Farmers demand immigration reform … and not in the way people think.

I do not know many farmers. Not any more, any way. I spent many summers on my grandfather’s farm in southeast Nebraska. In the days of my youth I knew plenty of farmers. All of my grandfather’s neighbors were farmers. Regardless of the fact that I may not be in touch with many farmers today, the spirit of farming remains within me.

Farming is hard business, and not just because the hours are long, and the work grueling, but also because the amount of effort required to eek out a living is extraordinary. Every cost saving measure is critical just to stay in business, let alone remain competitive.

Farmers need labor. Let the market determine the wages. That is how Free Market economies work, let the market set the cost of labor.

“Will you work for a $1 a day?”
”No.”
”Will you work for $2 a day?”
”No.”
”Will you work for $1 per hour?”
”Hmmmm… okay.”
”Deal!”

Then, if someone comes along and says, “I’ll work for 50 cents an hour,” what are you going to do? All things being equal, if  you see yourself maximizing your profits without a loss of quality or production, I would guess that the new wage will be $0.50 an hour.

Free Market.

Now, you want to go about tampering with wages to make sure Life is Fair, then you are dealing with something other than a Free Market economy, perhaps State Capitalism. With State Capitalism, the government exerts control over many of the aspects of the economy.

I like the statement, “Democratic leaders are weighing how many votes they win by doing immigration reform and how many votes they lose by doing immigration reform.” [Mark Rosenblum]

I like the controversy because this is politics, in a nutshell – screw what is best for the people, in this case, farmers – how can I keep myself in office? Politics in the USA has come to keeping ourselves in office, our party in power, not working for the people of the United States.

Let’s forget for a moment the fact our country was founded upon immigration. Immigration helps us in a variety of ways. Obviously, we need the help in agriculture. Immigrants are not stealing U.S. jobs; stating such exemplifies is ignorant. Immigration transfers needed to skills to people that would otherwise not achieve those skills in their home country. Immigration helps provide income to families in their home country. Immigration loosens the cultural fears ignorant people have; we learn about them, they learn about us.

If the United States had maintained possession of the territory captured in the War with Mexico we wouldn’t even be having this argument.

And, finally, who can we blame for this debacle? The railroad, .. Texas, of course. The best plan for a southern rail system lay across the barren wasteland of northern Mexico. Texas, aka The Republic of Texas, was not strong enough to defend itself against the likes of Poncho Villa. Thus, the Texans enlisted the aid of the U.S. government to aid in their war.

And so it goes.