I don't believe in an open border. I think we should stop illegal immigration if we can, but this is a different issue from the one we've been discussing. Our policy is superior to the European policy in the sense that we are much better at integration. Europeans can't bring themselves to accept the immigrants as being Europeans. It doesn't matter how long you've lived in Europe, you'll still be a European Jew, never a Jewish European. Consider how strange it would be to say things like that in America: American Mexican, for example. We are used to a different approach here, and it is less alienating. This is by no means the whole problem, but it is part of it. The Dutch, for example, could never bring themselves to call their immigrants Dutch, no matter how long they'd been there. But now the enclaves Sookhdeo and Bawer mention are well established and the Muslims are leaning hard against the Dutch. After some well-publicized murders, some new laws have been passed which will restrict future immigration, but they still have the problem of the immigrants they have previously accepted. They don't really know what to do with them. Something like one/third of the native Dutch now want to immigrate to Canada or Australia. Lawrence -----Original Message----- From: lit-ideas-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:lit-ideas-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Andreas Ramos Sent: Monday, March 13, 2006 10:13 PM To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [lit-ideas] US Immigration policies Lawrence writes: > US immigration policies... Really, Lawrence, you Bush-bashers are too much. Picky, picky, picky. Bush is never good enough for you. Can't do anything right. During Bush, immigration enforcement has dropped 98%. This was achieved by defunding, not hiring, reassigned border patrol to other functions, and so on. The Bush White House policy on immigration is summed up in the stirring phrase "Bring'em on!" Anyone who is against an open border is thus a Bush hater. yrs, andreas www.andreas.com ------------------------------------------------------------------ To change your Lit-Ideas settings (subscribe/unsub, vacation on/off, digest on/off), visit www.andreas.com/faq-lit-ideas.html