IMMIGRATION LIMITATION

(sigh)

OK, here I go gettin’ up on my high horse again about immigrants – both illegal AND legal! It rankles me that we are undisciplined in our thinking about the huge issues surrounding allowing unlimited numbers of folks into this country every year. While we have our problems, we are nonetheless a thriving, prosperous country; however, our resources – both natural and otherwise – know some bounds. I’m certain my liberal friends out there think I’m heartless, but I’m not actually. It’s just that I have grave concerns about our ability as a nation to provide for the numbers of people who want access to America’s riches and opportunities.

When one contemplates what overpopulation has done to countries like China and India, one has to wonder if we may not be in similar circumstances 50 years from now if we allow immigration to remain unchecked. Granted, we are more advanced in many ways than India and we most likely would fare better in the long run than they; but the Chinese are in dire straits and they are quite industrious. Over-population is doom to an economy and a country's ability to prosper.

Over seventy percent of growth in this country is a result of immigration -- immigrants who tax our system in every way imaginable: overcrowded schools and prisons, traffic, energy shortages, water shortages, pollution of all kinds. Does it sound harsh to blame an influx of immigrants for these things? Not at all. With U.S. birth rates having fallen to record lows, the strains on our resources is from unchecked immigration rather than Americans' mommy track. Of course we need to attend to our "Give us your tired, your poor" philosophy, but we need to do it in a more level-headed way. We need to define what numbers we can realistically accommodate yearly and find a way to seal the borders. Maybe even a moratorium is in order until we can catch our breath and work through the problems associated with this mass of humanity flowing (legally and illegally) into our midst.

(sigh)