93 "Immigration not the only way to counter our ageing population"

Re item 1 "Immigration not the only way to counter our ageing population":

Allowing Voluntary Euthenasia will lessen the ageing of the population, the burden on younger workers, and the need for immigration.

People are being kept alive longer by medical intervention. It's fine when the quality of life is good, but cruel once it deteriorates too much.

I myself am resolved to "pull the plug" rather than enter a nursing home. Each person should be able to make his or her own decision about that, unpressured. It would be nice to be able to do it not furtively but legally; I envisage holding a farewell party beforehand.

How terrible to force people to stage a single-vehicle accident, when all they want to do is say goodbye.

Dying is a way of moving over to allow room for younger generations to grow and flourish; as a giant tree in a forest, once fallen, allows a rush of new growth "like the hairs on a cat's back".

Immigration should not be racially based, but nor should there be "Open Borders". Present policies are promoting a displacement of the existing population.

(1) Immigration not the only way to counter our ageing population
(2) Softer immigration laws blamed for surge in Asylum-Seekers
(3) Open Borders lobby blames Obama for enforcement programs against illegals
(4) Mexico's health care lures Americans
(5) Health Bill "no enforcement mechanism to prevent illegal alienss from benefitting"
(6) Jobs Americans Don’t Do? Immigration and the U.S. Labor Force
(7) Australian Employers no longer allowed to pay  pay overseas workers less than locals
(8) Deceptive “Made in Australia” Labelling is costing Australian Jobs

(1) Immigration not the only way to counter our ageing population

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,26094577-5013871,00.html

Stephen Lunn, Social affairs writer | September 19, 2009

THE Rudd government should be wary about using high levels of immigration in coming decades as a means to counteract the decline in productivity resulting from an ageing population because more over-55s are staying on in their jobs, a population expert warns.

Monash University demographer Bob Birrell said Treasury's new population estimate for Australia -- 35 million by 2050 -- was based on immigration levels of about 180,000 a year, a rate that may not be necessary to keep the economy running and will be difficult to provide for in terms of urban infrastructure and services.

"The government seems to have bought the argument that business in Australia needs a high amount of labour force growth to keep it going in the future. The rest of us are going to have to bear the consequences of that," Professor Birrell said yesterday.

"The government doesn't seem prepared to explore how we need to make social adjustments; rather, they are relying on the prop of bringing in more people of younger ages to essentially put all the older people to bed."

In a speech yesterday to launch the new Australian Institute for Population Ageing Research at the University of NSW, Wayne Swan noted the previous estimate of Australia's future population contained in the last intergenerational report in 2007 -- 28.5 million by 2047 -- was likely to be well short of the mark.

"Australia's population is projected to grow by 65per cent to reach over 35 million in 2049, up from around 21.5 million people now," Mr Swan said.

"This ... is largely driven by a greater number of women of childbearing age, higher fertility rates and increased net overseas migration."

Mr Swan said while the number of people of working age would grow by 45 per cent over the next 40 years, those aged 65-84 would double and those 85 and older would increase by 4.5 times.

"Population ageing will lead to slower economic growth ... and it will lead to increasing levels of Australian government spending per person. Together these factors will contribute to significant ongoing financial pressures," the Treasurer said.

Professor Birrell said research at his Centre for Population and Urban Research earlier this year showed older workers, those aged 55-plus, were tending to stay on in the workforce longer than anticipated. With sustained high levels of immigration added into the workforce mix, the employment prospects of younger Australians were being compromised.

Australian National University demographer Peter McDonald said the recent increase in the birthrate in Australia, up from 1.79 to 1.93 in the past two years, was encouraging.

"The lower the birthrate, the more migrants you need," Professor McDonald said. "If we had birthrates like those in Germany or Italy we would need to look at greater numbers of migrants."

(2) Softer immigration laws blamed for surge in Asylum-Seekers

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/09/16/2687672.htm

Softer immigration laws blamed

Posted September 16, 2009 12:43:00

WA's Liberal Premier, Colin Barnett, has blamed the spike in asylum seeker boats arriving in Australia on softer federal immigration laws.

The Rudd Government dismantled several widely criticised elements of the Howard Government's immigration policy which were designed to deter unauthorised arrivals.

The latest was intercepted last night, 420-kilometres north of Broome, carrying 58 people.

The increased number of boats being intercepted in Australian waters, including 4 over a 2 week period, has prompted renewed debate about the effects of the changes.

Mr Barnett told Fairfax Radio the laws are not tough enough.

"Those seeking asylum and those who run this trafficking in people basically are aware that there have been some policy changes at a federal level and if you can get onto mainland Australia, you basically get into the Australian legal system."

(3) Open Borders lobby blames Obama for enforcement programs against illegals

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-obama-immigration22-2009aug22,0,1226861.story

White House moves to placate immigration reform advocates

A surprise appearance by President Obama at a meeting this week helps pacify some, but calls for action rather than oratory continue.

By Teresa Watanabe

August 22, 2009

Immigrant rights activists said Friday that a White House meeting this week to reaffirm support for immigration reform -- featuring a surprise appearance by President Obama -- had helped mollify growing frustration over what some perceived as backpedaling on reform promises.

But many said that action will be needed to keep the faith among immigrants and their supporters, particularly Latinos who turned out in record numbers to help elect Obama last year.

"We've heard all of the beautiful oratory about immigration reform, but we have yet to see concrete actions to stop the suffering," said Angelica Salas, director of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles.

Many give credit to the Obama administration for ending residential raids on illegal immigrants and improving conditions in detention centers. But Salas and others said dismay has mounted among immigrant advocates that reform has not moved forward and that the Obama administration has continued and even expanded controversial enforcement programs, such as those that track down illegal immigrants at worksites and in jails, and that authorize state and local police to enforce immigration law.

In addition, some advocates interpreted recent speeches by Obama in Mexico and Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano in Texas as downplaying immigration reform.

A Homeland Security spokesman declined to comment on the frustration. In a statement, Napolitano said the meeting was "an important opportunity" to hear from those involved in the immigration debate.

At the White House meeting Thursday, both Obama and Napolitano reaffirmed their support for immigration reform to more than 100 representatives from labor, business, law enforcement, religious organizations and immigrant rights groups. The assembly broke into smaller groups to share ideas about how to address the main pieces of a comprehensive reform package: enforcement, guest workers, family visas and legalization of the nation's estimated 11 million illegal immigrants.

In a teleconference call Friday, several attendants expressed satisfaction with the meeting as a good step forward.

Eun Sook Lee of the National Korean American Service & Educational Consortium in Los Angeles said she raised concerns about the continuing deportations of young people who could be eligible for legalization if Congress passed the so-called Dream Act granting that right to those bound for college or the military. White House officials said they would look into the issue, she said. ...

(4) Mexico's health care lures Americans

From: ummyakoub <ummyakoub@yahoo.com>  Date: 03.09.2009 10:34 AM

By Chris Hawley

USA TODAY

MEXICO CITY — It sounds almost too good to be true: a health care plan with no limits, no deductibles, free medicines, tests, X-rays, eyeglasses, even dental work — all for a flat fee of $250 or less a year.

To get it, you just have to move to Mexico.

As the United States debates an overhaul of its health care system, thousands of American retirees in Mexico have quietly found a solution of their own, signing up for the health care plan run by the Mexican Social Security Institute.

The system has flaws, the facilities aren't cutting-edge, and the deal may not last long because the Mexican government said in a recent report that it is "notorious" for losing money. But for now, retirees say they're getting a bargain.

"It was one of the primary reasons I moved here," said Judy Harvey of Prescott Valley, who now lives in Alamos, Sonora. "I couldn't afford health care in the United States. … To me, this is the best system that there is."

It's unclear how many Americans use IMSS, but with between 40,000 and 80,000 U.S. retirees living in Mexico, the number probably runs "well into the thousands," said David Warner, a public policy professor at the University of Texas.

"They take very good care of us," said Jessica Moyal, 59, of Hollywood, Fla., who now lives in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, a popular retirement enclave for Americans.

The IMSS plan is primarily designed to support Mexican taxpayers who have been paying into the system for decades, and officials say they don't want to be overrun by bargain-hunting foreigners.

"If they started flooding down here for this, it wouldn't be sustainable," said Javier Lopez Ortiz, IMSS director in San Miguel de Allende.

Pre-existing conditions aren't covered for the first two years, and some newer medicines and implants are not free. IMSS hospitals don't have frills such as televisions or in-room phones, and they often require patients to bring family members to help with bathing and other non-medical tasks. Most doctors and nurses speak only Spanish, and Mexico's overloaded court system doesn't provide much recourse if something goes wrong.

But the medical care doesn't cost a dime after paying the annual fee, and it is usually good, retirees and health experts say. Warner said most American retirees enroll in IMSS as a form of cheap insurance against medical emergencies, while using private doctors or traveling back to the USA for less urgent care. Medicare, the U.S. insurance plan for retirees, cannot be used outside the United States. ...

(5) Health Bill "no enforcement mechanism to prevent illegal alienss from benefitting"

http://cis.org/feere/healthcare

Does the Health Care Bill Bar Illegal Aliens from Taxpayer Funds? Not Really

By Jon Feere, August 21, 2009

A List of Related Publications

As members of Congress get an earful from their constituents on the proposed health care overhaul, one topic is becoming front and center: immigration. How the legislation addresses both legal and illegal immigration will have a significant effect on public support, but as of this writing, the 1,000-page health care bill only includes a few, ambiguous and entirely inadequate clauses on immigration.

Supporters of the bill claim that it would not benefit illegal aliens, something emphasized just yesterday by President Obama. But the bill gives no direction on how administrators should determine whether an individual is a qualified recipient or an unqualified illegal alien. In fact, lawmakers have blocked language specifically designed to ensure illegal aliens could not access the proposed health care system.

Unless changes are made, some percentage of illegal aliens will likely receive taxpayer-subsidized benefits under the proposed health care legislation.

As one out of every three uninsured persons in the United States is an immigrant (legal or illegal) or the U.S.-born child of an immigrant, the issue must be addressed sooner rather than later.

No enforcement mechanism to prevent illegal aliens from benefitting. In attempting to avoid a debate on immigration, President Obama claims that illegal aliens will not benefit under the proposed health care legislation. Even the immigration-enthusiastic Los Angeles Times editorial board is squeamish about extending health benefits to illegal aliens in this bill:

    "[T]he prospect of subsidized health benefits would raise the incentive for illegal border crossings. That's one reason insurance coverage for illegal immigrants should be addressed in the context of comprehensive immigration reform, not an overhaul of the healthcare system. Here's another reason: The healthcare debate has already become so politicized, it's well-nigh impossible to have a rational discussion of the problems and solutions. The economic and public-health effects of extending coverage to noncitizens are worth exploring, but not at the expense of reforms that are vital to millions of Americans."

On its face, the proposed health care bill seems to deny benefits to illegal aliens:

    "Nothing in this subtitle shall allow Federal payments for affordability credits on behalf of individuals who are not lawfully present in the United States." (See Section 246.)

But this language does not provide any mechanism to ensure illegal aliens will actually be prevented from accessing the system. ...

(6) Jobs Americans Don’t Do? Immigration and the U.S. Labor Force

Immigration and the U.S. Labor Force: Two New Studies Examine Economics of Immigration

http://cis.org/Announcement/UnemploymentNumbers2009

WASHINGTON (August 17, 2009) – The two reports released today by the Center for Immigration Studies provide detailed information on the U.S. labor force. The first, entitled “Jobs Americans Don’t Do?,” provides a detailed look at the concentration of immigrants across the 465 occupations that comprise the U.S.-labor market. The second report, entitled “Worse Than It Seems,” examines the broader measure of unemployment, referred to by the government as U-6, which includes the unemployed and people who would like to work but have not looked for a job recently, as well as those working part-time who want full-time work.

Among the findings:

    * Of the 465 civilian occupations, only four are majority immigrant. These four occupations account for less than one percent of the total U.S. workforce. Moreover, even in these four occupations, native-born Americans comprise 47% of workers.

    * Many jobs often thought to be overwhelmingly immigrant are in fact majority native-born:

          o Maids and housekeepers: 55 percent native-born.
          o Taxi drivers and chauffeurs: 58 percent native-born.
          o Butchers and meat processors: 63 percent native-born.
          o Grounds maintenance workers: 65 percent native-born.
          o Construction laborers: 65 percent native-born.
          o Porters, bellhops and concierges: 71 percent native-born.
          o Janitors: 75 percent native-born.

    * Immigrants tend to be concentrated in occupations that are primarily, but not exclusively, lower wage jobs that require relatively little formal education.

    * In June 2009, the official unemployment rate for native-born Americans was 9.7 percent, but the broader U-6 measure was 16.3 percent. The U-6 measure includes people who would like to work but have not looked for a job recently, as well as those working part-time involuntarily.

    * There are 12.7 million unemployed native-born Americans, but using the U-6 measure the number is 21.7 million.

    * The unemployment rate for native-born Americans with less than a high school education is 20.8 percent. Their U-6 measure is 33.2 percent.

    * The unemployment rate for young native-born Americans (18-29) who have only a high school education is 18.5 percent. Their U-6 measure is 30.3 percent.

    * The unemployment rate for native-born blacks with less than a high school education is 27.5 percent. Their U-6 measure is 42 percent.

    * The unemployment rate for young, native-born blacks (18-29) with only a high school education is 25.8 percent. Their U-6 measure is 37.4 percent.

    * The unemployment rate for native-born Hispanics with less than a high school education is 22.6 percent. Their U-6 measure is 36.5 percent.

(7) Australian Employers no longer allowed to pay  pay overseas workers less than locals
September 7, 2009 - 5:49AM

Foreign workers 'to be paid local rates'

http://news.brisbanetimes.com.au/breaking-news-national/foreign-workers-to-be-paid-local-rates-20090907-fcz3.html

The federal government has announced that foreign guest workers will have to be paid market rates, in a move to protect jobs for locals.

Immigration Minister Chris Evans says employers will no longer be able to pay overseas workers less than locals.

"The Rudd government has made it clear that temporary skilled overseas workers should not be employed ahead of local workers because they are a cheaper option," Fairfax newspapers quoted him as saying.

Because of the rising unemployment rate, the government has been under pressure from trade unions to clamp down on migrant workers.

The market rates will apply to all new 457-visa holders from September 14, except where annual earnings of $180,000 or more are proposed - reflecting the huge above-award payments available in some industries, particularly mining.

Senator Evans said tradesmen and women at mines or in other industries where skills are in high demand are often paid well above award rates.

"The payment of market salary rates will ensure that overseas workers are not used as a cheap form of labour or used to undercut Australian wages and conditions," he said.

(8) Deceptive “Made in Australia” Labelling is costing Australian Jobs

http://www.ausbuy.com.au/news_single.html?&tx_ttnews[swords]=japan&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=650&tx_ttnews[backPid]=17&cHash=ef4f203e23

Deceptive Labelling is Costing Australian Jobs

25.08.09 20:03

By: AUSBUY

Australia’s labelling laws are deceptive and do not tell consumers just what they are buying and where products are sourced. This ultimately costs Australians jobs. The Federal Government is currently undertaking a review of food labels. However many foreign owned companies will no doubt be submitting their ideas - AUSBUY suspects that these will not be in the interests of fair labelling. Labels should make is easier for consumers to choose and not be deceived.

Food is a strategic industry and represents a major part of our exports as well as our capacity as a nation to feed ourselves. Labels should be one way of protecting this industry. Consumers often do not have time to read the fine print and details on a label when they shop. The AUSBUY Guide is one way of deciphering the source of a product. Here are some examples of labels which do not let the consumer know what they are really buying and their source.

    * Australians want to support products they have been bought up with yet many of these are no longer owned here or even made here. Some labels are deceptive in how they promote this loyalty.
          o Bushells Australia's Favourite Tea – owned by Unilever, imported from Malaysia
          o Uncle Toby's since 1893 – owned by Nestle
          o Kirks Soft Drinks since 1856 – owned by Coca Cola.

Increasingly we see house brands replace Australian Owned products on the supermarket shelf. Here are examples of deception.

          o House brands which say “Made in Australia” - such as tins of fruit, but do not indicate whether the fruit is local or imported – “Made in Australia” means 51% of the wholesale costs were here but with cheap fruit imports that could just be the tin and label. Food labels should put made from local and imported produce if the majority is local produce or made from imported and local produce if the produce is largely imported
                + In some instances a house brand may be contract packed by a local business, the label needs to say this and that the product is sourced in Australia and made here
          o Countries of origin not clear on the pack
                + An example is a house brand tomato paste that says Certified Australian Organic in a large label on the front but at the back in very small text says Product of Italy
          o Tinned brands which have been Australian Owned, such as SPC fruit, Ardmona tomatoes, do not necessarily show the country of origin when once they came from Australian farmers.
    * Lack of discipline by government authorities means the deception continues.
          o Dairy Farmers milk was bought by the Japanese company Kirin nearly 18 months ago and still the products say Australian Owned and Made - AUSBUY has written several times to the ACCC asking that these products are honestly labelled and no action has been taken by the ACCC or Kirin to rectify the situation.
          o Golden Circle fruits and fruit juices still say Australian Owned and Made and they were bought by Heinz nearly a year ago - no guarantee that the pineapples are still supplied from Australia - may now be from Thailand or somewhere else in Asia but again the labels do not reflect this.
    * Where does it really come from?
          o A further issue which is not addressed as it should be is the country of origin of food products. It is ideal that our food is locally sourced. Imports are a different matter as only Australia has a Clean Green growing environment and growers here have to pay ethical wages and ensure a healthy growing environment. Countries like China cannot guarantee this.
          o In addition products brought from overseas have to travel for weeks on ships using long food miles so they cannot be as fresh as local produce. The impact of food miles and the shelf life and quality of fresh foods will become even more important and other countries recognise this.
                + Tesco UK is instituting a policy that food miles and carbon emissions are to be put on all their food house brands. This will limit imported food other than from the EU.
          o Several years ago AUSBUY was responsible for having fresh food stores put the country of origin for fresh produce and the major supermarkets largely do this, but are not always disciplined. Certainly few small green grocers have this discipline. It is important for the consumer to know if they are buying foreign foods especially if fresh and supplied in the same growing season as our own e.g. NZ vine tomatoes are sold in our season.
                + In addition many countries will dump oversupply of food into the Australian market at cheap prices which hurts our food producers. We have lost some key growing industries because of this practice and farmers have lost their livelihood and land – peas and beans are key examples.
                + We also sign free trade agreements with countries like Chile to import stoned fruit, which has the same growing season as Australia, lower wages and diseases which we do not have. This will be a huge impost of our Australian farmers yet again.
                + The best fresh foods to eat are those in season and these are usually a little cheaper and locally grown.
    * Other countries have ways of protecting their food growers even though they espouse free trade. Did you know you cannot export foods to countries like the USA unless their Food and Drug Authority (FDA) approves the labels - this is a good way to keep foreign foods out of the USA and still say they are supporting free trade.

Australia does not have a rigorous system for food imports here, and as a result over many years our food producers have been under constant attack from foreign companies and imports – our stoned fruit growers will come under.

    * Large companies such as Sanitarium, an AUSBUY member, are looking specifically at nutrition labels – especially as many of their products are health food and special diets as well as their famous cereal products like Weetbix - they show the AUSBUY logo on their products.
    * Currently there is no requirement for companies to put whether their food products are Genetically Modified (GM) or not. This is an issue for Australia because we have a uniquely Clean Green and disease free growing environment. Our food exports have been built on this special quality. It is not in overseas competitors interests for us to keep this.
          o In the case of GM the problem is even greater although not yet on labels – the seeds for GM canola for example are sold by one multinational company Monsanto and the Australian farmer will have to the buy new seed each year.
          o If a non-GM Australian farmer has his grain in a silo and then GM is put in and it gets mixed accidentally, the Australian farmer has to pay Monsanto for contaminating the GM product – this is a big issue which needs to be addressed by the Federal Government and labels in the future should clearly state if GM products were used – many consumers do not want GM products in their diets.
    * The issue of how the Australian flag is used on packaging also needs to be better managed. In the USA you cannot use the stars and stripes unless you get permission for a license from the US Government. You will find there are no regulations here about who can use our flag – this again deceives Australian consumers.
    * What is in it for Australians?
          o Supporting our Owned businesses such as AUSBUY members means that the decisions, profits and jobs stay in Australia – buying foreign owned foods means that the decisions are made overseas and many of the profits go overseas as well - we are effectively importing other peoples jobs and ours are lost here.
          o Consumers can find out more about labelling by buying the AUSBUY Guide at a local supermarket nationally.
          o The AUSBUY Guide assists consumers when they buy products and services to know what products are sourced and owned here. Only AUSBUY has the integrity of representing only Owned and Made businesses which means having high quality standards and paying fair wages and working conditions and with food disease free.