Oops, I try to get fancy and then I go ahead and miss a zero in my answer. That should have been..
Er, last time I checked (80 x 103) X (1 x 106) = 80 x 109
You see, us old goats are getting rusty. The longer we're out of work, the rustier we get, and the harder it'd be to get back into the work force. Perhaps that's the whole idea....
I hate to get involved in something that's a waste of time. You feel too strongly about this for me to have an impact. Nonetheless, In Houston for 2002 there are a grand total of 41 H1B1 hires. The average salaray is 51,000 per year. It's safe to assume that taxes and living expenses consume about all of this. You can complain about people taking your job but the idea that this money is drained from the economy is ludicrous. In every downturn, people need scapegoats. I see you've found yours.