U.S. immigration policy turns away needed brain power
Ramnath Subramanian / Guest Columnist
Article Launched: 05/08/2008 12:00:00 AM MDT


America's immigration policy is miserably off the mark. To exacerbate matters, American politicians seem to lack an understanding of and an appreciation for the global forces that today are defining and shaping the world's economies.

For a country to remain economically competitive, it must cultivate and capture intellectual talent. To achieve the former, American schools and universities have to be topnotch and adhere to exemplary standards. To accomplish the latter, the best and brightest minds from all corners of the globe should be allowed to find easy passage to America's shores.

Sadly, large chunks of American academia are trapped in the skeins of mediocrity. And as for attracting foreign talent, a measly 80,000 H1B temporary visas, allotted by lottery to highly-skilled workers, are all that is available worldwide for aspiring applicants. As a result of this myopic and misguided immigration policy, a large number of extraordinarily gifted people who could make significant contributions to U.S. society are denied the opportunity to work in the United States.

In the past, those disfavored by Lady Luck would have felt wretchedly disconsolate. Today, the picture is vastly different as people comprising the "knowledge base" in developing economies such as that of China and India look not so much to America but to places like Canada, Australia, and New Zealand to pursue their dreams.

In 2003, the United States Congress slashed the quota of H1B visas from 200,000 to its current number. Why should a person highly skilled in science, technology, or engineering stand in line like a beggar to gain entry when other countries are putting out welcome mats?

In New Zealand, a liberal immigration policy permits companies to even hand out work visas. The European Union (EU) is not far behind in the new trend to attract global talent. It may, in the near future, use a system of "blue cards" to offer foreign workers a "fast track" to citizenship.

Only America seems to be living in the dark ages.

The EU wants to become "the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world by 2010." In sharp contrast, caught in an acerbic debate over illegal immigration, and touting ambitions to build walls and fortifications, the U.S. gives the impression of a giant tottering in his steps.

Lose the intellectual edge and America slowly but surely loses its place as the world's economic leader.

Both Silicon Valley and Ivy League universities are testament to the greatness that is achieved when smart minds from the far reaches of the globe converge onto an idealized, fertile plot of land. It is sad that America's legal immigration policy is in shambles at precisely the moment when the rest of the world seems to have mustered a sanguine disposition toward talented foreigners.

One of my nieces who is technology-savvy has abandoned plans to seek employment in America. She does not believe the "wait and hassles" are worth it. She is pursuing possibilities in Australia and Japan.

One thing is for certain. If companies and research-and-development entities lose the ability to attract talent, innovation and invention would invariably suffer, causing America's economy to become a shadow of its former self.

It is not smart to be last in the brains business.

Ramnath Subramanian, a sixth-grade science teacher at Eastwood Knolls School in El Paso, writes often for the El Paso Times on educational topics.
http://www.elpasotimes.com/opinion/ci_9184940