Save our jobs.

Wed Feb 27 10:34:33 PST 2002

Somewhat long, sorry.

Danny:
> > > Here in California, we are ALL immigrants.  If I can't make it out here,
> > > I can always go back to the midwest.  I've got a far better deal as a
> > > citizen than those coming over here on H1Bs, and the last thing I want
> > > to do is turn on those even less fortunate than myself.

Leslie:
> > Though I mostly agree with you, California's not *all* first-generation
> > immigrants -- there really are some of us whose family, friends and roots
> > are all here, and in hard times we don't have a cheap farmhouse in Iowa to
> > retreat to.  I'm just sayin'.

Dmitry
> <rant>
> 	I think his point here was that, originally, all of California's residents
> 	were immigrants - the gold rush was just a bit over 150 years ago.
> 	So nobody's roots here are very deep, anyway.
> 	(If you don't count those lucky Indians which weren't killed.)

I have an ancestor who migrated here 5 generations ago (yeah, basically gold
rush), and married an American Indian to begin our family here.  Or, I could
say my ancestors were Indians until someone married a foreigner, at which
point things became mixed.  Either way I've got roots in California. I'm going
to conclude my roots here go back deeper than my roots anywhere else, as I
can't trace my family anywhere else.  The California native members define
what I know of my family.  I have nowhere else to go.  If someone wants to
offer me a support network until I'm on my feet elsewhere, I'll consider it.

The H1-B program is broken, but not in the way people like Guy seem to want
to believe.  People on H1-Bs have been consistently paid less than those
with citizenship, even at the height of the insanity of 99/2000.  If they
started off close, you can bet they didn't get the same yearly raises as
others.  Those getting H1-Bs usually have to sever all ties from their home
country.  They literally show up at the airport with a few dollars, the
shirt on their back, and some vague promise of a better life.  If it works
out, they spend the next 5 years knowing that if they leave the country to
visit family, they might not be allowed back in (some visas allow reentry,
some don't).  The situation is similar to the old idea of indentured servitude.

The problem getting jobs is not because of H1-Bs stealing jobs, or even
of companies giving them preferential treatment.  Just because there's
an obvious target doesn't make the JewsA^H^H^H^HH1-Bs responsible.
Most of them are normal people, hardworking, concerned with family,
just doing what they can to make it all work.

Until people can stop looking for targets to blame and just move on,
things aren't going to get any better, either.  I don't care if it's
people wanting to prove Clinton's economy was a sham, or Bush killed
it, or Terrorists, or H1s or VCs or Programmers trying to be executives
or 20 year old kids thinking they were smarter than experienced vets
or the annoying jerk who cut you off on the freeway.  The annoying
truth is that people overall are more interested in blaming than moving
on with life, and THAT is holding the economy back.

There's a lack of faith in the economy thoughout the culture.  Until we
reach critical mass things will continue to languish.  Some people will
find excuses to continue holding onto their anger even when things are
moving again (things could have moved faster, or they'd be better, etc.).

Sound flaky/foolish/whatever yet?  Well, the real point is that
identifying macro causes and cures, whether valid or not (I happen to
believe there's a lot of truth in my mass psychology argument), is
off topic.  This list needs to focus on what we, within this list,
can do.  Either on our own, or within the scope of a baylisa gathering.
Stop worrying about what's wrong with the world and just look for work.
Anything else you should get some cheese to go with that whine. :)

Now, do any of those who HAVE found work care to share any tips for what's
worked?  I think those out of work already know what hasn't. :rolleyes: