Immigration, Policy notions

In the 20th century, communication and transport technology reached levels unseen in human history.  One result has been that the movement of peoples, over huge distances, has also reached levels unseen in human history.


But not everywhere.


Western policy-makers faced with an unhappy populace demanding stricter controls might be glad to know that such models needn't necessarily be invented from scratch. Some of our neighbors to the East have been, shall we say, less inclined than us to lift their lamp beside the golden door.  Tour d'horizon:

Immigration, Yesterday

"NORDIC VICTORY IS SEEN IN DRASTIC RESTRICTIONS"

-- Los Angeles Times headline, April 13, 1924


Very high current levels of immigration to the U.S. are lamented by some.  But others point out that in the late 19th century, legions of non-English poured daily onto our shores, aliens to our founding culture, language, principles, religion, and we absorbed millions of them without breaking a sweat.  So what's the problem?


What could possibly go wrong.

Self-control

At first glance, I seem rather peaceable.  No scowl, no growl.  I can smile and exchange pleasantries at the grocery store with the best of them.  

But there is a very dangerous part of me.  A part I sometimes have a hard time controlling.


It's my temper.


The Irish in me, perhaps.  In any case, when it goes off, it goes off.  Look out.  Stand back.  All the anger, the animosity, the raw savagery in me can come out in a heartbeat.  And I can't be held responsible for my actions.  

African History in the U.S.--References

Regarding a request to provide some resources for those interested in the history of Africans in the U.S (North and South) before WWII, we present the following short bibliography, with comments to help guide you to something of possible interest.  


[Links provided where online versions are available.  Online libraries charging a small yearly fee are a treasure trove for such sources; we, for example, highly recommend Questia.]

HISTORY of AFRICANS IN THE U.S.

Crime, Today and Yesterday

Stories of looting leaking out of tornado-stricken Minneapolis recently have brought to light this 2007 article from Minnesota Public News, revealing two salient points about her sister city St. Paul's African-descended population:

     1) 70% of all St. Paul's aggravated assaults the year before were 

          committed by this population, although they make up just 12% of the 

          city's inhabitants.

     2) Surprise is the correct reaction to this.

          Being of passing familiarity with this particular branch of American jurisprudential history, we imagined it of possible historical interest to present excerpts from the aforementioned article, alongside some voices from the past [all emphasis ours; list of works cited follows the text]:

Exceptions

"Your group, left to its own devices, couldn't build or maintain a livable society."

Ouch. 

Hurts to hear.  Could you say it to someone?  Looking them in the eye?  "Your group just isn't equipped by nature with the ability to create a pleasant, safe, modern society.  If you want to live in one, the only way you'll ever be able to is by taking up residence in somebody else's.  If they let you."

Ouch, ouch, ouch.  Could I say it?  Sure.  Eye to eye?  

All I have to do is look in a mirror.

My group can't cut it.  If we were running things, as some wag has gently put it, the human race "would never have left the cave."

Mothers and Welfare: Policy ideas

As we saw in our stroll down Dysgenics lane, there are good reasons a healthy society might want to avoid paying its least productive members to have children while taxing its most productive members to fund them.

Here we pull out our telescope and take a long gaze around the world, to see how other countries (or provinces, or towns) are dealing with the question.

Policy-makers should do the same.

Hope

'Hope springs eternal.'

Truer words were never spoken of the inner workings of the Human Mind.

Polite fictions get us through the day.

'I'm still attracted to my spouse.'

'I enjoy my job.'

'I love all my children equally.'

'I'm special.'

We tell polite fictions to our children.

'With hard work, you can be anything you want to be.'

'You'll find true love.  There's someone for everyone.'

'When you die, you... go to a nice place.'

And so forth.