angel I. 07/05/2010 8:46:00 PM
FROM ONE TRIBE TO ANOTHER by: Airomero28@yahoo.com
As the dog fight to be elected to the different political offices of the land heats up, the intensity of the opposition to the Immigration Debate has taken the front pages of the media all over the nation. Some states have or are talking about enacting laws and ordinances to address their concerns going against the natural role of the federal government in the enforcement of immigration and rising concerns within minorities and civil libertarians.
The intensity of the problem is such that the civility of the debate has been lost, threats have been declared; there is much name calling; the airwaves print and cyber media are bombarding virulent rhetoric from both sides of the Debate all over the place. The current Debate is fueled by economic insecurity and ethnic fears, fanned by TV and radio talkers along with internet bloggers. On the other hand, other media and individuals with myopic views and shallow intellects are using the Debate to pursue their own agenda. This vocal minority has paralyzed well intentioned political reforms and has the potential to tear some of the fundamental values and ideals that were always understood as the bedrock in our democratic free state where every individual is entitled to “life liberty and the pursue of happiness.”
This misguided use of the Debate distorts who we are and what we stand for as a nation. We are causing grave harm to our nation’s psych, and making our neighbors very distrustful. We forsake our ideals when we demonize our marginal populations and empower the forces of hate. It is always a sad situation when we turn any ethnic group into scapegoats, second class citizens, and the recipients of all the blame and anger for all woes. This devaluates who we are perceive to be and the legacy of the American ideal.
In this ugly debate we must find a civilized ground and remember the values and ideals that our forefathers gave us to guide us through difficult times. It was the happiness of the book of Proverbs that they referred to, “Happy is he who has mercy on the poor”, it was about the happiness that comes from doing the ‘right thing’, from sharing our blessings with our brother-man, of having compassion for the less fortunate, not the bliss or buzz induced by drugs, shopping sprees or hating those that don’t have a voice.
I write this from the perspective of a immigrant that came here legally from Cuba 40-years ago. At that time, I was very welcomed, treated with respect and dignity, and was able to contribute with my grain of sand to the American Dream experiment. I have taken the liberty of using ideas and words of much brighter minds and some writings from different publications, only to make my point.
Ever since the beginning of time when man’s forefathers left, supposedly Africa, man has always been wondering and going towards .places where game and food gathering provides better opportunities to survive. We can look at emigration as an anthropological study of the displacement of man across the land since the beginning of time. Here in the Americas, since the first wave came from Asia about 12,000-years ago, subsequent waves of immigrants have come to settle in this blessed lands of honey and milk So far, all past tribes were able to make room for the newcomers, and for it, we are much better off when we compare our tribe against other tribes.
The way I see this conflict, it is a foolish, foolish situation. Each man, as an individual, would pull the other out of the water; each would succor and help the other, even at a great risk and considerable danger to himself. But each as a representative of his tribe will battle the other with big or small guns; sink burn and destroy at the drop of a hat. A foolish, foolish situation that must be dealt with by man of sense, and deep understanding of the issue, not by TV radio and Media talking heads, not by gamecocks stalking about on silts and high horses.
There is point of wisdom beyond the conflicts of illusion where we must find the truth by which lives can be put together again and resolve this conflict before it tears apart who we are as a tribe. Finding it, is the “prime question of our present time”. As Americans, we have been blessed with living in the “city upon a hill,” as it was said by John Winthrop in the 17th Century. We must remember that we are “the last best hope of man on earth,” as remarked by Abraham Lincoln during the difficult times of the Civil War. Now I worry about extremes and extremism that have taken root – the anger, the arrogance, the lack of empathy and compassion that is taken place within this Debate.
Here, in the USA, we have been announcing and developing a policy of global hegemony and commercial interdependence between all nations. We must understand that the world economic order depends on a shared sense that the system benefits most nations. Cooperation is the glue that holds it together. It is an open question whether these conflicting forces – growing economic interdependence, and rising nationalism and nativism – can coexist uneasily or are in a collision course.
When a combine in Wisconsin –where Senator Specter is from – is coupled with high yield agricultural know-how produces record wheat and corn yield per acre, that can be sold much cheaper than the same crop grown, lets say in Mexico, where peasants must scratch a living from small land plots called milpas (maize fields) which produce the corn for tortillas the main staple in Mexicans food groups. This has foreseen consequences and we should not be surprised or outraged when a displaced worker shows at our door asking for an opportunity for a job from the same guy who is a taskmaster that knows how to do it better than anyone else.
We are only victims of our own success and our own bad planning. Should we look down and with contempt to this new immigrant that comes knocking at our door whose livelihood we have inadvertly turned into dust because he is trying to move into our territorial hunting and gathering grounds?
Many wars have been fought over this same scenario (we almost wiped out the original natives over this) but previous history tells overall, societies that have learned to absorb this kind of immigrant have reaped great long term benefits from the hard work and cheap labor. Cheap labor is the fuel of economic growth.
The problem is not the immigrant but that we don’t have a comprehensive well designed system to assure a fair interdependence and regulated immigration built upon necessity, cooperation and fairness that can interconnect our economy with those of our good and needed neighbors. For example, Mexico had time to adapt but has been unable to do it, we have not helped as much as we could or should have. But there is no need to blame anyone in this Debate. What we need is good leadership and enlightened minds to tackle and fix this problem because our policy implementation has been lagging behind the needs of the market place.
Mexico, instead of growing corn, should be the market garden of North America, producing fruits and vegetables, which are labor intensive and can be produced in small plots. Mexico can also help us in manufacturing and providing a much needed regulated labor force. Those laborers as a whole would be more than happy to come here and work when needed, then go back to their native country. The main reason they stay is the hassle of the illegal journey. I know we can fix this. Hell we went to the moon! But we must do it the right way. The world is always watching and looking at us to be at the vanguard of problem solving and leadership.
I am no rocket scientist but I can tell you that the likes of Ann Coulder, Lou Dobbs, Rush Limbaugh, Mike Savage etc, make a handsome living doing whatever is that they do but they are neither economist nor the brightest minds in our democratic republic. The whole Phoenix Legislature only wants to be re-elected. These people are only pursuing their own agenda and the politicians are preaching to their electing pulpit.
We must be aware that we have a haunted past that we must learn to avoid. For example, during the 1817-18 there was an influx of black workers from urban areas trying to move into traditionally white industrial jobs. This led to white on blacks riots from Chester Pennsylvania, to East San Luis and Illinois, where some estimates puts the number of black man, woman, and children that were slaughtered by white mobs as high as 200. There have been many incidents of this kind of conflict throughout our history. Sometimes we have interned Irish, Italians and later Japanese in our prisons in recent history.
Yet these conflicts, as terrible as they often were, may be considered growth spasm of a vigorous democracy. Democratization is the best of the American ideal – in principle and practice. The sublime notion that each and every ordinary person has dignity that warrants his or her voice being heard in shaping the destiny of society remains a revolutionary force in the 21st Century – in the face of power of autocratic empires, plutocratic states and xenophobic communities where many try to devaluate and dishonor whole communities using the same old tactics of sponsoring disenfranchisement, discrimination, restrictive covenants, criminalization of persons branding them with stereotype levels as for example saying someone is not “a legal person”. This campaign results in systematic economic exploitation, abuse, desensitization, and demonizing the undocumented workers. With myopic fear, greed and hatred they have created a climax of intimidation that is raging across this nation. Does it feel right? Is this who we are? Have we seen this scenario before? Can we do better as Americans?
Wrongheaded as this may seem, this happens when we contract our feelings to the angry rhetoric of the many ranting TV radio and Media heads. .When we follow this intellectual rubbish, no matter what we tell the world and the immigrants, we are devaluating the American ideal of who we are perceived to be here and abroad, which depends on a vision, and the courage and determination of decent compassionate people that have always engaged in the Socratic questioning of the powers to be; to take the risks of prophetic witnesses and to preserve the hope of democratization.
When I look at the immigration debate that is going on now it is easy to look at the politicians who are running for office and presume to run our nation and despair when I see them paralyzed by fear of the forces of negation, despair and repression. The current state of the Union brings to mind Thomas Jefferson’s famous remarks: “I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just.”
In the present time it seems to be that the immigrant being here, somehow corrodes American basic values and anyone who has any positive point to offer has been silenced with fascist accusations and he is being called a “sandbox radical”; a “pink liberal”, he is being lynched and crucified by the right wind media. The ravenous tabloid like press calling itself “mainstream media” have become the lynch mob of the contemporary times, pummeling those guilty of the most innocuous comments about the Debate with the ferocity with which they usually pummel outright criminals.
American democracy speaks not only of voter’s policies, and majority rule, but of buoyancy, good nature, and tolerance of its people. These qualities have always persisted even in difficult times – and what times are devoid of difficulties, of contention, conflict and challenge? The American ideal has them built- in, creating a Tribe that is not an static paradise but a always ever-changing, productively competitive section of the Earth’s humanity that leads while setting the ideal example for its neighbors.
Many fear that, for the latest wave of mostly – unskilled immigrants from Latin America, some fret that the new immigrants are too ill educated and cultural alien to prosper or assimilate; that they are taking our jobs– These same concern have been echoed from previous immigration waves and have been proven largely unfounded. The answer is no. These immigrants are no different that the waves that we have assimilated before and we need the cheap labor and fresh ideas they provide.
Fear of immigration is akin to fear of globalization. Unemployment is high and many people have lost their job to someone in China or India and now they fear losing more jobs to someone that just snuck across the border.
We must look at the whole picture and realize that our fears are unfounded. It is the natural evolution of the interdependent economical zone on which we are the main player of the world wide economy. Jobs and services are going to be shifted even though the government forgot to get us prepared because they are also learning as we go along. It is the new reality we are all interconnected; when the USA economy sneezes, the whole world markets catches a cold! And when Greece goes bankrupt it affects our bottom line.
It really makes sense to make a rational assessment of the angers many American feel. Across the USA many Americans feel squeezed and threatened by the new comers. Part of the anxiety is undeniable based on fear of people of different race. Fear of altering the country that is already ‘one third minority’ and others unnecessary worry about language and the way of life preservation. Besides, many feel that this kind of immigrants that we are persecuting look more like the help than a ‘traditional’ American.
It is disingenuous to claim different when we see Immigration and Customs enforcement (ICE) rounding up “illegal undocumented workers” or sometimes called “criminal aliens”. Why they are not rounding up over 50,000 Irish illegal that have overstayed their visa, why they are not rounding up Canadians who take high paying jobs from their Americans counterparts. They are mostly going after Hispanics and other people of color. The dark forces of xenophobia are alive and well in America; they are disguised as “patriots”; “Minute Man”, and have been empowered by the people that have taken over the Debate.
The Debate and the immigration solution should be led by unbiased, decent, compassionate, enlighten Americans, whom are truly representative of our true values and principles. The kind of American leaders whom have guided our nation whenever we have gone stray and sponsor laws and customs of disenfranchisement, unfair trials, Jim Crow laws, institutional lynching, racial profiling, outright slavery, gender discrimination, antiabortion right persecution, restrictive covenants, censorship, blacklisting, criminalization and shunning of gay and people because we feel they may be different. Unfortunately, also part of our American history.
We must be aware that this new agenda is being pursued by a “vocal minority” that fears our nation’s freedom, diversity and the complexity of the human condition. In our history, whenever these dark forces of hate and divisionism have tried to take over and push this anti-American rubbish, the real patriots and enlighten minds have been willing to come forward and sacrifice themselves to preserve our true values and principles.
A perfect example is the true Americans that stood up to the English king and placed their existence in danger when they wrote the Declaration of Independence and then followed it with the Bill of Rights as a mirror for what Americans as a society should stand for. That struggle has been followed by true American fighters, suffragists, fighting for woman to vote, anti-slavery fighters, civil right workers, etc. This struggle continues today and we must meet the new challenge reminded of previous struggles by people that were enslaved, excluded, marginalized, degraded and despised but regardless of the difficulties of the struggle, they overcame and refused to settle for less than a full right to enjoy and be part of building the American Dream. The history of the people sacrificing their life, liberty, their fortunes, and their sacred honor to prove that life, liberty and the pursue of happiness were one genie that could never be put back in the bottle and the promise that ALL AMERICANS must keep, enjoy and protect, from corrosive forces of authority and bigotry.
Should and could we do better as Americans? How does our Tribe measures in different competition against other tribes? The economics of immigration remains a mysterious science. Everyone has a pet study proving that immigration suppresses waves and services, or that it builds economics.
If we add up the actual cost in payment that cost to run the American economy, the performing of the millions of jobs that are required for us to live and prosper, and then we come up with a number. We could call that number productivity divided by hour-work. Now when we are able to pay less in wages for the same amount of work that takes to run the economy, it does not take a financial wizard to know that the whole economy benefits. How much would a tomato cost if we had to pay union waves?
We must take into consideration that immigrants are the largest small business owners which are the economic engine of many communities. Immigrants pay payroll taxes, state taxes, and sale taxes and that many are not even able to collect any of their benefits.
Another truth is that many small towns and marginal economies where birth rate are low and depend on labor intensive rural jobs, have discovered that eager bright eyes immigrants make magnificent workers and neighbors and are an antidote for their dynamic economies in need of survival. They have the same Christian values and follow the Golden Rule. Should we do away with them for temporary and transient issues?
This new workers are the salvation of this marginal economies. They compile 70% of agricultural work, one third of the construction workers. Florida’s 9-billion dollar citrus industry, the California, Texas, Arizona, Washington State, and Midwest economies, would suffer without the new immigrant’s work. The poultry industry, the slaughter houses, fishing industry, restaurants and hotels between others, could not compete and perform in a profitable way without the hardworking labor of the undocumented worker. Existing guess-worker programs only supply 2% of the needed workforce. What are those businesses in need to do?
It is easy to condemn illegal immigration but we must face reality, they are here already working at becoming part of the American Dream. They have jobs where they are needed; they have roots in their communities, American children. They are here because they follow the market’s demands, because of our failure to close the borders, regulate immigration, because of man’s wandering DNA, because our immigration services and policies have been broken and outdated lagging behind the needs of the marketplace. They are here and overall we have benefited by their presence.
The immigration agency needs a major makeover; according to ombudsman’s report “it continues to be troubled by ‘pervasive and serious problems including ‘lengthy and costly waiting periods for benefits’ and a ‘hodgepodge of disconnected overlapping and contradictory rules.’” Rep. Zoë Lofgren, who claims the House Immigration Committee, says she is concerned about “huge backlogs” of green cards and naturalization applications. It is a shameful situation that the American private sector can create a business model that is able to compete with any other business all over the world but our government’s bureaucracy can’t fix the mess that the Immigration Services have been for so many years.
Maybe is time for the privatize the Service and let the private service run it, then, only then, when any industry needs workers it would be like going to Shopping Channel, placing an order and receiving your worker by Federal Express. Would not that be nice? In the mean time we are stuck with a system that is over bloated, broken, with no clear vision of how is going to fix itself. That is why the American people have a right to demand much better from their elected leaders instead of the blame game, the demonizing of the undocumented workers and manipulation of the American people’s frustrations that is going on right now. To fix the real problem we need a vision so we can benefit from this situation. Some of these workers lack self-sufficiency and social mobility they can’t reach their full potential because they don’t have the permission to come offer their labor. We can use it in an orderly fashion where we all can benefit.
Most undocumented workers pay taxes, are law abiding, and would not mind a temporary work permit with some option and restrictions, but now they are in the fringes of society, afraid to use social services, to go shopping to a shopping mall. Their illegal status consigns them to the lowest rung of the economy. They find it hard to defy some abusive employees and some are treated in an undignified un-American, immoral manner. With the climax of hate they live in state of “blood sweat and fear” The only reason to keep them illegal is so that we may use them as chattel, pay them a low wave, give them no benefits, fault them for no paying taxes, and every other ill that we can’t understand.
We deny their American children a fair chance to be an American and to enjoy all benefits other Americans are entitled to and are willing to separate them from their parents for some minor infraction. We use immigrants to do our most disgusting and dangerous jobs. We don’t mind sending their children to fight our wars. They cut our grass, raise our children and do whatever backbreaking job needs to be done. If by chance they raise their voice, in defiance we can easily put them back in their place and call ICE and send them back sometimes without even paying their wages. Always knowing that we have many others willing to be used and discarded in the same manner, because they are in need. Is this who we are? Do we want to continue this immorality?
It is very disturbing for an immigrant like me that knows first hand what a great country we are; the great contributions that all immigrants have made to this country throughout history. Especially the Hispanic immigrant which have made great contributions in all fields; we have astronauts, scientists, doctors, teachers, CEO of some of the largest companies in the USA and success stories in every area of the USA economy contributing to the greatness and well being of this country.
We are making misguided laws as Arizona’s 1070 which increases the climax of anxiety created by fear and frustration, making scapegoats of the Hispanic communities which are being singled out by criminals to victimize, scrutinized by law enforcement agencies, creating second class citizens. It is open season in the Spanish community as far as we are concerned. We are right back to the dark days of the KKK, Jim Crow Laws, when African-Americans were the target of hate groups, mob violence, and racist laws. The only difference is that now the targeted victims are the Hispanic communities across the land. Only the rhetoric has changed.
Our resistance to immigration is just the most visible form of resistance in general. We are being mislead by nationalistic populist talking heads commentaries of the Lou Dobbs, Rush Limbaugh and his ilk These are people who radiate self-satisfaction. There is no question in their minds that America needs nothing from the rest of the world. In wanting to close the country , Dobbs and his cronies close all minds to the real world were we are trying to live in a global community. Let’s ask the Chinese about the isolating consequences of building the Great Wall. These people want to build Great Wall in our minds. Ask these ‘great talkers” who is going to fill the 79 million Baby Boomers jobs when they retire? Who is going to pay into the Social Security so that they and the future generations have some benefits when they retire in the future? Who is going to do the low paying jobs and help us fight our wars?
In this Debate we are unwilling to listen to reason, to acknowledge a need for compassion and cooperation with our neighbors or between political parties. We even overlook the needs of our citizens and industry. There is no need to admit our errors, or to pay attention to our previous dark history of injustices to make a sound judgment. We seem to project as people that strength is more important than humility, failing to understand that humility is a true form of strength.
Today we face a new frontier – one of change and growth, of new ideas and information. This new frontier also encompasses a sense of endless personal possibility, unconstrained by color, background, religion, caste, or any myriad of labels we humans use to dehumanize each other. Just like we went out to the new frontier and made our way into the unknowing we must believe in ourselves and be guided by the true pioneer spirit and our American values and principles that are and have been the true cement on which we built our country. The enemy of the American ideal is the small, the petty, and the bigoted. The future of American ideal is the frontier notion that with our God given talents, our skills, our brains and our ingenuity, we can – and will – surmount any challenge before us.
The only way to save America is to share it. Our founding fathers did not see America as exceptional, other than exceptionally blessed. Their America rested on an essential and revolutionary notion of the universality of the human condition. It is still great today, and is now genuinely global. We have people all over the globe which everyday contribute to our national well being. But as people who have done so much to nurture this idea, we face a paradox. To see it flourish, we have to accept that America is no longer exclusively – or exceptionally – ours….
The ideas that we should strive for are independence thought, and recognize that we need others just as others need us. We must all be good neighbors in the new world economy. We as Americans always have been ruled by a slight subversion, an instant urge to “stick it to the man”; to do the “right thing” which in the eyes of the “man” and the “political correct crowd” might seem to be exactly the wrong thing to do!
We have in the Americas 500 million neighbors that are eager and willing to share their luck with us in the global markets. Some of them need jobs, we need labor; we need markets, they are potential markets. There must be a rational and intelligent way to interconnect our economies and bring the Continent into the 29th Century. We can do this with honor, dignity, leadership, and benefits for all involved. We are really all related, one people, one planet, we human race. We are all in the same ‘boat’, I mean Continent!
With the proper vision we can set a path of prosperity and happiness which would truly reflect American values, principles and traditions, not some skewed version of it. We need to calm the voices of intolerance and allow for the voices of reason and understanding to prevail. We need to elect the candidates with a message of hope and fair resolution to the immigration paradox and prevail over the messages of unreason and fear. We need for leaders of the caliber of Jefferson, Lincoln, Roosevelt, Kennedy, Reagan, true leaders that made tough, sometimes unpopular decisions on their time. For their decisions we are now a better country or did learn a needed lesson.
Despite it’s apparent marginality, Latin America could serve as a much stronger regional partner and important market were US interest have a great stake in positive development. Brazil, Venezuela, Colombia, Chile, Argentina, have tremendous consumer potential and an economic union would allow for a potential eventual integration of markets and labor pools. Latin America is the natural ally and close relative of the USA. Both together can help each other and have many areas of common interests.
Are the people of China, Iraq, Afghanistan, and other and other ethnical alien countries more important more complementary and better allies than Latin America?
Latinos have historically looked up to the USA as a loved hard to understand, and always distracted, aloof, indifferent cousin for whom we have and unwavering unrecognized and unreturned loyalty. It is a complex relation and only in the resent present, after decades of neglect and foreign policy inaction, we, as people, have started to believe in our nationalist leaders that are looking to alternate sphere of influences outside the USA. Some people seem to have started listening to the failed Castros, the Chaves, Lulas, Ortegas, Morales, etc…is this what we want or is this good for USA?
Latin America has come to accept that US policy is not interested in bringing them in as an equal or close relative but that it wastes its might and resources trying to influence other places of the world where is not even wanted, while ignoring and taking for granted the old faithful wife left at home. Latin America is quietly forging alliances with EU, China, Iran, and hesitantly with Russia only to let the US know that if they are not fully interested, there are other suitors in the wind.
Now tell me is this good for the security and well being of our tribe? Does the neglect of our foreign policy have created a foreseeable problem that may threaten our interest in the region? Social unrest in the lower continent could bring an unmanageable immigration boom to our shores. Remember Mariel! Do we want other countries to have that kind of influence in our back yard? Do we want someone to have first choice in the energy, cheap labor, brain power, and raw materials of the region?
So, as we can see the immigration problem reaches a much deeper dilemma that the proponents of closing the border, throwing out the immigrants and pissing off our neighbors realize. The Lou Dobbs are not telling us any of this. All Latinos that partake in the developing of this country and their American born and educated children can serve as ambassadors to export the true American ideal so it takes root and grows in Latin America.
The treatment that some are encouraging to our neighbors is shameful to say the least, and it contravenes our core principles. This misguided undignified treatment has become a wholesale attempt to impede our most central value in our democratic state. These forces if left unchecked, will write a very, very sad chapter in the history of this most generous and compassionate nation.
There are close to 100,000 older Americans living in the retiring communities in Mexico. US retirees who can’t afford private health care insurance, and may not qualify for Medicare or Medicaid, can qualify for the Mexican Social Security System. Mexico charges only $270.00 per year for full health care, hospital services, including major operations, outpatient clinics, and medications at no additional costs. Additionally, if the patient is indigent, all fees are waived. These Americans have gone to “better hunting and gathering grounds” where their retirement money on fixed income raises their standard of living by up to 40%. These reverse immigrants are going to other lands almost for the very same reasons that the others come here; to improve their economic well-being. They are not being prosecuted or put in prison down there. On the contrary, they are being welcome with open arms and hearts, treated with respect, dignity and grace – the unearned and undeserved favor of acceptance that is the heart of God himself.
I don’t believe our values are any different. We are the vanguard. We should be leading by example. We have always been respected world leaders in this and many other areas and the new dynamic has the potential to undermine who we are.
In the last contested presidential elections, many of the candidates that ran on an extreme anti-immigration platform, for House, Senate and other political offices, were eliminated. The center of the road candidates were vindicated by the true spirited American voter. Those same dark forces are trying again the the same old tired anti-immigration rhetoric in order to implement their agenda. We must rise again and challenge those forces. Yes, we need immigration reform, but no what and how is being proposed.
Finally, as Fareed Zakaria states in his new book, “The Post American World”, (Newsweek 5/12/08) “over the last 20 years, globalization has been gaining depth and breath. America has greatly benefited from these trends. It has enjoyed unusually robust growth, low unemployment and inflation, and received hundred of billions of dollars in investments. These are not signs of economic collapse. Our companies have entered new countries and industries with great success, using global supply chains and technology to stay at the vanguard of efficiency.”
It further says that America’s hidden secret is that most engineers are immigrants. Foreign students and immigrants account for almost 50% of all science and researchers in this country. In 2006 they received 40% of all the Phds. By 2010 75% of all science Phds in this country will be awarded to foreign students. We have been making impossible for most of these students to stay with our broken immigration laws. If we allow these immigrants to settle here easily, they will create great economic opportunities and help our tribe.
Half of all Silicone Valley start-ups have one founder who is an immigrant of the first generation American. Despite the Lou Dobb’s anti-immigration rants, the potential for a new burst of American productivity depends not in our education system or R&D spending, but on our immigrant forces to take us into the next level as they realize their dreams. If these people are allowed and encourage to stay, then the innovation will happen here. If we allow them to leave, they will take it with them.
More broadly, this is America’s great – and insurmountable – strength. It remains the most open, flexible society in the world, able to absorb other people, cultures, ideas, goods and services. This country thrives on the hunger and energy of poor immigrants. Faced with new technologies of foreign markets, or growing markets overseas, it adapts and adjusts and its immigrants are the best ambassadors of this dynamism with the closed hierarchal nations that were once superpowers, you sense that the US has always been different and may not fall into the trap of becoming rich, fat, and lazy.
For the past 60-years, the US has pushed countries to the open their markets, free their politics, and embrace trade and technology. American diplomats, businessman, and intellectuals have urged people in distant lands to be unafraid of change, to join the advance of the world, to learn the secrets of our success. Yet, just as they are beginning to do so, we are losing faith in such ideas. We have become suspicious of trade, openness, immigration, and investment because now it’s not Americans going abroad but foreigners coming to America, to the best hunting and gathering grounds, just as the world is opening up, we are closing down.
We were the leader of world globalization, now we don’t want for the world to say that along the way we forgot to globalize ourselves or that we want to go to the past and build a Wall. I believe the original vision is right, we must plow forward and ignore the forces of fear and parochial divisionism. We must stand strong in our American believes that got us this far, there is room here for new comers and for the people that are already here, as the original Native Americans made room for the Europeans even though they were a different color and had different costumes, and then we absorbed the Africans and other nationals that made America its home, it can be done.. It is a resurging fact of life; man will go always towards the better hunting and gathering grounds, or just talk to the Americans that are now traveling to Mexico and Canada to get better prices on gas, prescription drugs, and medical care. Let’s make a rational system to make it all work in the true spirit of the American way.
