Against Illegal Immigration

Note-This piece has been inspired by Bongpondit’s excellent piece on illegal immigration. It has been written after drinking 2 beers and I propose to drink one more after finishing it. Needless to say, it is long, ponderous, boring and quite heartless. In other words it is quintessentially me.

Illegal immigration is right now the hottest topic in US of A. The Bush administration has proposed changes which will basically do three things a) allow illegal aliens to work towards becoming legal without have to go back to their home countries b) Tighten border controls which will hopefully make it harder for illegal immigrants to cross over.c) Make it a felony to be in United States without papers

Even this has resulted in huge protests, rallies have been taken, students have left classes and taken to the streets and believe it or not the Hispanic diaspora has actually taken it as a personal affront. We are not criminals-goes out the cry. Is that really so?

Excuse me. If someone breaks into your house deliberately and steals your money/food because he is needy, what will an average person do? Call the cops, right? How is it different from a person illegally crossing the borders of a country? Why is his need for a better life more persuasive than the average Joe breaking into someone’s apartment because he needs food? Ok, I agree it is practically impossible to ship back the 12 million or so illegals but the least you would expect from them is a little humility, an acknowledgement that they committed a crime, and a request for amnesty. Instead what you have are demonstrators actually draping the Mexican flag and protesting on the streets of California. That by itself makes sure that whatever little sympathy I had for them evaporates.

Actually, I have no sympathies for them. No country is obliged to hold the hands of the world’s poor and feed them just because it is rich. There are no free lunches in this world. Yes, every individual is entitled to seek a better life but only within the realms of the law. Admittedly, law is an ass sometimes most of the times and we all are obliged to break it. However, law being an ass does not make crossing borders a fait accompli. Crossing borders is a delibrate well thought plan, you do not it in a one day. Aurite, those 12 million are probably enjoying a better life in USA right now than they would in their home countries. So? If that makes them so desirable, why not have open borders and get the rest of them here too! Or is American dream restricted to those who know how to break the law?

A classic argument in favor of illegal immigration is that it makes American companies more competitive by allowing them hire cheap labor. Quite aside from the moral ambiguity of such a proposition, why not abolish other laws which make American businesses uncompetitive. For example, minimum wages, safety laws.It also keeps a lot of low skilled Americans out of the job market, as often illegals are paid even less than minimum wages under work conditions which are decidedly hostile and unsafe. I am not even sure, most of the companies which hire illegals cannot afford to pay legal wages. Walmart cant?Yes, America does need low skilled migrants but in carefully calculated numbers, not in an unending stream.

And as Bongopondit points out, what about legal immigration? In the present environment, it is perhaps much easier to be an illegal low skilled immigrant than a legal high skilled one. Is one more important than the other? Sure it is. What makes America a rich country? Its multitudes of scientists. doctors and other high skilled workers(a lot of them are immigrants) or people working in fast food joints? Infact, how can this economy sustain such high wages for low skilled jobs such as driving a bus? Simply because its high tech industry and professionals command a premium in the world market. A welfare state cannot be sustained on the shoulders of few, as we belatedly discovered in India. Many can sustain a few, but never the other way around. One would have thought that America would actually be interested in retaining such talent, instead by limiting the number of H1b to just 65000 a year, and making it so hard to obtain a green card, this country is driving back high skilled workers which are so much needed for the future prosperity of this country. Is it not funny? If you followed the law, got a valid visa. obtained your education, paid your taxes, you might have to go back. If you thought the law was an ass, you stay right here. Maybe law is an ass..

I find it so funny when someone like Vincent Fox comes here and actually demands rights for illegals and open borders. Hello, I would have thought that Fox and other of such kind owe some responsibility for managing their own economies properly and not use the poverty card as weapon to keep demanding concessions. They are putting the onus of their own bad administration on the rich countries. Perhaps, the most obnoxious example of such a phenomenon can be seen in Kerala where migrants to Gulf states have virtually transformed it into a ”moneryorder economy”, allowing the Commies to get away with their myopic and stupid policies. Perhaps, the same energies which they invest in demanding concessions from United States would be better used in building their own economies. I am not even talking about the costs the illegals impose on the US economy.

What about democracy? As you give more and more illegals legal status, they begin to form a solid vote bank for two reasons. Firstly, they always turn out to vote in large numbers, secondly, they are voting tends to governed by one sole issue-usually migration. This is exactly what is happening in United States right now, the increasing Hispanic population is a prize catch for any party. In India, the effect of such mindless pandering to narrow interests groups are already visible in border areas of West Bengal and Assam. Demographics of entire districts have changed, and there is no ways you can get elected until you support the continous flow from Bangladesh. Of course, the Muslim vote bank is driving force behind the secular gang in India. For an excellent analysis of the threat from Bangladesi illegals read Arun Shourie in Indian Express.But I digress.

So, whats the solution? I have already admitted the impossibility of shipping the 11 million illegals back home. It does make sense to give them legal status and allow them to remain in the country. But only if a)border controls are tightened b) there is no beating around the bush(pun intended)regarding their illegal status. They have committed a crime and they should acknowledge it.c) No more amnesty programs in future, a line has to be drawn somewhere.

p.s By no means I am anti-hispanic, I have no sympathy for illegal immigrants from anywhere including India. Heartless I might be, hypocrite I am not.