Let's look at one extreme end of the
immigration possibilities: Let's say every disenchanted citizen of
every foreign country is free to immigrate into the US. Imagine for a
minute that the first step in this unlimited immigration is that half
the people in the non English speaking world possessing at least
$2,000 per person travel to the United States. In this case, 10% of
the world's population comes to America (600 million people),
tripling the US population to a total of 900 million.
How would 600 million new immigrants
travel to America? Airline travel would amount to this: With an
average commercial airliner capacity of 300 people, 2 million airline
round trips would be required (but only inbound flights would have
passengers). One hundred jumbo airliners would be busy for 20,000
days, or 60 years. Smaller aircraft could be pressed into service,
theoretically cutting the required time in half. 30 years. Wow!
Where would the new (60,000 per day)
immigrants sleep? At hotels? In the US, there are about 4 million
hotel rooms, but only about one million could be accessed by arriving
travelers. That boils down to a few weeks' stay before permanent
housing would have to be arranged. Can we build 30,000 homes or
apartments for couples or for 60,000 singles every day? In recent
years, production of towable RVs (an established industry) has been
about 20,000 units per year. Manufactured home production has been
approximately 70,000 units per year, and new housing starts average
1.2 million each year. The current housing construction rate would
have to increase by about 1300% in order to meet the influx, because
the present capacity to provide that many new homes is woefully
insufficient.
What would the immigrants eat? Could
the US increase food production tenfold within a 30 year period?
Sounds like a big task for the agricultural and dairy industry.
Fortunately, tripling the population
would also dramatically and quickly ratchet up the job market. More
builders, more farmers, and more of every skill and trade would be
necessary. Demand for raw materials and factories would increase.
Commerce would flourish. New cities would spring up. America would
need more of everything.
What about the other five billion
people who wish they could live in America? We're not going there,
because lots of other circumstances would have to be addressed.
So, would America be better off with
triple the population? Here's the answer: Maybe. Everything depends
on whether or not individuals fulfill their responsibilities to
assimilate into the US culture of useful hard work, competition, and
rule of law. Would current US citizens object to
increased commerce and competition? Some would. Some would welcome new workers
and entrepreneurs and new ideas. Some Americans would resent green
card holders who “take away jobs,” but others would work smarter
and make lemonade out of the circumstances.
9 comments:
This goofy idea would exacerbate the stress on the Constitution when enforced by an administration that hates the idea of having rules.
Well, the airlines would be happy. I think you underestimated the ability of newcomers to find food and shelter in a timely way. Definitely risky.
There would be lots of unhappy foreigners who don't have money for a plane ticket.
Could Canada host the 600 million? Australia? Germany? Come on!
Russia. They have half as many people and almost twice as much land as the U.S. What's wrong with 600 million people emigrating to Russia?
You missed it.
The catch is, of course, if they assimilated, learned and accepted OUR culture, obeyed laws, etc.
Recent experience demonstrates many (too many) would not but would join the emerging majority of recent immigrants who tend to vote for liberal politicians who are hell-bent on transforming our nation to resemble the countries they left.
Why not try assimilating the immigrants you've got now?
Gotta inculcate the multiculturalists first, pal. Good luck doing what Europe can't do. Check Japan and Australia for perspective.
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