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The Father of the failed modern immigration policy that let the third world in here, Edward M. Kennedy, recently stated it would cost some $60 billion to round them up and deport them.
I would rather spend the money now, than the Trillions they will cost us down the road.
Allow me to demonstrate an egalitarian ideal.
I'm sorry, but what Senator Kennedy has to say on the topic of illegal immigrants has no influence on a) my sense of what the truth is, or b) the actual numbers or analysis of the situation.
That said, I'd love two references from you, if I may:
1) Ted Kennedy as "father of modern immigration policy"
The bottom line is that most Americans aren't willing to pay extra for a broom so that someone $30 a hour (including benefits values) to work in a broom factory in the US. We buy the cheap broom made by someone in Mexico making $5 an hour. Blame corporations all you want if that helps you ignore this fact and get through the day feeling better.
I think this about sums it up.
The problem is American greed. If we were willing to live with less and pay more for what we do have, we would be okay. As it is, I now live in a lower income and still have 3 tv's and 3 computers in my house....while someone in Japan has my original job.
There is no way it can work. This country has become dependant on foreign resources. The ideal situation is to attain trade balance, and zero population growth from immigration. Eliminating birthright citizenship and all welfare for illegal immigrants would be a huge boost to sustainability. However the energy issue is key, as long as we have to import energy we lose. Once the energy issue is solved we have to reform the monetary system and eliminate many taxes. If excessive regulation can be scrapped, new industries will develop and the usa will be #1 again. Automation and innovation will eliminate the need for slave labor.
What about this twist...
Instead of turning inward we mearly pull out of all continents of the world except north and south america which we take over with extreme prejiduce............
If cheap labor is why we buy from China, why cant we build factories in central and south america that produce items that we now import from overseas ? It would be better to keep the money in our own back yard, and help reduce illegal immigration. Also could help some poverty stricken neighbors that need it more than China.
Dont know if the "extreme prejiduce" method would work as well as getting them hooked on jobs that we control. People tend not to bite the hand that feeds them. Might give us more swing in their local governments too.
By all means, lets build a quality border fence and deport those that join gangs, criminals, and or street vagrants, those that run a mexican flag up the pole at the post office, those that show up at the welfare office or hospital with their hand out. The INS is way underfunded, and I think standards for becoming a border guard are much higher than necessary too.
But its dangerous to build China up to superpower status. Cant we make Nike shoes in Haiti ? Cant we make shower curtains in Guatemala ? Lets spread it around so no one country gets all our business. Likewise, if we need immigrants, why should they all come from Mexico ? Would it be better for us to have immigrants come from all over, with the best qualified applicants we can pick and choose ? When they all come from Mexico and speak the same lanquage, they team up on us and refuse to assimilate.
If cheap labor is why we buy from China, why cant we build factories in central and south america that produce items that we now import from overseas ? It would be better to keep the money in our own back yard, and help reduce illegal immigration. Also could help some poverty stricken neighbors that need it more than China.
It's called a maquiladora, the factories that companies have built in Mexico, but somehow it doesn't work. They don't all stay open.
There is another thing that China also provides, which you don't really see in Mexico or South America. China can also do R&D and make their own manufacturing facilities/campuses.
The issue is that most people aren't willing to pay the extra for US made products. There are some that are not that much different in price, but electronics is where the major differences are. The US generally makes high end electronics which cost 5-10x more than imports, since only the wealthy can still afford these prices. There are some companies that do make various US products are competing prices, but some people still choose imports (which makes more profit for the importer).
This is a hyopthetical idea and input would be appreciated.Suppose america were to completely shut down all outside dealings for 10 years very limited import and export, no immigration, just us americans and we turned all of our resources inward...all of our food grown,oil refined,and products made just stayed here,and bring all but the troops necessary
to protect our intrests and agreements abroad.. and use the rest of the military for homeland DEFENSE only... we could close the welfare rolls you either work in some capacity for the good of our nation or you leave, the free ride would be over.how do you guys think this would affect the nation as a whole?
I understand what you're asking, and that it's just a hypothetical. And although the reality is that we're too far gone down the road of international dependence, let's assume for a moment that we get a do-over.
From what point do we begin our do-over? What kind of government do we have? What's our economic premise (capitalism, quasi-capitalism)? If we start over as a democratic republic; if everyone is free under the Constitution; and all people are deemed equal in all ways, I'd say we'd be off to a good start.
In some ways we'd probably be better off than we are right now, but we'd have less in the way of material goods, luxuries and conveniences.
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