It's really hard to move here. I know, I've been through the system. It took almost a year. If we wanted to stay permanently, it would take approximatly 10 years. We were forced to stand in 80 degree heat for almost three hours outside an embassy. Several people in line were elderly, one woman was pregnant. We were all moving for different reasons, but for the most part people from Europe come here to fill jobs that Americans cannot do. That is part of the visa criteria. That's why I don't work here, an MA is insufficient qualification for me to have independent visa status without someone specifically requesting me to work. America's immigration policy is amazingly unreasonable and one of the most strigent in the world.
The temporary work visas already exist. That's what Teabringer's visa is. I am classed as a 'dependent', have you any idea how galling that is? Have you any clue at all how difficult it is for me to turn down pay for work? We are here because no American can do the work my husband is doing. I will not be staying. America stands for many great things, but when it comes to sharing those things with the world something seems to go astray.
The hispanic people come here because it's their best option. Europe has similar problems coming over it's boarders from Korea and the middle east. Britian is doing some horrible things to its immigrants at the moment. But at least there I can do something to change it.
These people form 3.5% of the population of the US. The unemployemnt rate is currently 6%. You could send them away and your unemployment rate would drop, right? Great! Wrong.
These people are doing jobs anyone can do. But they're doing them for wages most people wouldn't accept. They're doing this to survive. They come here to risk the free market, and in doing that actually free the market further, in coporate terms. But they pay no taxes, make no insurance contributions and do not contribute to medicare. These people are some of the poorest in the country. They have no spare money, they have poor housing, poor healthcare and are most at risk of disease and social exclusion. In not paying for medicare, they are not entitled to it. That means that the sick are left to get sicker. America has some of the poorest poor people in the first world. Don't believe me? Cheak out the WHO.
In not paying taxes they're not helping to make the country a better and safer place to live. Give them visas. Make the coporations pay proper wages, then these people can have incomes and medicare and imporve the lot of the poorest poor. Give them wages so they can pay taxes and contribute to the country. Let your market work properly. They won't even get a vote with a working visa, damnit! You can only win from giving these people what they want. Hell it might even make this country a nicer place to live (oh, sorry, it's perfect already...right?).
People are people. It annoys me that they have to demonstrate to be allowed to pay taxes. It annoys me that the immigration policy here is so insane that to get in requires more than a year of paperwork. It annoys me most that these people still have to move illegally to stand a chance of surviving. Hell's teeth, let them do something, you can set the criteria!
I am annoyed.
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