Dispatches: "Keep Them Out"

[Tresh]

QUOTE (Kether @ May 7 2004, 18:29)

Because the impression is given that you're a failure unless you go to university. .

Why's that?

 

It's so they can get the unemployment figures down.

[russelldust]

excellent comments Kether- agreed, vocational qualifications are needed- I actually think the whole education system in the UK needs sorting out to place more emphasis on skills rather than simply exams and less emphasis on uni (in a roundabout way making people pay tens of thousands to go to uni has already done this- not that I agree with this though).

 

I woudn't get carried away by this documentary though as documentary makers are well known for deciding on what angle they want to take and making sure the editing fits...

 

We are not 'awash' with immigrants and given unemployment is as low as it is there is certainly no problem with 'them taking our jobs' as the bnp would say.

[LiquidEyes]

QUOTE (russelldust @ May 8 2004, 09:12)

documentary makers are well known for deciding on what angle they want to take and making sure the editing fits...

Agreed - it was just refreshing to see a documentary that wasn't trying to portray all asylum-seekers as freeloaders. Nice to see the flipside - i.e. the fact that a lot of people are not even sure why they are afraid of foreigners.

[Jessica Rabbit]

I think people are getting confused between Asylum Seeker, Illegal Immigrant, etc.

 

Asylum Seekers and immigrants are not the same thing - asylum seekers are people who have been forced to leave their own country because their lives are in danger, many have to do this illegally (i.e. not come through passport control) because the borders to their countries are cut off, which is very common in brutal regiemes. These people are not coming here because they think britain is paved with gold - they flee to europe because they have no choice. And before any one says 'why do they choose to come to britain, then?' here is a fun fact - france, germany, holland etc all have more asylum seekers per head than britain.

 

But anyway, not all Asylum seekers are illegal immigrants, and not all illegal immigrants are asylum seekers.

 

Here's another fun fact for you - britains biggest problem in terms of illegal immigrants is not eastern europeans etc, but actually australians, americans and canadians - many come here with visas and just disappear. But you never seem to hear anyone complaining about them - perhaps this could be because they look and sound a lot more like us?

 

As for the argument about not enough skilled workers, I used to live in Ipswich and hardly anyone from my school went to uni - I am in the minority. Most left at 16 to do modern apprenticeships etc. If you from a wealthy area or went to a public school then I'm guessing the majority of people you know went to uni - it's not like that everywhere else. The reason we need workers from over seas is because we have an aging population because of improved healthcare etc, so there are not enough young workers to support the economy.

 

I just want to ask a question: do any of the people here who are anti-immigration here actually know any asylum seekers, I don't mean just spoke to one on the bus once, but do you actually know any on a personal level or is all your information gained from reading the paper. Because we all know how the british media is the gospel.

[LiquidEyes]

^ excellent comments Jess.