Probably apropos nothing.....we recently had our kitchen remodeled and hired one of the more reputable contractors in the PDX area. We had two very highly skilled carpenters. One was from the Ukraine and the other was from England. We had two tile setters who did an outstanding job. One was Latvian and the other was Mexican. The countertop guy was Russian. I can guarantee these guys were all legal immigrants. The only "Real" Americans actually doing labor were the plumber and the painters (and how hard really is the latter? Shit, I did it myself as a young man).
There's apparently a lot of "Real" Americans who either don't have the skills, aren't interested in acquiring them or just plain don't want to work a "real" job. That's on the the individual. You can blame the education system all you want (and I do to an extent. At least Oregon voters approved funding for trade schools etc in the last election, so we have that going for us) but I came out of the navy with skills that weren't particularly conducive to actually providing for a family. I scrambled to do whatever it took until I pushed hard enough and found someone to take a chance on me in a profession with some kind of future. And then I went to school in my "spare" time to improve my chances for advancement. In other words, I had some pride and gave a shit. Tell me that the current "Real" American in general is willing to do the same. They aren't. If they can't get the job they want for the wage they want they'd rather sit on their asses and take government money and blame everyone but themselves for their woes. Ive seen this with my own eyes and have heard it with my own ears too damn many times. And these are the folks that voted for Trump. They deserve what they are likely to get. Nothing. If anyone hasn't read "Hillbilly Elegy" by J.D. Vance, they really should. It certainly shows that there is two very distinct sides to this particular narrative. The majority of immigrants, legal or otherwise are willing to do the work "Real" Americans don't want to do, or don't want to learn how to do. From the standpoint of MY pocket book, I dont give two shits whether a craftsman is a legal OR illegal immigrant. As long as they are reliable, work safely and can do a good job, they're welcome to work for me anytime.
