Comments on: Swamped http://pdberger.com/swamped/ The blog of a British freelance writer living in New York Sun, 12 Oct 2008 17:33:26 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.0.2 by: pdberger http://pdberger.com/swamped/#comment-1629 Tue, 05 Jul 2005 13:41:25 +0000 http://pdberger.com/swamped/#comment-1629 Hmmm. I'm no expert. But from what I have read...just before the election the government refused to "guess" at the number of illegal immigrants because they said it was too difficult to work out! (Obviously they don't want it to look like there are loads of illegal immigrants in the UK just before an election.) Post election they decide they can work out how many illegal immigrants there are---just in time for the big push to get their I.D. card scheme moving again. Do you see a pattern emerging? Meanwhile, UK newspapers love a juicy top line, so they are happy to bandy around the 1 in 100 statistic... I recommend you watch an interesting documentary called Farmingville---about a small American town of 15,000 people just outside New York, which was "invaded" by 1,500 illegal Mexicans (ie 1 in 10 were illegal). It portrays an interesting microcosm of the problems of illegal immigration---both for local residents and the immigrants themselves. The main problem, as I see it, in the UK, Europe, and here, is that history endlessly repeats itself---with immigrants always being seen as the enemy. In actual fact, they are great for the economy!!! Hmmm. I’m no expert. But from what I have read…just before the election the government refused to “guess” at the number of illegal immigrants because they said it was too difficult to work out! (Obviously they don’t want it to look like there are loads of illegal immigrants in the UK just before an election.)

Post election they decide they can work out how many illegal immigrants there are—just in time for the big push to get their I.D. card scheme moving again. Do you see a pattern emerging?

Meanwhile, UK newspapers love a juicy top line, so they are happy to bandy around the 1 in 100 statistic…

I recommend you watch an interesting documentary called Farmingville—about a small American town of 15,000 people just outside New York, which was “invaded” by 1,500 illegal Mexicans (ie 1 in 10 were illegal). It portrays an interesting microcosm of the problems of illegal immigration—both for local residents and the immigrants themselves.

The main problem, as I see it, in the UK, Europe, and here, is that history endlessly repeats itself—with immigrants always being seen as the enemy. In actual fact, they are great for the economy!!!

]]> by: Gavin http://pdberger.com/swamped/#comment-1603 Tue, 05 Jul 2005 07:37:58 +0000 http://pdberger.com/swamped/#comment-1603 The UK is not a very big country, and if the number of illegals is right then so is 1 in 100. Interested to know what you thought would be gained from inflating the figures? The UK is not a very big country, and if the number of illegals is right then so is 1 in 100. Interested to know what you thought would be gained from inflating the figures?

]]> by: pdberger http://pdberger.com/swamped/#comment-1591 Sat, 02 Jul 2005 14:03:59 +0000 http://pdberger.com/swamped/#comment-1591 It is. Somehow, 1 in 100 seems a little high! It is. Somehow, 1 in 100 seems a little high!

]]> by: Gavin http://pdberger.com/swamped/#comment-1590 Sat, 02 Jul 2005 12:18:35 +0000 http://pdberger.com/swamped/#comment-1590 I am not sure why you think this is rubbish? Is it the figures you dispute? I am not sure why you think this is rubbish? Is it the figures you dispute?

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