OPINION

Anti-immigration Fervor - Observations & Recommendations

Observations

Today's anti-immigrant momentum is a product not only of the traditional forces, but of an additional factor that began taking roots by the middle of the 20th Century. This factor is so pervasive and influential that I believe, is generating a fundamental shift in our national temperament towards immigration in general and not just towards illegal aliens. The traditional factors are:

-Psychological and Social — Products of the natural individual response to survival requirements. Its mechanism embodies downgrading and devaluating others perceived as competitors or aggressors as means of strengthening our individual confidence to triumph in the struggle. This response begins at birth and becomes exaggerated through time by compensatory reactions to normal feelings of self inadequacy and actual failures. These individual innate tendencies and responses to differentiate us from others are later solidified by family and cultural conditioning responding to similar needs now framed in a wider setting.

-Geographical and Political — Products of business cycles disruptions and downturns and destructive geo-political events such as wars and international trade confrontations. Those artificially imposed political and not natural geographic boundaries such as ours with Mexico, also contribute to the rejection and even persecution of immigrants.

The new factor however, is much more surreptitious and pernicious than the above traditional set. Its impact is dismantling the very foundations of the nation including its traditional image as a united and historically unique entity. It is composed of three separate but interrelated variables; I call this new factor the Babel Tower Effect.

The Babel Tower Effect - Composed of three interrelated variables:

1) "Superfluous materialism and compulsive consumerism" - Permeating the culture and leading the individual to a generalized state of stress, anxiety and underlying frustration and anger towards self and others (e.g. RPM – rpm). An increasing rate of change and instability are signature characteristics of this variable. Its effect includes the rejection of new circumstances, cultures and faces, including those of any immigrant.

2) "Globalization" - With its threat to livelihood and life styles. This menace comes from foreign economies and cultures both at home and abroad including immigrants, legal or otherwise. It complements and at the same time conflicts with elements in #1 above.

3) "Oversupply of politicians" — Justified by the growth in population and accompanied with widespread pandering to minority groups and special interests (with and of foreign interests), for votes and funds. This mechanism waters down the fabric of the culture and promotes suspicion of any new interest group as additional "free riders", including immigrants and its defenders.

Recommendations:

1) Prepare and distribute widely a short essay describing the psychological roots of prejudice and discrimination. Explain how these tendencies originate and evolve in every human being and society. Include how this almost-instinct, transfers into our daily thoughts and attitudes and it become generalized in our activities and social institutions.

2) Prepare and distribute widely a short narrative of the history of our uses and abuses of immigrants throughout the colonization, expansion and development of the nation. Include the practicality and unintended consequences of our immigration policies.

3) Prepare an essay and a series of lectures describing the impact of materialism and consumerism in the quality of life and human happiness. Relate its logical fallacies and its effects in our national and international economic and political conduct.

4) Prepare and distribute widely a brief analysis of the inadequacies of our immigration policies and the arbitrariness of our numerical limits on immigrants. Include a review of the extensive bureaucratic inefficiencies and ineffectiveness of the various government agencies involved.

5) Prepare and distribute widely a brief exposition of the vital and urgent importance of uniting the north and South American continents in an economic front to compete against the expanding Sino/Indo block.

6) Promote widely the economic and political practicality of helping to strengthen the regional economies from where the immigrants originate in cooperation with the exporting country.

7) Prepare and distribute widely a short essay explaining with examples the fallacies of unchecked diversity. The importance of diversity as a source of creativity but not in destinations, as resources is always limited. That belonging to a group, by definition, requires sacrificing many individual goals and likewise belonging to a nation requires similar sacrifices from the participating groups. That institution, organizations, businesses and nation alike, benefit from diversity in perspectives and proposed approaches, but thereafter unity of goals and strategies must prevail to succeed.

8) Propose the abolition of a significant number of seats in the House of Representatives or perhaps the abolition of the entire institution. The bigger the nation, the more complex and fragile its economy and the shorter the decision windows become, the less the number of politicians and the wider the span of interest and focus the remaining numbers, the better. The nation and its overall welfare should be the main focus, not local parochialism or ever-dividing narrow interests.

9) Foment the formation of chambers of commerce and other similar support groups to channel votes and funds on behalf of ideas and leaders promoting desired platforms.