Republicans, H-1B Work Visas, Immigration and Charlie Brown

Newsmax.com ^ | 02-20-06 | Alden, Diane

[Theodore R.]

This is the second of a three-part series on the loss of middle-class job in engineering and computer programming.

[John Jorsett]

The GOP's new logo:

[FreeInWV]

Then, of course, there is President Bush recently asking for more H-1B visas for foreign workers. The White House Web site says it all:

The last piece of the puzzle is in immigration. The President's proposal calls for being able to recruit the world's best and brightest to come to America to work alongside America's best and brightest in terms of science, engineering and high skilled laborers to come in under this proposal. And so we will be working to work with Congress the H1B program, which is the high skilled labor visas, which right now is about 65,000 visas a year. They are consumed very quickly at the first of the year, and we need to look at increasing that to do that. We're looking also at other visa initiatives, working with Congress to address that, as well, for skilled laborers, high skilled laborers to come into the country."

I am personally offended by this crap from the whitehouse.

[Frank T]

Compared to the third world countries where visa applicants are coming from, the U.S. is a welfare state. I am not sure how much the author appriciates that fact.

What the corporations will do is to try and get around that. Lower cost employees is one way. Another way is to reduce some of the legal and bureaucratic costs of doing business.

Many Americans are in favor of these hurdles, but don't like the unintended consequences. What can you do?

[ClaireSolt]

Check out diversity visas. 50,000 green cards by lottery to make our population more diverse. So, now we have Bengalis in our c stroes.

[Tired of Taxes]

This particular visa does nothing for out-of-work American computer engineers and programmers. Nor does it encourage our younger citizens to take up computers or engineering when they can count on being replaced by a cheaper, more compliant worker from abroad.

That paragraph needs to be repeated over and over again. And, contrary to popular opinion, H1Bs do not bring ingenuity into the field. They only bring lower-paid employees trained here by Americans. While there's nothing wrong with a company hiring lower-paid employees, there are plenty of American citizens able to do the job and willing to work for a lower salary, too.

[BubbaTheRocketScientist]

I'd rather have a few million DV immigrants from around the world (including European nations) instead of the current affirmative-action immigration program that gives us nothing but legal Indian technical slave labor and illegal Mexicans.

The real travesty is that vastly more visas are allocated for business and DV than for immigrants to be sponsored by US citizen family members.

[Frank T]

"Frankly, I think it is one of the biggest black marks on U.S. history since the era of Reconstruction and carpetbaggers."

Uh-oh, echos of turn of the 20th century Democrats. Their cries of "Robber Barrons!" paved the way for socialists to give us the "New Deal."

"It is certainly not the 'free' market at work in any way, shape or form – unless you consider the 'free' in free market nothing but a way to shut people up when they demand to know what is happening to their jobs."

There is no free market. It's a mixed economy. Corporatism on the one hand, welfarism on the other. That appears to be the consensus, unfortunately. If it were free market, the corporations would have to take their hits, and not be shielded by the Feds. I wish these populists wouldn't claim this is the free market. I don't there has been one since the "hard scrabble" days of the McKinley administration.

[Frank T]

I agree with your point that there's skilled labor available.

What I don't understand is why these non-owners have a "right" to jobs, and that the federal government "must" do something about it. If it were possible, this problem would have been worked about by now.

What's needed is for the corporations to fly it alone, with absolutely no bail outs, to fail when they can't go on, and secondly, to reduce the costs of doing business.

The author doesn't seem to like the fact that some of these skilled laborers would work for themselves as consultants, but that is a better trend. At least you are then your own boss and are in charge. If the shape of business were to go from the highly organized corporate structure, to a more informal collaboration of high skilled contractors, that would solve much of what troubles the protectionists. Liquidate the few owner/many worker concept, and level it.

[ClaireSolt]

Frankly, we have more than enough diversity around here.

[fallujah-nuker]

Diane Alden ping.

[Itzlzha]

Each year Congress happily hands out more visas at the request of plutocrats like Bill Gates or the emperors at Intel or Cisco Systems or even German companies like Siemens. Americans must remember that many "American" companies are not owned by Americans but rather by international financial interests, what I call "Davos Men."

Hmm...and just how many H-1B Visas will DP World need to get "the right people" in place for "the right price"?

[Czar]

"This is a scam, folks. Many companies and corporations purposely set up road blocks to make sure it is difficult to hire U.S. computer engineers and technicians. There is NO shortage, there are only people who want cheap at any price."

I take anything written by Diane Alden very seriously.

Including this article.

[fallujah-nuker]

Hmm...and just how many H-1B Visas will DP World need to get "the right people" in place for "the right price"?

At $750 a pop they can afford quite a few visas. I wonder if tantrum boy will start arguing something like:

< sycophant> "Dubya is a military genius who puts Napoleon, Hannibal and Alexander to shame. He's going to make the Islamofascists pay us $750 dollars to bring each terrorist over here. In Iraq he set up a terrorist killing zone, now with open borders and the Dubai Ports deal he is setting up another terrorist killing zone in the US. He is shortening our lines of supply and lengthening those of Al Qaeda. Every move President Bush makes is even more genius than his last move."< /sycophant>

[Itzlzha]

[Reaganwuzthebest]

I am personally offended by this crap from the whitehouse.

As most of us are. And if the GOP doesn't get it soon they're going to be thrown out of power for another 40 years.

[A. Pole]

Bump

[Osprey]

"I am personally offended by this crap from the whitehouse".

Me too,

No more work Visa's or legal immigration, until we control the Boarders! 100%

Then we will talk!, That should be the Republican policy, and American people will be 80% behind that plan.

No Compromise

[RFT1]

With a GOP congress and a GOP p resident, did any conservative honestly think this diversity BS, this BS about immigration would not only be still going on, but get even worse? It seems that the role of the govrenment being on the left side of the culture wars hasnt changed, and in fact, has accelerated, it seems like the Clinton admin has simpily been extended another 8 years.

[EternalVigilance]

*Sigh*