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Eric Sowers's avatar

In years past, I would look at Germany and shake my head in amazement at the capacity for a modern nation to self-destruct.

I no longer need look across the Atlantic.

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COL Crockett's avatar

I’m embarrassed at how long it took me to piece this together, but I’ve recently fleshed out my immigration view as follows:

The lynchpin of the USA’s rightfully proud pro-immigration history (melting pot, give me your huddled masses, etc) falls apart given the mature state of today’s “safety net”. In Ellis Island’s heyday, we offered little more to an immigrant than equal(ish) treatment under the law and *a chance to build* a better life. That sales pitch appeals to a certain cohort of people and, even more importantly, aligns incentives once that cohort is boots on ground. Today’s robust suite of social safety net benefits (read: handouts) draws an entirely different cohort of people and, worse, provides zero incentive alignment.

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