Remember This: Pay Attention to Self-Interest When Analyzing Anything

It has ever been thus.  Being a little skeptical about what motivates people to adopt a particular position is almost always warranted.  It is usually a good idea to examine why a given position is being embraced, especially loudly embraced.  What’s in it for them is generally  worth asking. 

Even in ancient times, this factored into things.  If you read your Bible, you will recall when Jesus was alive, the Romans wanted to continue both their rule over Israel and to avoid conflict.  At this time, many in the Jewish community strongly desired to be freed from Roman rule.  We know how the Jewish leaders prosecuted Jesus for blasphemy and found Him guilty.  They turned Him over to Pilate (the Roman governor for the area).  His wife cautioned to “not have anything to do with that innocent man.”  Her motivation was she had “suffered a great deal today in a dream because of him.”  Pilate, thinking he could make everyone happy, offered to free Jesus, the King of the Jews.  Instead, the Jewish leaders said to crucify Christ and free Barabbas.  Those religious leaders wanted this outcome for a mostly secular reason.  Barabbas was a key leader in their struggle to defeat the Roman occupancy.

Without assigning guilt to anyone here, it is safe to say both groups arrived at their opinions by virtue of what they considered to be in their self-interest.  Pilate hoped the Jews would be happy with the release of Jesus, since it suited his desire to keep a leader of the freedom movement (Barabbas) imprisoned.  Meanwhile, the Jewish leaders did what most of us do in situation such as this.  We put our secular concerns (personal benefit) ahead of religious concerns (called then and now as furthering the Kingdom of God). When he encountered resistance, Pilate retreated and set Barabbas free, hoping for the best.    I often tease that if I had been alive at the time, I surely would have been on the side of achieving political victory.  Part of why I need to go to church on Sundays.

Fast forward to the issue of illegal immigration right now.  My argument is we ought to question those who use emotional rhetoric to advance any public policy, when the more honest reason for their position might be advancing their self-interest.   

Before anything else is said, let the record show I totally support our maintaining the highest level of legal immigration in the world.  As of September of 2024, the United States accounted for one fifth of the world’s legal immigration.  To insist those of us who support high levels of legal immigration, while also opposing illegal immigration, are nothing but ugly racists is to argue the absurd. 

The overwhelming majority of Americans favor strong measures to secure our border, as well as removing those here illegally, who are also criminals or accused of serious crimes.  Still, we hear plenty of voices arguing we need to be kinder, or find a “comprehensive solution” to address the problem.  No doubt, while some are sincere in their hopes for a less tough immigration policy, it says here there a lot of people using emotional rhetoric to advance their self-interest.  

Forget that the government’s priority is not rounding up someone’s Abuela.  Consider this.  Whether it is the person in big agriculture (which is a tiny part of what we are addressing), running a construction company or restaurant, or even leading a large corporation, they all know one thing.  The less they have to pay for labor, the better their chances to make a profit (which is far from automatic).  

As an unabashed conservative, I am not saying doing all that you can legally do in order to improve your bottom line is a bad thing.  Quite the opposite.  What I am saying is there is a certain level of cynicism involved in using human kindness as an insincere tool to accomplish maximizing your chances of achieving your goals.  

What is even more frustrating is seeing those decrying the idea of an oligarchy simultaneously favoring policies that make it more likely.  There are just too damn many people mouthing sweetness and kindness on immigration who benefit by having access to cheap labor.

We can all agree that overwhelmingly those who are here legally are good, decent people.  Those here illegally are forced to accept low wages, because they have little power to complain about it, much less to change the situation.  Logically, what this means is that jobs are being performed at below honest market numbers.  Also, logically, this means jobs that pay a wage sufficient to further create, sustain, and grow the middle class are less available.  In plain English, those wanting to prevent an oligarchy and grow the middle class should be the first in line to secure the border and enforce the law.

Remember this: Self-interest is a given (unless you have taken a vow of poverty).  That being the case, it makes good sense to keep it in mind at all times.  What do you think?