OPINION:
There is no doubt that immigrants, legal or otherwise, contribute to the economy, but the notion that they will somehow bail out the social insurance programs is whimsical (“How legal immigrants contribute to the economy,” Web, July 1). The only way you will obtain a net positive effect on Social Security, for example, is for all immigrants to be in the upper 1 percent of wage earners working 80 hours per week their entire lives, and upon retirement at age 65, for them to promptly die. Note that illegal immigrants paying in but collecting no benefits are an even better bet.
All social insurance programs are Ponzi schemes, which is the traditional argument against them. You must maintain a large pool of young workers at the base of the pyramid to supply the payouts at the peak of the pyramid. Once the base dries up, you obtain the Bernie Madoff correction; it was never “insurance” in a historical or technical sense. Well, guess what? The base is crumbling faster than it was ever imagined, even by the people who know a Ponzi scheme when they see one.
Since 1970 the rate of Type 2 diabetes has increased annually at the rate of 2 percent. The rate of obesity has increased at the rate of 4 percent. Since one number is twice the other it means that “eat less, move more,” is just one more lie propagated by the Coca-Cola corporation and the food industry in general. In fact, there are more non-obese diabetics than obese diabetics. This does not mean that obesity cannot be a contributing factor, but it does rule out cause and effect.
All of those immigrants, legal or otherwise, and their children, get just as sick as you are, and at an ever-increasing rate. That means they will never make it to 65, and they and their kids are going to be on disability. This makes for a gigantic increase in the Democratic voting bloc, but it also means saying bye-bye to your Social Security check.
SAMUEL BURKEEN
Reston
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