Mass Immigration Said 'Swamping' U.S. Cities

NewsMax ^ | 12 Jan, 2004

[Age of Reason]

If the US birth rate declined to below the present rate in France and northern Italy, would your mathematical calculations make you a strong advocate of increasing the flow of immigration to the US?

Well, I'll have a go at that one.

Let's see . . . If a declining birthrate were to lower the U.S. population to the size it was when I was a young fellow, say around 150 million, then I guess before I'd be in favor of adding more immigrants, I'd still say let's wait to see how it goes.

[Age of Reason]

Its not 1850 anymore and we're running out of room.

There's only so much prime real estate in this country, and the more people we add, the smaller the percentage of Americans who can live in the best places.

Doesn't sound like a way to increase prosperity for us or our children.

Of course, those people who own lots and lots of real estate, will be telling us how noble it is for us to share America with more and more immigrants, which happens to raise the price of their property--a happy coincidence, I'm sure.

[ConsistentLibertarian]

"There is something fundamentally wrong with modern America if the most productive people on earth aren't bred and grown right here at home."

That's crazy. Absolutely crazy.

Only a small percentage of the world's population are American. One reason America has so many productive people is that we import them. Productivity is a measure of how much value someone can create over a given period of time. Computer programmers, scientists, engineers, artists, athletes, entertainers ... they all create value and we can measure their productivity. Some of the most productive people in the US are immigrants who left Iran, Kenya, the Czech Republic etc etc and made their way here (where we collect their taxes and don't let them vote).

It's been that way for a long time. At a time when anti-semitism was a more powerful force in American politics, the US imported amazingly productive Jewish scientists who wanted to escape Hitler's Germany. I'm sure glad no one was around to say "Hey, Buy American" in the labor market for nuclear scientists!

If you wanted to maximize the productivity of Americans you could deport the lowest quartile and replace them in a heartbeat with Chinese or Guatemalan or Icelandic substitutes or what have you.

[hedgetrimmer]

Employers don't have to look for labor in the black market. It is possible to be honest and an employer at the same time you know.

The ideas you advocate show no regard for the value of citizenship, the right of the citizen to have a government that does not harm them and the right of the citizen to maintain the priniciples upon which this country was founded.

[ConsistentLibertarian]

"some people will take risks and succeed, but for every one who does, there must be many more who fail."

Good.

So we can start by thinking of how many entrepreneurial successes it takes to grow an economy and then multiple that by a large value to get some idea of the size of the entrepreneurial population pool we need.

Seems you're thinking it's going to be very big number. Maybe it's best to develop an "efficient" immigration policy were "efficiency" is measured by the difference between the percentage of the immigrant population and the percentage of the general population who are willing to take the necessary sorts of risks?

[The_Eaglet]

MCCAIN-FEINGOLD LAW LEAVES WASHINGTON A DESERTED SMOKING RUIN-Campaign Finance Reform thread-day 33 (with some opening humor)

[Travis McGee]

"We need to have an immigration policy that helps match any willing employer with any willing employee,"

How many tens of millions of third-worlders would leap at the chance to take ANY job in the USA for minimum wage? From machinist to painter to carpenter to factory worker to you name it.

This is a plan for national suicide.

[Travis McGee]

Bring em on--the more the better.

A billion third worlders would move here next year for the promise of a shot at a $5.15 job---that used to pay an American $15 or $20 an hour.

Are you serious?

[Age of Reason]

That's crazy. Absolutely crazy.

You're saying it's sane that America NEEDS smart people from other countries because Americans are stupid and lazy?

If that's true, then America is not a great place because it breeds losers.

Seems to me something similar happened to Ancient Rome.

Romans also became fat and lazy, and the system that produced them, Rome, fell--despite all those more industrious immigrants Rome imported.

At any rate, as for those genius scientists America imported to help it win WWII--well, hey, I've nothing against stealing a few of the most talented people from other countries--even if we had plenty of talented people here, because that weakens other countries.

[Age of Reason]

Only fools and the desperate take risks.

[Age of Reason]

And we have entirely enough fools and the desperate people as it is.

[Happy2BMe]

"How many tens of millions of third-worlders would leap at the chance to take ANY job in the USA for minimum wage? From machinist to painter to carpenter to factory worker to you name it."

Jobs Americans Won't Do: Voodoo Economics from the White House.

Jobs Americans Won't Do: Voodoo Economics from the White House.

[Travis McGee]

Sad but true!

[Mrs Zip]

ping

[Klickitat]

ping

[harpseal]

MY initial reaction is every illegal immigrant should be deported whenever found. However, There is something that bothers me about this given there are what at least 10,000,000 of them it might well strain the transportation system to deport them all. The insane thing is those who talk of opening our borders further are truly enemies of the USA.

[Happy2BMe]

"The insane thing is those who talk of opening our borders further are truly enemies of the USA."

Alien Nation - Mexican Hypocrisy, Corruption, and Welfare Fraud

[hedgetrimmer]

Some of the trade policies that are affecting America right now are being developed in this organization. They world closely with the World Bank.

If you haven't looked at it before, here are some links:

http://www.oas.org/main/english/

http://www.oas.org/main/main.asp?sLang=E&sLink=../../documents/eng/oasinbrief.asp

[Travis McGee]

Give them the right legal disincentives, and they will deport themselves pronto.

[citizen]

I agree with Henreitta on post #5.

BTW, the real Dawgs are in Georgia at UGA [the Bulldogs, they wrote a song about them "Who let the Dawgs out?"]