What is, and where is, the American Dream for you?
A dream of a better, richer, and happier life for all our citizens of every rank."John Truslow Adams (JStorDaily.com, 2015)
Is it Rural? Urban? Suburban? I offer that it doesn't matter. "Better, richer, and happier" can happen in all three so long as we preserve our ability to choose which lifestyle we want. Many economic and social factors can affect our lifestyle choices. But how often does one consider the additional effects of immigration-driven population growth on limiting choice?
I firmly believe that a series of recent events affecting my own family can be linked, in large part, to nationwide consumption demand pressures from mass immigration that fuels over 90 percent of US population growth. Here's my story.
I was born and raised on a small farm in rural West Virginia. It was a great way to grow up. I had plenty of open space to ride horses and enjoy nature's beauty and sounds in the woods. About 5 ½ years ago, I moved to the Washington, DC area for better economic opportunity.
I have adapted well to urban living and have even come to love living in the city (although I never miss a chance to return to WV for a visit and some quiet relaxation). On the other hand, my brother wants nothing to do with living in a big urban area. And I want him to retain that choice. However, a couple of years ago, our family home was set ablaze by a massive 500,000-watt electricity voltage from distributive towers erected on our property via eminent domain to service growing national energy demands, not residents. The distributive lines entangled with the local line to our house.
Since the fire, a coal company has found a vein running under where the house stood. My brother is unlikely to return and rebuild on the same site. Do you see the national pattern of population growth fueling demand for more energy here, changing even the lives of residents in a state as remote as West Virginia?
Do I blame immigrants? No, or at least not those who are legitimate asylum seekers and refugees. I do blame our US government, which has thrown the welcome mat out to millions more each year who need housing, services, and jobs just like Americans do. Could my family tragedy have happened without distributive lines involved? Anything is possible. But it's telling that the house has sheltered not just my family, but several generations of other families since the early 1900s with no incident. So I think the timing of the installation of those enormously powerful lines cannot be dismissed with a simple, "these things just happen."
Immigration drives population growth in the US by 90 percent. Population growth is creating an unsustainable rate of consumption demand for developed land. As our national sprawl study reveals, the US is losing much of its open spaces to land conversions (open space to crop and farmlands) and sprawling development.
As America's population grows due to federal immigration policy, towns and cities are sprawling out such that every state is fast becoming a "border state." My home state of West Virginia is a border state, make no mistake. It is, sadly, at the top of the list of states with the highest numbers of fentanyl-related deaths and addictions (much of which is trafficked across the border by cartels and extorted migrants). However, the state is also experiencing undesirable changes due to the subtle yet increasing effects of national population growth, which drives the unrelenting consumption of more energy.
So whether one's American dream is urban, rural or somewhere in between, let's work for an immigration policy by "keeping our eyes wide open" to all for which we are grateful and do not want to lose...
Remember: The Census Bureau projects the U.S. population will add 75 million people by the Year 2060, with roughly 90 percent of that growth resulting from immigration. Seven million people have crossed the border illegally since the start of Pres. Biden's term. Over 1.5 million seek entry annually through the legal immigration process.
Where do we put them all? Where could it force us to go? NumbersUSA exists to empower voters [YOU] to achieve a sensible immigration policy.
I sincerely want to know. Thanks for reading.
CHRISTY SHAW is the Specialist to the CEO for NumbersUSA
