The American economy, circa 2006, is not the American economy of 1800, 1900, or even 1980. We are currently exporting the bulk of our low-skilled jobs to other countries, particularly China. Elite and middle-class immigration to the US is not a problem; but is it really a good idea to import millions of unskilled young men to work in the remaining low skilled jobs, especially in highly cyclical industries such as construction? What happens when the boom ends and the jobs disappear? What will be the prospects for their children? Are these young men going to return to their home countries, which have double-digit unemployment and no government benefits? More likely they will demand to be supported by the state, or will turn to crime to survive, or both.
