Planning and Apes

Apes Shown to Be Able to Plan Ahead

This reaffirms the view of many programmers that my manager is nothing more than a monkey!

Of immigrants and illegal immigrants

So, International Labor Day was also the Immigrant Monday in the US. Sometime back, the NPR dealt with the problem through the eyes of minority community comedians (Margaret Cho, Paul Rodriguez and Bernie Mac). Paul Rodriguez was up front in his views – you pick your own tomatoes, clean the dishes etc. and you won’t need cheap Mexican labor – he said. And largely the illegal immigrants work in low paying mundane jobs and live in conditions that are barely better than ghettos.

On the other side of this is another community of immigrants – especially in the US who have gone there as students or professionals working in high paying jobs. Majority of the students who go to the US for higher studies are of Asian origin (read India and China). Most of them get good jobs in premier companies and tend to stick around in the US permanently and also the skilled engineers and programmers how have taken the advantage of the H1B visas. It must be accepted that the US has a rather generous immigration policy. But off late, the red tape delays and backlash because of the jobs shifting to Asia and recession may have brought this policy under scanner. When so much is being done for the illegals, how does the Indian community fare? Here are a few points to ponder:

• At least more than 90% of the H1B holders and Green card converts are in the high tax paying bracket.
• They are generally law abiding people and crime rate among the first and second generation Indians is almost zero.
• They ensure their kids go to school, do not do drugs, get good education and also end up in the high tax bracket.
• They do not default on credit card or loan payments, buy houses and contribute to consumer spending, pay taxes on time, invest in stock market (some even short-sell!) contributing positively to the economy.
• They have now even started looking for cars other than Toyota and Honda and also spend on 51” flat screen TVs!
• Their entrepreneurial spirit has created employment for thousands – The M(P)otels and many Bay Area software firms confirm this. They have also contributed well in areas of Space and Science (NASA), Education (many professors) etc.

If the above are not characteristics of good citizens, then what are? While the illegal immigrants are busy boycotting work, will someone pause and note the legal immigrants and their contribution?

Disclaimer: This writer is not and was never a part of the rodent derby of acquiring GC.