if the United States once again completely embodied the glorious vision of the right of free immigration expressed by the Statue of Liberty: "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses, yearning to breathe free." ---- the SOL didn't express free immigration - the jewish girl who wrote it won a prize and it got placed on the SOL
some don't forget On May 8, 8:07 am, "M. Johnson" <[email protected]> wrote: > In Defense of Free MigrationbyRichard M. Ebeling, June 1991Not long after the > Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776, Thomas Jefferson wrote of > "the natural right which men have of relinquishing the country in which birth > or other accident may have thrown them, and seeking subsistence and happiness > wheresoever they may be able, and hope to find them." > For most of America's history, our country's door was open to many of those > desiring to breathe free and find happiness. Between 1840 and 1940, almost 40 > million people came ashore and began a new life. In 1900, 10 million people > of foreign birth resided in the United States. Out of a total population of > 76 million at the turn of the century, 26 million were the children of > foreign-born parents. During the period 1900-1920, another 13.5 million > people found a new home and a new beginning in the United States. And between > 1931 and 1945, 900,000 more found a haven in America. > This multitude of humanity was not the product of any one culture, but rather > of many. In vast numbers, the immigrants came from Britain, Ireland, Germany, > Italy, eastern Europe and the Balkans, Russia, Mexico and various parts of > Asia. America was not the child of one racial or cultural strain, but the > offspring of many relatives who faced starvation, and to purchase a plot of > land in their native village so that their earthly remains could eventually > be buried with their ancestors. The Jews of Poland and Russia came to escape > religious persecution and pograms. > Like a flood, these millions descended upon the coastal cities and then, over > time, dispersed across the immense American continent. They began the plowing > of the prairies and the building of new towns and cities. Life was often > difficulty and many failures and disappointments were faced along the way. > But still they came. And they endured. Because even when they discovered that > America's cities were not paved with gold, they knew that life was better and > freer in their new home. And even when their own lot was not one of perfect > tranquility and prosperity, they were confident that their children's lives > would be compared to everything they had left behind in the old country. > In the 1970s we saw a similar wave of migration to the United States. Our > television screens were filled with thousands of Vietnamese boat people who > faced drowning, starvation and attacks by pirates in order to escape from the > Communist regime in Hanoi. And we also witnessed their rise from literal rags > to increasing riches as they made a new life for themselves and their > children in America in a matter of a few years. > And we may soon witness another mass exodus this time from the Soviet Union. > The Soviet government has said that it will issue passports to anyone who > desires to leave. The estimates of the number who will want to escape from > the collapsing Soviet slave state run from 2 million to 8 million. > Generally, Americans take pride in viewing their country as the melting pot > of the world and as the refuge for those escaping from political tyranny and > economic disadvantage. But they also often express fear with the arrival of > new waves of immigrants. These fears are totally unfounded. People are > America's greatest strength and the source of its continuing prosperity. > Let's examine some of these fears.1. Immigrants steal jobs away from > Americans.The premise behind this concern is that there is only a finite > amount of work to be done in the American economy and, therefore, a finite > number of jobs to be filled. If an immigrant gains employment, therefore, he > does so only by displacing an American who previously held that job. > But there is always more work to be done as long as scarcity exists. The > ability to supply the various goods and services consumers desire to purchase > is limited by the available supply of resources with which those goods and > services are produced. Increase the supply of resources at the disposal of > the market, and the supply of finished goods and services can also be > increased. > Immigrants, Therefore, rather than stealing away jobs, in fact enable the > market to fill jobs for which the labor supply was previously too small. All > in the society tend to benefit as the general standard of living goes up > through the increased quantity and improved quality of all of the marketable > goods for which there is a demand.2. Immigrant labor causes wages to go down > and thereby lowers the standard of living of Americans.The way sellers often > make their product more attractive to buyers is to offer a lower price. For > immigrants to find employers, they have to offer themselves at lower wages > than American workers are presently earning. And if Americans are to keep > their jobs, they have to match these lower wages. > It is true that when immigrants try to enter particular occupations, they may > find willing employers only if they offer themselves at a lower wage than > that which existing employees are receiving. But this totally ignores the > beneficial secondary effects which will then be operating in the market. > Costs of production will now be lower in these particular sectors of the > economy (because of the lower wage costs). The lower costs will mean greater > profits to be earned; and as employers expand their production, prices of > consumer goods in these parts of the market will tend to decline over time as > businesses compete for consumers to buy their greater output. The consuming > public as a whole will be beneficiaries of the cheaper labor costs. > Furthermore, since some consumer goods will now cost less to buy, this will > leave extra dollars in the pockets of consumers. They will now have the > financial wherewithal to increase their demand for other products they > previously could not afford to buy. This will raise the demand for workers in > those sectors of the economy in which consumer demand will have gone up. To > attract workers into these parts of the economy, employers will have to offer > potential employees higher wages. Thus, for consumers in general, numerous > goods and services will be less expensive; and for many workers, there will > be an increased demand (and higher wages) for their labor services.3. Large > numbers of immigrants cannot easily be absorbed into American society and > culture.It is argued that if large numbers of immigrants are permitted entry > into the U.S., it will be difficult to absorb them because of the language > and cultural differences that would arise. Better to limit immigration to an > annual small number, it is said, so that they can more easily be assimilated. > But with every previous wave of immigrants, the concern was expressed that > the new group would not be able to adapt to American life. In the middle of > the 19th century, for example, the concern was that "those Germans" would not > learn English and that they tended to live in ethnic enclaves with other > Germans. Yet history has demonstrated that within one generation, both the > immigrants and their children have rapidly become "Americanized." A recent > case is the Vietnamese. In the span of just a few years, Vietnamese children > have not only learned English, not only have become champions in the school > spelling bees, but are also often found at the top of their classes. > The only things that can hamper the economic progress and cultural > assimilation of immigrants are bad governmental policies: licensing > restrictions that make it difficult to begin small businesses and > enterprises; heavy tax burdens that destroy savings and investment > incentives; welfare programs that draw people into the dead end of economic > dependency upon the state; government schools, with their mandatory bilingual > programs and socialist educational methods, that more often that not, make it > difficult for the children of immigrants to learn English rapidly and to > adapt to their new country. > But the evils of government policies should not be a rationale or excuse for > denying human beings the right to migrate and live where they wish. Rather, > such evils provide the arguments for eliminating those governmental > interventions. > The German free-market economist Wilhehm Röpke once suggested that "modern > nationalism and collectivism have, by the restriction of migration, perhaps > come nearest to the servile state ..... Man can hardly be reduced more to a > mere wheel in the clockwork of the national collectivist state than being > deprived of his freedom to move.... Feeling that he belongs now to his > nation, body and soul, he will be more easily subdued to the obedient state > serf which nationalist and collectivist governments demand." > We can only hope that Röpke's pessimism is ill-founded, that the spirit of > freedom will never be extinguished, no matter how controlling and > encompassing the power of the state. But how much better it would be if the > United States once again completely embodied the glorious vision of the right > of free immigration expressed by the Statue of Liberty: "Give me your tired, > your poor, your huddled masses, yearning to breathe > free."http://www.fff.org/freedom/0691b.asp > > > > -- > Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. > For options & help see <a ... > > read more » -- Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. * Read the latest breaking news, and more.
