To The Editor,
Canada opens its borders to waves of immigrants fleeing social injustice, poverty, war and other ills of humankind. Some Canadians are alarmed at the numbers, the skin colour and the foreign cultures. People may complain about government money being “wasted” on non-Canadians and ask, “When will the flow stop?” Aside from the fact that it is against the laws of nature to turn one’s back, cover one’s ears or close one’s eyes to the plight of refugees fleeing for their lives, there are many advantages for welcoming the influx of newcomers who desire to become Canadian.
Most of us folks were bred from ancestors who came from other lands, seeking a better life. Those first generations had it very hard but we who are here now, are proof that the governments of the past knew what they were doing. From a purely economic point of view, it is important to grow our country. We need productive working people to spur innovation as well as man the machinery.
Immigrant children are highly motivated to excel whereas some of us, being many generations removed from our forefathers, may be more likely to coast. After all, this is a welfare society. We expect the government to guarantee us pensions, medical care and basic (employment) insurance.
Those government subsidies which every one of us is entitled to, need to be replenished either by raising taxes or having more people contribute to them. That’s where the More people come in. If we only rely on our moderate to low Canadian birthrate, our children’s children will have few resources available to them as adults.
The More people also add to our way of life with their food, art, music, ideas, etc. Let’s not close our borders to refugees but also, let’s not force immigrant professionals such as doctors, to work as taxi cab drivers. Variety breeds richness and richness benefits us all.
Jerry Boroff, Dalkeith
