I have no issue with people from other cultures living in the USA and emigrating to the USA. Personally, I'm a Canadian, having emigrated from England.

However, I consider myself CANADIAN. I am not English-Canadian.

These immigrants should consider themselves AMERICAN, not Italian-American, Russian-American, Mexican-American. It's interesting how the politically correct terminology is to put country of origin first and America second.

I have no problem with immigrants - just follow the law, bring your culture with you but call yourselves AMERICANS, Canadians, or whatever (you shouldn't have divided loyalties), and emigrate the the country of your choice legally.

If you emigrate illegally, and don't assimilate into the culture and laws of the country you chose, then expect to be kicked out and sent home.

This is a sweet post -- I wish more people were able to move in the world as schrodingers dog does.

There's a disease in American society, and it's called xenophobia. Xenophobia isn't racism, even though the two are being conflated currently.

Xenophobia is a fear of the different; its tendency is a basic human instinct, varying amongst personality types. Its amplification, redirection, and exploitation are social and cultural phenomena -- such as is currently happening in vulgar political discourse.

Obviously the OP is predisposed to immunity against such hate traps. Maybe there's hope that wider humanity can find better things to be scared about than people who are different and the fact that we share the same world.

Xenophobic fears are about control. Lack of understanding implies lack of control. If you don't understand someone then you cannot completely predict and control how interaction will occur. For many, this is a source of fear. For those who would assert power over others, it is a lever of fear that they can pull to manipulate.

But for many our differences, coupled with transcendence of the need to have everything 'our way', open up a vista of spontaneous and beautiful possibility. It's probably still a long way away, but I like the idea that the world can be more like that.

I agree. I live in the metropolitan area and the diversity is what keeps me here, that and my family. Last weekend I was in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn for the first time. I expected it to be like any other part of Brooklyn, but to my surprise, people were really friendly and up for conversation.

Originally posted by schrodingers dog
Just some random thoughts ...

So a fellow ATS member and myself are in the midst of spending the weekend in NYC and I thought I would share a few thoughts which crossed my mind as we were driving and walking around the last couple of days.

Keep in mind that although I currently reside in DC, I've spent a third of my life living in NYC ... yet at the time I wasn't an ATS member so my experience whilst living in the city wasn't related to the topics discussed here. Life was just "real life" and was lived/observed through the eyes of a person simply living it without much thought or regard for "conspiratorial/alternative" considerations.

So as we've been making our way around the city through the weekend I was once more reminded of what makes NYC such an extraordinary place ...

We drove through Cuban and Korean neighborhoods in Jersey, Astoria (Greek hood in Queens), what's left of Little Italy, Chinatown, Little Korea, Harlem, and Spanish Harlem ... though we didn't go there on this trip there is Brighton Beach (Russian hood), Jewish neighborhoods, Muslim, Puerto/Newyorican, Syrian Jewish, and so many other ethnic neighborhoods. They all manage to live together in the same city. They manage to communicate even though many don't speak english ... and yet somehow the whole thing seems to work.

And as we were soaking all that in, my mind drifted back to ATS, and the nature and tone that so many of the recent conversations on immigration have unfolded here. With so much anger, vitriol, and yes n some cases, even bigotry. And the whole thing seemed so far removed from the extraordinary realities and virtues of this grand city.

I moved away from NYC for many reasons and haven't given it a second thought or regretted it since ... but this element is the one that I miss. I realize that many don't like NYC, it isn't for everyone for the city has many problems and in many ways is an ordeal. But not this element of it.

Please note that with the above thoughts I am not suggesting that immigration isn't an issue in the United States. It is one that I for one am not smart enough to claim a solution to.

But there's something just so damn beautiful about being surrounded by countless cultures, languages, religions, sexual preferences, skin tones ... just regular people living their lives and interacting with one another, and none of them really care what the "official" language is.

Anyhoot, just thought I'd share these random thoughts while still fresh in my mind ... I hope you will forgive me the indulgence.

Agree totally, I love visiting NYC especially in the cold January / February time, walking through Manhattan with the steam coming up through the street pipes, snow poughs working the streets, apartment doorman shovelling the footpaths. A real pot purri of ethnic authenticity and accepted convergance. As an Aussie living for many years in South East Asia and married to a Chinese I obviously accept a multi cultural society and my children are of the same ilk. Whilst in Asia we have cultural convergance it is not to the extent that you see in the large US cities like NYC. I think it is a unique model in NYC and with all the rhetoric that extends through the media, I agree that when you visit the Big Apple you see in reality that it works, however random it is, it works and it is what makes NYC a fantastic city to live in and visit.

All I gotta say S-Dog is better you than I.. I hope you're enjoying the city as New York is a far batter place to visit than it is to live in, but you know that from the back and forth we've had

I try to stay away from all the touristy stuff and look deeper into a place and it's history, the New York City experience should NOT be limited to just NYC itself but up into Westchester as well if you really want ot have a good time. Yonkers has a lot of history, White Plains, SleepyHollow/Tarrytown (although better around Halloween), and a lot of other really small villages around and up the route 9 corridor that are just a lot of fun to travel though and stop and take in the view.

But I will never step foot in that state as long as I shall live, but that's personally motivated, not because it's not rich in historical value.