Being offended.

Me, me me. I can answer this one. Having more children than you can afford to feed and educate. That's about it.The US also has that problem.It really is easy. If you can't feed them, don't breed them. Simpsons expression. Duh!Edited by Pressie, : No reason given.

No. We can afford to feed and educate our children. It's just that, instead, we choose, consciously, deliberately, to give our nation's wealth to the already mega-rich instead of funding food and education programs.I suppose it's the same thing happening in our neighbors to the south. But they've been doing that for centuries while we're relatively new at this. Our broader society is still quite wealthy compared to others. We haven't totally fixed that defect (non-elite having some actual economic means) ... yet ... but our mega-wealthy are diligently working at it.

Gosh, and here I expected a reasonable thoughtful assessment of the philosophical underpinnings of the society that discourages individual enterprise, or fails to provide employment opportunities at a living wage, and keeps people locked into a poverty mentality or something along those lines. The US? Our birth rate has fallen way low recently, how could you say such a thing? If we go Third World, which may very well happen, it will be because of the destructive Leftist ideology that encourages a dependent entitlement mentality and deprives people of incentive and/or opportunity to change their lot and contribute to society.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.

Of course one could argue that if we keep our birthrate low and encourage incentive and opportunity to improve, the rest of the nations will simply feel as if they have a right to share in that pie that WE baked. That's one thing that causes wars, among others. The poor you will always have with you. Its part of the Original Struggle. Only in utopia can everyone get fed and become happy. The free enterprise system would never work globally. There always has to be the poor. And that is why we will never make it without Gods help.

Try telling that to the world. They would resent mandatory birth control. They would resent a lot of things. Think of the seeds of global conflict, for that is one way to prevent it---to see it coming and to act on it. Trump's wall is symbolic and at best a temporary bandaid for a much bigger problem.

It's because our birthrate is low that we need immigration. "We" didn't bake the pie. Our grandparents did - and they were immigrants. As I've told you before, you're misinterpreting that scripture. There will always be poor people because somebody is always losing his job at Safeway - but he eventually finds another job and somebody else becomes poor.And of course, there never was any "Original Stuggle" except in the minds of people who espouse a puny god.

Not to change the topic, but given Trump's wall-based shutdown I just wanted to interject that this is why we need to increase immigration.--Percy

And don't forget Faith...both you and I need our social security. We need workers to pay into that system.

How about LEGAL workers, what's wrong with that?

Nobody is objecting to LEGAL immigration where we get to weed out the criminals and choose good workers, and require them to learn English and the basics of American institutions. The requirements for legal entry into the country used to include having a clear means of support also. Now they come in needing free stuff from us, stuff that rightfully belongs to American citizens not foreigners.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.

There are quite a few right wingers who are against legal immigration. Stephen Miller, a top White House aide, is probably the most influential. But plenty of white supremacists agree.

Yes, Faith, legal immigration - that's obviously what is meant. Clearly you're not reading the longer replies to you (is more than one line too long?) or your memory is seriously failing you. Over and over again people, including me, have pointed out to you that they're not in favor of illegal immigration, but that they are strongly against cruel and antagonistic treatment of illegal immigrants and asylum seekers. Please stop interpreting opposition to cruelty as advocacy for illegal immigration.When you replied that no one is objecting to legal immigration in reply to my call for increased immigration, does that mean you have no objections to increasing immigration limits, say from its current 1.18 million to around 1.5 million? Any random group of people will be a bell shaped curve ranging from poor workers to excellent. Just as most companies hiring processes are unable to detect a priori good workers from bad unless some previous employer provides a negative recommendation, the immigration service can do no better. I think you're confusing citizenship with immigration. And even citizenship doesn't require a knowledge of English if you're over 50. Being able and willing to work is a clear means of support. Interesting that if you were a foreigner you wouldn't qualify under your own rules. Now you're just making stuff up again. Immigrants, including illegal immigrants, are a significant net contributor to our GDP.--Percy

Actually, the US teen birth rate was 53 births per 1,000 women aged 15—19 in 2002, the highest in the developed world. Those teen mothers grew older and now their children are having children now. Maybe that's part of your problem?Edited by Pressie, : No reason given.Edited by Pressie, : No reason given.

We certainly have problems and single parenting is certainly a cause of economic problems for us which may eventually contribute to bringing us down to Third World status, but I was asking about the entrenched poverty in the nations of Central and South America that drive people to the US. Their form of government or something in the cultural mindset is what I am thinking of.

Evidence please. You have no evidence for this either I assume. It is just random shit flowing out of your brain. You may want to actually study the history of these countries. Focus on the US intervention and US corporate policies. If you were not so blind to facts and evidence you would see that the good ole USA bears much responsibility for the poverty and chaos in thos nations.