"A border is a geographic limit on the power of government. A border is not a limit on the rights of people.
"This confusion as to whether it is government or people who have unlimited rights is at the heart of the liberty movement, from its inceptions at least back to the Magna Carta and certainly 18th century England."
~ Keith Weiner, commenting on a misconception of the nature of borders, rights and government
RELATED LINKS:
- The 14 Most Common Arguments against Immigration and Why They’re Wrong
Alex Nowrasteh, CATO INSTITUTE - The Case for Unbounded Immigration
Vinay Kolhatkar, THE SAVVY STREET - Amnesty For Illegal Immigrants Is Not Enough, They Deserve An Apology
Harry Binswanger, FORBES - A Defence of a Policy of Absolutely Open Immigration
Harry Binswanger, BINSWANGER LIST
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4 comments:
Peter there can never be open immigration in a given country until the state welfare and tax systems of that country are dismantled. The latter must happen before the former.
And if we accept your assertion (for it is an assertion, not an argument) then if we understand the role and importance of immigration we should recognise the fundamental importance of opposing the state's welfare and tax systems, rather than (as many who make your assertion do) raining down damnation upon would-be immigrants and their immigration.
Fair comment Peter, I think we can agree that an end to both the welfare state and immigration controls would be the ideal situation.
Peter and Richard - Both of you (and also myself) would like to see an end to the welfare state. But that's unlikely to happen anywhere in the near future. The question then, taking that state of affairs as an unfortunate given; is whether freedom is advanced more by allowing immigrants in, or more by keeping them out. A reasoned debate between freedom advocates can only proceed with that context being recognized, and also taking into account the geopolitical context in terms of threats to each nations security.
The answer will vary in the context of each nation, the security threat it faces, and the cultural background from whence the immigrants come. Immigration that may be perfectly acceptable and right in one context will not be in another - and vice versa. Coming down on either the 'pro' or 'anti' side of this issue is equally invalid in my view without firstly recognizing those ground rules and proceeding from there.
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