VIDEO — Are Immigrants Ruining Our Future?
There has been heated debate lately about immigration in the U.S. There are basically two camps of thought. One is that immigrants fill jobs at companies that Americans can’t or won’t and provide pressure relief for third world countries without opportunity. The other is that if we continue to let immigrants come into the country at the current rate of approaching 1,000,000 per year for legal immigrants and another 1,000,000 for illegal immigrants, ‘immigrants will foreclose on our future’.
Let’s take the first position on immigration — towns and industries could not survive without the foreign influx of worker immigrants filling jobs. Did you ever stop to think about who had these jobs before the federal government quadrupled annual legal immigration? We did. Not only did our wonderful government quadruple legal immigration, we continue to look the other way and allow illegal immigration to expand even faster beyond our already expanded quotas.
What did this do to American corporations? The surplus manpower busted unions and slashed wages, benefits, working conditions, and safety. Without the influx of foreigns workers, meat processing and other industries would still be providing middle-class lifestyles for Americans. When immigrants from 3rd world countries arrive here, they are used to getting paid cents an hour. When minimum wage is presented to them, it seems like a godsend. Well, why hire a bunch of Americans for $15 an hour when you can hire an immigrant for $5 an hour? I am not even going to mention the ‘illegal’ immigrants that cut payroll even lower. What about Americans who only have these skills in jobs that were taken over by the immigrants? And what about the 40 percent of black men who do not have a full time job today? Perhaps this isn’t such a good thing for ‘Americans’ who want the same thing these immigrants want — a job and a livable wage.
So, let’s take a look at the opposing view…it’s all about the numbers. To quote Roy Beck, author of The Case Against Immigration, and President of Numbers USA, Education and Research Foundation, America will not have a future at all if the immigration numbers continue at their current levels. I came across Mr. Beck while reading letters to the editor in the Wilson Quartley Autumn 2006, issue. I was so impressed with Mr. Beck’s comments in his letter, that I did some research and found a video he made that spells out this dire threat of uncontrolled immigration to our future. Take a few minutes to watch this amazing and shocking video. This video is to immigration ‘out of control’ as An Inconvenient Truth is to global warming. Watch it and take a deep breath, because it involves you and I and it is an eye-opener.
Do all the numbers in the video include ‘illegal’ immigration? NO, it does not!
On annual illegal immigration, the Center for Immigration Studies has extrapolated the latest Census data to show that 700,000 to 800,000 new illegal aliens are ’settling’ each year. Now, far, far more than that enter illegally each year, but there is a lot of back and forth. The 700,000 to 800,000 represents illegals who truly settle in for at least a couple of years, and usually much, much longer. . -NumbersUSA.com
What about if we include the offspring from the millions of immigrants? Well, good question. Here is some mind-blowing research from cis.org that will make you crazy.
Analysis of data collected by the Census Bureau in 2002, shows that women from the top-10 immigrant- sending countries living in the United States, collectively tend to have higher fertility than women in their home countries. As a group, immigrants from these countries have 23 percent more children than women in their home countries, further adding to world population growth. Among the findings:
- Among Mexican immigrants in the United States, for example, fertility averages 3.5 children per woman compared to 2.4 children per women in Mexico.
- As for legal status, we estimate that the birth rate of illegal alien women was 3.1 children on average in 2002, or about 50 percent higher than the two children natives have on average. The birth rate for legal immigrants is 2.6, or about one-third higher than that of natives.
- If illegals are allowed to remain in the country, either as illegal aliens or legal residents, births alone will add some four million
people to the U.S. population over the next decade.
- Immigrant fertility differs by education level much more than that of natives. For example, immigrants without a high school degree have 3.3 children on average, 74 percent higher than the 1.9 children for college graduate immigrants.
- Because immigrant fertility differs so much by education, immigrants now account for more than one in three births to mothers without a high school diploma.
Just to give you a benchmark, lets use Mexican immigrants. They have three and a half births per woman!? We native americans are around 2.1. Does anyone realize what this means? Let’s look at the math. With every mother and father having 3.5 children then that would mean an increase of 175% per generation or every 20 or 30 years! This is insane!
If you would like to do something about this, please visit this website and help Roy Beck in the journey to helping America. Numbers USA
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ILLEGAL immigation should be stopped and those here illegally should be deported!!!!!
I agree, but to me it is not just illegal immigration. Legal immigration will kill us too. If we do not control or regulate the amount of people flooding into this country, we will dry up our country’s resources.
All immigration, legal or illegal has a substitution effect in addition to the direct effect of increasing the population.
Sustained immigration over time must result in the genetic exinction of those here, and each year’s cohort of immigrants who come here. Search on “Unpleasant Immigration Arithmetic”.
Very interesting Atlantic, I will have to do a search on this. Thanks for the comment.
On the brighter side, “your” country will have the power of human labor, like what the giant country (China) have.
But of course, as the author said:
“Immigrants will foreclose on our future.”
Pros and cons.
If only we had realized how bad immigration was going to be back in 1492. Coulda’ saved our country a whole lot of trouble.
Much of the numbers you put out there lead me to think of this as derivative of a general over population problem rather than an immigration problem. We as a country are draining the world of its resources. So rather than look into a mirror and see what we need to change we place the blame on others, in this case those who just got here. Are they a strain on our economy, yup. Are they in the exact same possision as our ancestors who came here several generations ago? yup. All the attacks used against the Mexicans today were used against the Irish when they came. My family is of Irish decent, so how can I sit here and say that others should not be allowed in?
Back to my point about general overpopulation. This does need to be addressed. There is a finite number of humans this planet can support, I don’t know exactly what that number is but at this rate I am convinced that we will exceed it soon, I also wouldn’t be shocked if we have already crossed that threshold. I think this could be an important piece of the puzzle that I think too often is seen as a separate issue.
I gotta run. I’ll watch the rest of the video later. Thanks!
Well, I would say that over-population is a serious problem that is always sweeped under the rug. What are our choices for correcting this issue here in America? Well, two really. Getting people to stop having so many damn kids or keeping the extraordinary amount of people from coming into this country. Well, in my opinion the later is easier than the former. Try telling someone to not have so many kids.
Now, we are not saying that the immigrants are the problem, especially since we are all immigrants essentially. It is the goverments lack of regulating the numbers that are coming in to this country. Every other country has a regulation for the immigration. In Japan you have to have a college degree before you can even get a work visa.
Why are we so afraid to address this problem? Are we are afraid to hurt peoples feelings or afraid that we are shutting people out? But, is it doing us any real good? Do we have to have to million people a year flood this country? I do not have a personal problem with the million individuals, but I have to look at the logical, rational side of the shear volume.
By looking at the chart from the video, how can you say that we are in the same problem now as in the early 1900’s? For some reason the government ramped up the immigration allowance and increased the numbers by 8 fold. Do we have 8 fold the resources now than in early 1900’s, no. Do we have this dire need for workers because there is not enough man power in the United States, no. When we have college graduates that can’t find jobs that pay more the $10 an hour with no benifits and our unemployment is still high, what is this telling us? So why the change, and why do the numbers have to be so high?
As far as the Mexicans, well, live in Texas and you will find out. Now I have nothing against Mexicans, my wife is a Mexican. But, my problems are with their lack of accountablity when it comes to their birth rate. They have nearly double the birth rate as the other cultures. When we are trying to control our population and our natural resources, and the Mexicans are having nearly 4 kids per woman, are we to just sit and say nothing.
My next complaint would be the fact that the illegal immigrants (Mexicans) are complaining about not having rights and they have a feeling of having something owed to them. This really aggrevates me becase they are not legal nor do they pay taxes, so what is owed to them. This is what I say, “Just appreciate what you have and just go about your business.”
I just posted a little thing about “raising children in a toxic environment” It’s a list of problems facing our country.
“3.. Traditional American values and institutions were being challenged by the influx of immigrants who did not speak English and who were perceived to make disproportionate demands on the human service systems, suppressing wages by accepting low pay, long hours, and inferior working conditions.”
Why this is relevant is because it was written in the late 1800’s. This is NOT a new issue. In the early 1900’s we had over 800,000 immigrants a year, but we had just under one third the total population. So by percentage it was fairly similar to the immigration today. Your right that I live far away from the issue, in rural upstate NY we don’t have problems because of immigration, at least not directly. I just have a hard time going after people who want to come join my country so badly that they will jump a border, cross a river, cross a desert, risk imprisonment, all for a chance to be a part of something that I had the luxury of being born into. And I had Mexican food for lunch and I love me a burrito, chips and salsa.
you hit on a critical point, they are illegal, they don’t have rights, they don’t pay taxes, so it seems to me that the real problem is not them being here, the problem is them not contributing to society. So wouldn’t it make more sense to force them into a path to citizenship? That way they can be productive and contribute to taxes. I don’t mean amnesty, no one I’ve heard has ever really wanted that, they need to earn the right to be here, but they should at least be given the opportunity to try.
Oh as for rates of child birth, this seems like a combination of much needed education, birth control, and coming from a society where infant mortality is so prevalent that you have more children than you really want with the assumption that some will not survive. I know this was true when I was in Guatemala.
I would like to announce that I have written another article pertaining to this discussion, and I wil post it tomorrow.
Hey Tim, I will check out your aricle later today.
I would like to ask you where you got your numbers for immigration for your argument above. The only numbers I can find for early 1900’s is 350,000 in pre-1921 then the National Origins Act lowered it to 165,000. Then the government lowered it even more to 150,000 in 1927. The only time it has been outside the range of 150,000 to 175,000 in the early 1900’s was when we took displaced victims of WWII. But, that was very temporary.
I believe we are missing the point of the video as well as the message that goes along with it. The problem is the consequences mathematically and scientifically of this population boom. It is just the sheer numbers. In essence, I could care less who or what is immigrating into this country. It is the amount of whos and whats.
If we want to help people, we need to help them in their own country. Not bring them over here. We feel so bad for Mexicans and their dire life in Mexico, but there are over 4.6 billion people that are more impoverished than the average Mexican. Do we just bring them into this country and take that burden? No, it would destroy us. It reminds me of the person that can never say no. They are constantly going around saying yes to everyone. They are accommodating everyone but themselves. Then they wake up one morning wondering where their life went and how they ended up depressed and unhappy. Well, you sacrificed yourself for everyone else. This is what I believe we are doing. We feel guilty for living good, so we respond to that guilt by sacrificing ourselves and our sustainablity. We need to realize what cost are we willing to risk.
This can not be about Mexicans or Chinese or anything else. It is just about the numbers, period. We need to set a regulation to immigration. I do not understand why regulating the immigration is such a highly critized topic. We regulate everything else, why not immigration? We are right at home trying to remove a woman’s freedom to be able to abort a fetus in her own body, warring a country over illegitimate intelligence, crushing the middle class, ruining the earth’s ecosystem is fine, but telling a Mexican that since he illegaly climbed over a fence, he needs to go home is horrible? I do not understand our logic.
When we allow the Mexicans that have illegaly immigrated here to become citizens, what kind of message is that sending to all the people that want to get into this country illegaly? Come on over, break the law and it’s fine? I really do not know the exact ramification of this, but we need to pay attention to how we communicate to the world by our actions. And, I think regulating immigration could do nothing but better this country.
From Stan Nodvik:
I didn’t know how to do your Spell Check on my post on immigration. The post just went somewhere. I’ll check tomorrow and re-write the post if necessary. Sorry for goofing up.
Immigration is regulated, maybe its not very well regulated but at least in theory it is regulated. Obviously I’m not against regulating who comes in, what concerns me is this underlying idea that we must keep America for Americans. But whats an American but an Immigrant thats been assimilated? and to those who claim that the recent immigrants aren’t embracing our culture because they don’t speak English. We’ll if I walk into a pizza place and the guy behind the counter is speaking Italian do I call him un-American? If I go see my uncle at the Hibernians (Irish group)do I tell him to stop being proud of his heritage, to either embrace America or go back to Ireland? I know your trying to just look at the numbers, I don’t believe that you have xenophobic, or racist reasoning. But we aren’t talking about numbers were talking about people. yes the numbers of them will create problems but what are we to do? Turn our backs on our heritage, become isolationists? I’m guilty of thinking in terms of ideals, but I just can’t help but think back to those days in in school learning about the history of this country, and those words on the statue of liberty. I just can’t help but think of how sad it would be to grow up knowing that we don’t allow in people who are different, because they are different. But were all different and thats what makes life worth living.
I know I haven’t presented any real evidence, I know gut reactions don’t mean much, but this is an issue I feel strongly about and almost entirely from an idealist standpoint. We’re all immigrants, every wave of immigration has been met with the same arguments against them and yet we continue to go on. I have almost no fear of us actually becoming isolationist or else I would be far more concerned about this issue.
Oh and you asked where I got my previous numbers,I got them from here.
http://eh.net/encyclopedia/article/cohn.immigration.us
It was the first link that came up on google and seemed like exactly what I was looking for but I don’t know the accuracy.
Years —— Average Yearly Total - All Countries
1900-1914 —— 891,806
During WWII is the lowest immigration levels in our history, the time just after was higher but still on the low side.
BTW: I’m going to feel really dumb if i get one of your math verifications wrong
P.S. forgot a couple things. One the article i mentioned is very very brief and the only relevant bit is the part I mentioned here. secondly, if your doing a second article on this subject, Sweet! I can’t wait to read it.
[…] When discussing the problem with immigration in the comment section of my former article here, I realized that the prior information was not dire enough for people to understand the situation we are in. Here is a small part of the consequences of our immigration issue that is quite amazing and is hard to argue against. I would like to use our oil dependence as a rationale behind why we need more regulation with our legal and illegal immigration. […]
Hey Tim, I just posted my new article here.
As far as your comments, I think you are great in the fact that you have a passion for people. I never want you to lose that, but when it comes to a nation’s politics, emotions and big hearts can destroy a nation. If we do not keep our hearts and eyes focused on the stability of our nation, we will end up like the fallen Rome.
Why do you think we founded this nation on separating church from State? Well, I believe very strongly that it is from the lack of logic in religion. Since most emotions are fueled by irrational intentions, they do not belong within the government.
Let’s not focus about what has or has not worked in the past when it comes to immigration. The dynamic has changed since the early 1900’s, we are more heavily involved in geo-politics, our population is sky-rocketing and we have such a dependence on foreign oil. Comparing the early past to our very dire future is like using the same time comparison when explaining the consequences to war.
The times have changed and we are more dynamic and complex than ever. So, let us realize that we now live in a world that has a very real, global consequence with every single one of our actions.
All of the above is explained in more detail in this article
Oh, and about the assimilation issue. I have no problem if the Italian behind the counter speaks Italian. The problem is when he refuses to speak English. I definitely understand that Americans are just assimilated immigrants. The problem I have with a lot of the illegal immigrants is their refusal TO assimilate, and they want America to conform to them. These “illegals” are demanding certain rights and want to change legislation for their illegal activities.
It is the same problem in European countries. The Muslims are trying to force England and Germany and other countries to change there legislation to fit their lifestyle. These countries are getting rightfully upset, and they are taking the stand of assimilate or move out.
I would love to invite you down to Austin, TX. I will take you to a Jack in the Box where they don’t speak English. When you go to the drive through, they speak only Spanish to you. When you speak English to them, you sit there for 10 minutes while they get the one manager that can speak English.
Or, how about at my wife’s work where they take care of kids after school. Half of them have been in American schools for years and still refuse to speak English. Many of the schools down here are so slammed with illegal immigrant’s kids that they cannot hire enough English As Second Language Teachers, so these kids are never educated. They don’t learn English, don’t get educated and never assimilate. There for in the future they will just drain our welfare system.
And the pride for one’s ethnic background is fine, but please don’t come to America trying to make it Mexico. If I wanted to live in Mexico, I would move there. But, I don’t.
But in reality, I do not have a problem with the Mexicans, or anyone else for that matter, and I understand they just want a better life. I have a problem with our idiotic government that is spineless in protecting this country, and its borders. It is the government’s fault, not the immigrants.
CEREBRAL I CANT AGREE WITH YOU MORE I GUESS YOU COULD SAY THAT IM ON THE OTHER SIDE I AM MARRIED TO A PARTIAL ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT {APPLICATION IN PROCESS} AND YOU ARE THE FIRST PERSON THAT HAS A SENSIBLE COMMENT AND ANSWER AND NEVER ONCE USED RACIST TERMS I THINK THAT THEY SHOULD LEARN ENGLISH HELL I WOULDNT GO TO MEXICO IF I COULDNT SPEAK SPANISH AND I ALSO AGREE THAT WE CITIZENS SHOULD NOT HAVE TO FEEL LIKE WE ARE VISITING A FOREIGN COUNTRY IN OUR OWN USA THERE ARE LOTS OF PROGRAMS THAT HELP TEACH ENGLISH ETC. AND EVEN AN ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT CAN PAY TAXES MY HUSBAND DOES SO THERE IS NO EXCUSE MONEY IS NOT THE ONLY GOLDEN OPPERTUNITY IN AMERICA THERE ARE OTHER THINGS TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF AS WELL ……….LEARNING ENGLISH IS ONE OF THEM
Fast-Forward to 2492. The U.S. immigration problem has been solved by population-control, which I think is a great idea, or by whatever.
Bang, bang, boom, boom, ba-boom. What happens when one shoe is left on one foot? Suppose there’s warfare within the Continental U.S. some day down the line. It’s out-and-out chaos and the chaos continues unabated. When?; soon perhaps, but believing it’ll never happen, is just putting on a blindfold.
Are you with me during the shootin’ and holler’n’? Okay. If it’s the last thing we ever do, we gotta get out of this place. Canada can’t take in any more U.S. refugees because their infrastructure is stretched to the limit.
You’re waiting for it, aren’t you? What happens when the last shoe drops? Maybe we and our loved ones can be saved by moving to Mexico. (Boat people during a war in ≤@2492-?; forget it. It’s either North or South by land. By air is out except for the wealthy few and the-I-know-somebody few.) How and exactly where do the rest of us emigrate to? MEXICO! Whoa! Whoa!
Wow! Those wetbacks and spics have awful long memories. Mexico has even built their own wall TO KEEP US OUT. I never heard of ‘Remember Santa Anna until now; I’m not sure I can even spell the famous Mexican general’s name correctly.
Okay, here’s how it will go down depending on what we do today. And this is your individual chance to play alternative universes.
1492, welcome; 2007, Fill out this form and we’ll get back to you; ≤@2492, Sorry, amigo. Don’t be sore. Be happy I didn’t call you, ‘White Devil.’
//note to reader: keep the blindfold on and keep thinking it can’t happen here. BUT HEY, it already has! During the war of 1812, didn’t the bitchin’ British burned down the ORIGINAL White house? Check it out.
Let’s get back to ground zero. Let all of us pause to ponder more about this immigration dilemma of today. Especially by centering on ourselves as the non-citizens of yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Our great-great grandchildren might be without a country and be so overnight. Gee, those Mexicans do have long memories, don’t they? Okay, go do your alternative universe sticks. A tip: be certain to postdate your opinion and final belief. What kind of memories are you going to create and give future thems (yes, thems) to hold firm to and perhaps bond together down the line when the shoe is on the other foot?
–30–
Wow, I don’t know what to say, but… very interesting. I am a little confused by the story. Although creative, I am not to sure about the point that was made.
Anyways, take care Stan, and we definitely appreciate your interaction with our site. Have a great weekend!
[…] VIDEO — Are Immigrants Ruining Our Future? […]
How can we possibly assimilate this many people from one
country? We can’t. We are so schizophrenic about our
illegal immigration problem. We sell them our old un-
smogable cars, give them loans for new Big Trucks, they drink and drive we know that’s not their real license
or they don’t have one but that’s ok I work for the County of Ventura and we provide spanish speaking only
Drinking Driver Programs 2 days a week every week.We incentivize county jobs with extra hrly pay for
bilingual pay. We have whole programs dedicated to
the “immigrant population” Federal, State and Local
funds used. We educate their children, never dane to
question their immigration status. Heck, now we’re excitedly recruiting anyone who can speak Mixteco
’cause that’s our newest source of Grant writing possibilities for the new illegal immigrant- The
Mixteco. I attend a yearly Cultural Competency
Training. Giant Post-Its line the walls asking
participants to “Describe Yourself” I usually
write something profound like I’m A Proud 5th generation American. Many of my fellow workers
write I’m a Mexican American. I’ve actually asked
where do you feel more loyalty here or Mexico
2 out of 3 persons answered Mexico.Yes the same Mexico
that when get we try to deport persons from Mexico
suddenly that would be like sending them to their death.I guess both Countries are schizophrenic.
We just want most of them to go home..be grateful
for what you got and take the American Dream Home!
They(The Illegals) are not gonna go easy they’re gonna
make us kick them out and use our kindness and generosity against us. IT WON”T BE PRETTY DO WE HAVE THE STOMACH FOR IT? Unfortunately if our govt. had done their job we wouldn’t have to but it didn’t work out that way!
I hear you and amen! Perhaps we ought to let them all come in and we leave and take over Mexico???
-30-
People are retarded for thinking that immigrants will be ruining their future if it wasn’t for immigrants they wouldn’t have a future because they wouldn’t be here. IMMIGRANTS BUILT AMERICA IF YOU CAN’T HANDLE THE FACT THAT THE ONLY PEOPLE WHO SHOULD BE IN THIS COUNTRY ARE NATIVE AMERICANS AND THAT WHITE PEOPLE STARTED KILLING THE ANIMALS AND NATIVE AMERICANS THEN GET OUT OF THIS COUNTRY!
AND JUST SO YOU KNOW I AIN’T AN ILLEGAL OR LEGAL IMMIGRANT I’M A PROUD U.S.CITIZEN. although I am PROUD 2 BE LATINO!!