[dd74]

Germany's model that you suggest is based on, to a degree, guilt. Already responsible for genocide in the 30s and 40s, they suffer a hands-off cultural response to immigrants as the country is afraid of slipping back into its dark ages of the early 20th Century. This is not to say there are no economic implications that have evolved from Germany's sense that it should be tolerant of any and all, even as that any and all take advantage of Germany's social system.

Britain might suffer the same plight as they increasingly feel guilty for 19th century Imperialism and other ethnic slaughters that date back to when maps were etched into deer's skin.

The U.S. should not feel guilty as we once did openly admit immigrants into this country. However, the main difference between Germany and Britain and the U.S. is the first two countries are very old and very slow to advance. The U.S., on the other hand, is still young (compared to others), and advances with extreme quickness. What was true in the time of Ellis Island welcoming Europeans in the early 20th Century, does not hold water now; the U.S. and its economy has radically changed since then; and it is disingenuous for today's illegal immigrant to demand amnesty based on that time.

Beyond the fact that illegals make up an enormous portion of the economy; that their importance can't be just ignored or that they should be booted from the U.S., is another argument that has complexities beyond any of the "Damn Mexicans!" arguments that has been going on in OT. It's really not that easy to sort out what to do about them. Amnesty won't work, nor will deportation.

What's clear to me, though, is the immigrant problem in Europe evolves from a much different source than ours. Britain, France and Germany all have cultural/expansionism issues at hand with their immigrant problems. The U.S. has been culturally tolerant on many levels, and aside from our little predicaments in Korea, Vietnam and now Iraq, we have not colonialized other countries or people.

It's the money that drives the illegals here, and the money that keeps them from adapting to our ways of, to an extent, speak English, and adapt other portions of our culture to its fullest, aside from sucking off its resources. Also, about money, one should note that every form of big business known in the U.S. caters to illegals in their own language (mostly Spanish), so why should they feel a need to be true Americans?

In all honesty, we owe them nothing. Unlike Britain who believes it owes something to Pakistan or India, and in return, contends with such a stifling influence of both countries in (for example) London, London is now barely known to be a shadow of itself, we, on the other hand, never colonialized Mexico, or tried to bring Mexico under some kind of imperialistic rule.