Russell Saltzman on Immigration. Again.

In last weeks On the Square column Russelll Saltzman provoked the ire of many readers with his One Thousand Five-Hundred or So Uninformed Words on U.S. Immigration Policy . Today, he offers One Thousand Two Hundred Or So Winsomely Forceful New Words on Immigration to clarify and defend his immigration policy:

My immigration policy: Let ‘em all in. That didn’t win me many friends either. But there you go; I was trying out that winsomely forceful thing again. I did allow as how that likely makes for poor public policy. Would anyone think otherwise? At the same time, keep in mind we are a nation instinctively friendly to immigrants. Should anyone wish otherwise? As first instincts go, rubbing against realities that properly suggest something more prudent, it is not a bad one.

That is what first instincts are good for. This is what we aim at, what we try to achieve with public policies that are fair, equitable, and above all understandable. What function did my essay have other than to throw “distracting flack” into an important discussion? I had hoped it would put the real issues in relief, invoking stories of real people in real situations.