The report is a uniquely comprehensive and jargon‐​free (to the extent possible) explanation of U.S. legal immigration. Contrary to public perception, immigrants cannot simply wait and get a green card (permanent residence) after a few years. Legal immigration is less like waiting in line and more like winning the lottery: it happens, but it is so rare that it is irrational to expect it in any individual case.

  • OldWoodFrame@lemm.ee
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    4 months ago

    Full agree on all of this. Reduce red tape and increase legal immigration a lot to free up the system to refocus on actually stopping the people we don’t want.

    Credit to Cato for publishing the truth when really neither party has been up for discussing the nuance on this.

    • Neuromancer@lemm.eeM
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      4 months ago

      Yep. Focus on what we need for immigrants and make it easier for them to come.

      We need people to pick vegetables. Give them a path to come legally.

      Both parties are guilty of making it difficult

      • jimbolauski@lemm.ee
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        4 months ago

        How do we determine what we need. There’s a shortage of legal vegetable pickers but is that due to the wages or small worker pool. Would stopping the illegal hiring practices force wages up and more people would pick vegetables?

          • jimbolauski@lemm.ee
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            4 months ago

            There are many liberals that want to work for a living, I’m sure more of them would pick vegetables if the wages were higher.

            • Neuromancer@lemm.eeM
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              4 months ago

              I can’t see the liberals wanting to pick vegetables at any price. They tend to thumb their noses at physical work.

              • PizzaMan@lemm.ee
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                4 months ago

                If I could, I’d rather making my living gardening.

                But good on you for speaking on behalf of others that you don’t understand in the first place. /s

  • Throwaway@lemm.eeM
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    4 months ago

    We still grant hundreds of thousands of immigrant visas every year. 493,448 were granted in 2022. The problem is simply too many people too quickly.

    • PizzaMan@lemm.ee
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      4 months ago

      Copying and pasting from a previous comment, becuase this is the exact same thing.


      The number of immigrants adding to the population is a drop in the bucket in comparison to how much the baby boomers added to the population.

      The baby boomers added roughly 4.4 million a year, double that of immigrants.

      And then pretty much double it again on the basis of proportion, because the U.S. was far smaller in population during the baby boomers explosion.

      The baby boomers had to grow up before they could provide themselves, needing roughly 15 years before they could begin to provide for themselves. Immigrants on the other hand are typically adults, or families with parents already providing for their children.

      If we could handle an explosion of population of baby boomers, we can handle the comparatively much smaller, much more able bodied and self providing immigrants.

      And the already manageable numbers will die down again soon provided we stop raping central and latin america. The U.S. played a huge part in causing this issue. It’s only fair that we play part in handling the fallout.

      So no, it’s not too many people.

      • Throwaway@lemm.eeM
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        4 months ago

        That was during the biggest economic boom in American history, and we are suffering from their impact today

        • PizzaMan@lemm.ee
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          4 months ago

          That was during the biggest economic boom in American history

          And the only thing stopping us from having that economic security again is neoliberalism/conservatism.

          we are suffering from their impact today

          Only because they are hoarding their wealth and power, not because there is too many people that showed up too quickly.