With friends like this….

I’m a firm believer in tightly secured borders with legal entry points established at one-mile intervals along it and the elimination of visa quotas for those who want to come here legally, whether with a goal of gaining citizenship or just for long-term residency and work—so long as they pass tight vetting procedures.

A Letter to the Editor writer in Monday’s Wall Street Journal tried to make the same point, but his point was, and is, counterproductive.

In saying that demanding specialized skills as the criterion for entry might work for the short-term but was long-term short-sighted compared to a come one, come all (presumably subject to vetting) criterion, the letter writer offered this:

Our nation historically has been more like the Milwaukee Brewers than the New York Yankees.

Well, no.

The Brewers are perennial losers, having never won a World Series and whose last pennant win was in 1982.  That’s not the United States I know.  The Yankees, on the other hand, have 27 World Series titles and 40 pennants.  That, though, isn’t the United States I know, either; although, it’s closer to the mark.

The US benefits from taking on all comers who want to become Americans (not many all-comers stay with either the Brewers or the Yankees), and we also gain from taking on those who have specialized skills that directly and quickly benefit us, whether they want to become Americans or want to be here as long-term residents.