 1920's, too many workers worked 60-80 hour weeks at hard physical labor, had no ability to bargain over wages, didn't participate in civic life, and died at alarming rates in heavy-industrial jobs like mining, railroading, and smelting. And Friedman backs that up.
Unless one takes away from prospective employers the ability to flood the market with surplus labor, and then to combine among themselves to keep wages low (as a court case just last year demonstrated in the offshore drilling industry -- a case that has received zero publicity despite having just proved that the offshore drilling contractors maintained their illegal combination for thirty years), then the workers can never negotiate in a fair market for the value of their labor. Which is the whole idea of union-busting and hiring illegals.
For a free-market economy to work, it has to be regulated to some extent in order to remain free, and not become the captive of one or another party. Businessmen insist on free markets -- except when it's time to negotiate in good faith on the cost side. Then they try to cheat. Uncle Milton said it, and I believe it.
Thank you, Dr. Keyes.
LMAO!
The 'South' might win this time, because their forces have been infiltrating the 'North' for over 50 years.
Oh, and it appears, IMHO, that Allan Keyes is cracking-up. Another Republican politician selling us out to the illegal alien vote. He's just another panderer.
>sarcasm<
There is nothing wrong with immigration that American assimilation won't cure. So let's hear from Keyes on that first. I would suggest, Mr Keyes and others, should define the problem before advocating a solution.
Anyone telling Sharon these days about the benefits of immigration?
As an aside, President Carter once criticized Mao on his immigration policies and Mao replied OK - how many millions do you want? Carter shut up.
O.K. From the article:
"A renewed dedication to civic education as part of the immigration process would solve a multitude of problems, and renew our national understanding that immigration is not a curse, but a blessing. It would help weed out those who are coming simply for economic reasons, and are unwilling to accept the real discipline of American citizenship – of responsible liberty. And it would, as well, provide a first broad form of security against those who wish to enter America to do us harm."
Sounds like exactly what you said, except you put it all into one word: "assimilation."
I've never seen one incident of these assaults on American citizens, by these invaders, covered in the national press.
Are there any published reports we could rub Keye's nose in?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.