It has been a long time since my last post. Finally, I have reached the point when I am so fed up, so sick and tired of an issue that I feel compelled to vent, to post on my blog.
What got me going is the incessant chatter and inane actions to address the so-called migrant issue. All of Europe is abuzz about it and now the US is similarly engaged in harmful, venomous rhetoric.
Are there effective solutions to the problem nearly everyone is aware of? If so, why don't they come up, why aren't they being implemented?
There are two kinds of migrants and migrations: economic and martial (war related) and thus there are two kinds of solutions that need to be applied.
The solution to migration from war-torn countries is to stop bombing and to start rebuilding. It is not hard to understand that if your home, business or workplace is leveled by bombs, you would sooner or later decide to move on. The countries that took part in such military intervention need to take the lead in cease-fire negotiations and the rebuilding, with contributions from countries most affected by migration. It would cost significantly less than having to support the migrants at their destination.
Economic migration is caused by the developed world's zero- or low-interest rate policies, the unintended consequence of which was to export inflation to the developing countries. There, the cost of basic staples has risen to the level where most people are unable to afford them. Faced with the same circumstances, you would want to emigrate too! This has deepened the famine in Africa, reduced living standards in Latin America, brought about the riots of the Arab Spring and widened the economic gap between developed and developing countries. Creating wealth from the misery of others is unsustainable. The solution is for the developed world to provide economic aid (not money, primarily, but education, systems, and opportunities) to developing countries. This would also cost less than having to support the migrants in the developed world.
Yes, the migrants are different from us. They do not know which fork to use with their salad. They do not have forks where they come from, often no dining table or dining room either and many have never eaten a salad. This does not mean that they are not human, that they cannot learn. We have nothing to gain by calling them uncivilized or barbaric but a lot by understanding and compassion. If we don't want them here, then we must create circumstances there that would cause them to want to remain.
