"Now I highly doubt that people are coming from Somalia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, ect.... to make a better life and appreciate America and what not."
Why would you highly doubt that? These are some pretty shitty war-torn countries, and there are thousands of migrants trying to escape and make a better life.
That's the first thing I thought as well. It would be hard to come from those countries and not have a better life here. What is so difficult to believe about that?
And honestly, it is incredibly hard for anyone to do so legally. There are some really interesting stories about Afghani people who helped American soldiers against the taliban at great personal cost, but even they can't even get into the country legally to keep themselves and their families from being killed in retaliation.
When it comes to protecting your family and making a better life for themselves, people are willing to do some crazy stuff - in the grand scope of things, illegally entering a wealthy nation in search of a better life isn't even that crazy of a thing to do. Considering how wealthy America is compared to many other countries, it's much more likely that people entering this country illegally want to become one of us, not kill us.
Look, i'm not saying that there aren't some families or individuals coming from those countries looking for a better life. Obviously there are always going to be outliers from the majority and exceptions to the rule. What I'm saying is that it's pretty safe to assume that, for the most part, people coming here illegally from countries that hold a notoriously hostile view of this nation are probably not crossing the borders with the best intentions.
But I'm saying the opposite... The overwhelming majority are not coming with 'bad intentions' and it's totally ridiculous to say so. I live in the UK where I suspect the problem of Afghani and Pakistani immigrants is much more acute given that it's easier to get in here than the US. And Afghanis and Pakistanis both have extremely good reasons to resent Britain! But it's ridiculous to say that the majority of them coming in have bad intentions... The majority are coming in because otherwise they would literally die.
Yes you will hear about hate preachers and British born terrorists, but let me tell you, if the majority of British Pakistanis came with bad intentions on Britain... We'd be pretty fucked. The majority live peaceful lives, send their kids to school, and get on with things. And as far as the illegal immigrants are concerned, if I was born into such a shitty situation as there were, you can guarantee I'd be trying to hope on a truck from Calais as well.
The US may be far from perfect but I don't doubt for a second that it's better than many places in the world. Now, don't get me wrong, I completely understand that I am young, naive, and lack a full understanding of the effects of immigration to the US. I've always been told that too much immigration causes problems for everyone in the country, and I'm sure that in some ways that must be true. However, I can't bring myself to want to deny immigration rights to anyone wanting to make a better life here. I can't bring myself to feel more entitled to the opportunity to build a career and a life in the US than anyone else that wants to try, especially when I was lucky enough to be born into a better standard of living than a lot of people in the world probably were. The US was built by immigrants, and I'm not sure who has the right to deny people entry into the country. I'm sure it must be done at some point, somehow, but that's a decision I don't think I could ever morally reconcile.
I guess that means I should just stay out of politics.
"Now I highly doubt that people are coming from Somalia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, ect.... to make a better life and appreciate America and what not."
Why would you highly doubt that? These are some pretty shitty war-torn countries, and there are thousands of migrants trying to escape and make a better life.
That's the first thing I thought as well. It would be hard to come from those countries and not have a better life here. What is so difficult to believe about that?
And honestly, it is incredibly hard for anyone to do so legally. There are some really interesting stories about Afghani people who helped American soldiers against the taliban at great personal cost, but even they can't even get into the country legally to keep themselves and their families from being killed in retaliation.
When it comes to protecting your family and making a better life for themselves, people are willing to do some crazy stuff - in the grand scope of things, illegally entering a wealthy nation in search of a better life isn't even that crazy of a thing to do. Considering how wealthy America is compared to many other countries, it's much more likely that people entering this country illegally want to become one of us, not kill us.
Look, i'm not saying that there aren't some families or individuals coming from those countries looking for a better life. Obviously there are always going to be outliers from the majority and exceptions to the rule. What I'm saying is that it's pretty safe to assume that, for the most part, people coming here illegally from countries that hold a notoriously hostile view of this nation are probably not crossing the borders with the best intentions.
But I'm saying the opposite... The overwhelming majority are not coming with 'bad intentions' and it's totally ridiculous to say so. I live in the UK where I suspect the problem of Afghani and Pakistani immigrants is much more acute given that it's easier to get in here than the US. And Afghanis and Pakistanis both have extremely good reasons to resent Britain! But it's ridiculous to say that the majority of them coming in have bad intentions... The majority are coming in because otherwise they would literally die.
Yes you will hear about hate preachers and British born terrorists, but let me tell you, if the majority of British Pakistanis came with bad intentions on Britain... We'd be pretty fucked. The majority live peaceful lives, send their kids to school, and get on with things. And as far as the illegal immigrants are concerned, if I was born into such a shitty situation as there were, you can guarantee I'd be trying to hope on a truck from Calais as well.
That's presupposing that everyone in the country has the same worldview, which is folly at best and disingenuous at worst.
The US may be far from perfect but I don't doubt for a second that it's better than many places in the world. Now, don't get me wrong, I completely understand that I am young, naive, and lack a full understanding of the effects of immigration to the US. I've always been told that too much immigration causes problems for everyone in the country, and I'm sure that in some ways that must be true. However, I can't bring myself to want to deny immigration rights to anyone wanting to make a better life here. I can't bring myself to feel more entitled to the opportunity to build a career and a life in the US than anyone else that wants to try, especially when I was lucky enough to be born into a better standard of living than a lot of people in the world probably were. The US was built by immigrants, and I'm not sure who has the right to deny people entry into the country. I'm sure it must be done at some point, somehow, but that's a decision I don't think I could ever morally reconcile.
I guess that means I should just stay out of politics.