Common Nonsense
Posing as common sense, populism is more ignorance than information
Let’s observe that common sense — defined (more or less) as rational perception on the basis of facts or situation — is only common to some people, and situations often tend to be more reliable because facts are not always obvious or easy to come by. We have all known or been around individuals who display remarkable common sense and others with remarkably little common sense. But even with a surplus of common sense, it’s easy enough to reach conclusions that are the result of assumptions that seem quite sensible but are well off the mark.
Certain areas of endeavor — politics and associated beliefs/opinions in particular — are invariably sources of nonsense that are devoid of facts and often create emotional responses that only exacerbate what is already fictitious exaggeration. A very common example is immigration. The most contentious version is illegal (undocumented) immigration, but even legal immigration is accused of all kinds of negative consequences. The focus is on two issues: that immigrants take jobs from citizens and that immigrants exert downward pressure on wages. The “common sense” rationale is that these have to be true because, obviously, more jobs at higher compensation would be available if immigrants were not allowed in.
There are lots of data on this topic, but it is given modest distribution in newspapers/magazines and other sources of news. We’ll ignore the moronic agenda-driven assertions that the media publishes fake news — its inherent absurdity requires willful ignorance to take such nonsense seriously. It is simply not credible that such a competitive industry would somehow manage to collude in the distribution of news that is untrue, and do so consistently. The real issue is that many prefer not to be exposed to information that contradicts existing beliefs and opinions.
It is well known that immigrants with lower skills readily accept work that most citizens consistently refuse to consider. From restaurants to hotels to agriculture to landscaping to construction: immigrants fill many, if not most, employment opportunities. The last category is particularly interesting because it represents an industry that, in theory, should be highly contested by skilled citizens looking for good-paying work. But research shows a very different reality. The assertion that a reduction in immigration (illegal and legal) and a resulting smaller pool of labor will force wages upward and open job opportunities to citizens isn’t matched by the data.
Understand that immigration of citizens from Mexico (as opposed to immigrants from Central American countries directly below it) has been negative (more leaving than entering) for at least five years. Economic opportunity in Mexico along the border region (including many companies from the U.S. and other continents) has made it less desirable to seek work in the U.S. even though wages here are higher. More to the point, the construction industry has 200,000 jobs openings that cannot be filled. The work is demanding physically, there are periodic layoffs and many citizens are not interested in manual labor. Some of those who used to be in construction but were laid off have taken lower paying but more reliable jobs in other industries.
Even raising wages to an average of $27/hour has had no effect. Those who might be trained for the unfilled jobs are not choosing to do so. The reality is that immigration has had a minor and very temporary downward effect on U.S. construction workers, most of whom do not have even a high school diploma. Cutting legal immigration and deporting illegal immigrants is not going to alter any of this, but it will negatively impact employers as well as the lives of those who live here and contribute to the economy even if undocumented. And anyone with enough common sense to look up the information on immigration and economics will discover something else that is far from obvious using common sense.
The most successful, sustainable economies have considerable immigration and even encourage those with skills and/or who want to start businesses to immigrate. Some countries offer financial incentives to immigrants. Many can and will start businesses. They often represent greater economic value to their new countries than many citizens do. The facts, however, have to compete with fact-free populist propaganda, which pretends the problem for working-class citizens is trade and immigration. Posing as common sense, populism is more ignorance than information.
The list of issues with similar circumstances but different details is long. Experts know what the reality is, but those asserting nationalism and protectionism mindlessly attack expertise as representing the establishment and the elite. It’s all common nonsense. It’s not just here, of course, but in other advanced economies. Political leadership in each country can either represent intelligent, fact-based reality or it can look like the fake leadership in this country. Any leader who insists that disruption and chaos are good policy is simply too dumb, too dishonest, too incompetent to be allowed to remain in charge of anything. This, then. is actual common sense.
