Emigration

Emigration

The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of The Edgefield Advertiser.

By: Scott Cooper

If you have been following my writing, you know I like to write about things which unify.  Things which effect all of us equally, regardless of race, creed, nationality, or socio-economic status.  I have called these issues, non-respecter of person issues.

 

Emigration is one of those issues.  Through the millennia, individuals, families and companies on all seven continents have sought to emigrate, generally for liberty, economic and quality of life issues.

 

Nomadic tribes emigrate following seasonally available wild plants and game.  They are continually emigrating.  As late as 1995 it was estimated there were still an estimated 30–40 million nomads in the world.

 

My father, until age 18, grew up in an agricultural environment, in the same home where his father was raised and very close to where his grandparents and great grandparents were raised.  My mother’s family, for employment purposes during her educational years, emigrated every year for the first seven years of her education.  This relocation didn’t only cause her family to move to different homes, be enrolled in different schools, it also caused them to reside in a total of five states. In their 60 years of marriage, my parents, for employment opportunities emigrated numerous times, to five different states and a season overseas.

 

In my own adult life, for educational and work purposes, I have emigrated seven times, to include three different states and two different countries.  Four of those moves, were to different metropolitan areas of the same state.

 

I have a good friend who recently emigrated to South Carolina from Alabama to work at SRS.  At the end of the month his job will come to an end.  After a lengthy career of emigrating for employment purposes, he intends to remain in the CSRA, even though he and his wife have only lived here 18 months, and their two children reside in two other states.

 

Companies emigrate as well as individuals and families. They do so for a wide range of reasons, which generally boil down to labor force and economic opportunity.

 

The point is, there is nothing new under the sun. Individuals, families and companies, in the pursuit of liberty, economics and quality of life have always migrated, and will continue to do so.  This is a good thing.

 

Sometimes people choose to leave employment opportunities and emigrate because they see a “brighter door” open to them, while they are still employed.  Other times, people are forced to relocate, because they can no longer provide for their family where they reside.

 

I am thankful as a citizen in the republic of the United States, that we can relocate to another area within our state or another state in the Union to go to work for someone or set up a new business.  I am pro-choice when it comes to an individual’s pursuit of their own happiness in this manner.

 

This however is vastly different from the discussion in the news today: how do nation states address illegal migration and the economic hardships placed on their citizens resulting from open borders?

 

While there is an emotional movement stating we should “welcome the stranger” with “open borders,” the economics of that utopian dream don’t end well for those who reside in the republic and have chosen to emigrate legally.

More next week.  I hope you have a productive week!