Obama finally does something worthwhile

[Zizou]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-30136245

I think that's very impressive stuff. Totally goes against the grain of what is happening in Britain at the moment.

Maybe immigrants aren't the devil? Thoughts?

[PHOODLE-OUt]

Bypassing congress will defo have repercussions in the future. Will be interesting viewing over the next few months.

[Walter Sobchak]

This country is in denial. Tens of thousands forced to work in exploitative, black market conditions, shops, takes aways etc all dodging tax and NI because of it. There are guys who the Home Office will never remove from the UK, have no intention of removing and who could be contributing, working and paying tax. Instead the Tories have introduced a law which means you can't rent a flat if you haven't got a visa. It won't change anything but will drive people further into exploitation, while removing zero people from the country.

[PHOODLE-OUt]

If you can find a house and find a job, what is the problem with being free to live in any country you want? Borders are just imaginary lines on maps. Surely it would benefit any country, tax wise, for people to be legally working and renting houses? Or am I missing something?

[Zizou]

Totally agree with the last two posts. Surely it makes sense financially to have these people legit and contributing to society?!

It's amazing how much the media have manipulated simpletons into thinking migrants are negative impacts on the country.

26% of doctors in the NHS are foreign ffs.

[Walter Sobchak]

The other one is the destruction to our Higher Education system.

So there are/were thousands of sham colleges, which were unregulated, and had loads of jokers coming in to "study" at, with fraud going on all over the shop. Rather than ban student visas for low level studies, and at pop up colleges, they have made it really difficult for students at any level, and practically impossible for them to stay on after degree. So you can have mathematicians, chemists, engineers, etc who will study here, benefit from that, but not be able to stay on after graduating. If you were a Chinese student with £15,000 a year to spend, would you come here and get slated in the tabloids every week, and not be allowed to stay on afterwards, or just to go the states, or France, or Germany and make your life there? Its utter madness.

[Dexter]

Our media have engrained the vision of immigrants as being Somali/Albanian terrorists who'll hide under your car all De-Niro-Cape-Fearesque.

In Real Life - it's not like that at all.

[Jeff Resnick]

The Americans that I follow on Twitter, that are of a Republican persuasion, are going absolutely ballistic about this. Obama is the devil apparently. Forgetting, of course, that their beloved Reagan (and Bush) also did something similar.

As is typical in times of recession and economic struggles, immigrants are always to blame. This is stoked by nonsense in the media and them pandering to certain groups, eg The Tea Party in the US or UKIP over here. Rather than getting to real issues lets point fingers elsewhere. Bunch of absolute fannies. This divide and blame is more damaging than its good. Unfortunately, people are fundamentally stupid and lap up all this shite.

I'd really like someone to shout loud enough about how having immigration (and emigration for that matter) actually benefits the wider population, rather than the right wing, racist bullshit, that gets trotted out all too often.

[CritchSmile]

Double post.

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oops. deleted my post.

[Zizou]

USA have lifted the embargo on Cuba now and looks to improve its relationship.

Fair play to Obama. Is he pushing this through so his legacy isn't just torture?

[King Kebab]

Has there ever been a US president that you lot haven't moaned about?