I completly missed out on this thread... I thought you all were having a dig at Wheetass's cover of "a little respect".. seriously *feels dense*...
About imagration... Imigration is going to be necicary here in the UK, becuase the birth rate is declining, the average age of the population is going up, up, and away. And there will be too many poeple on pensions for the working to suppourt, so they're having to introduce a green card like system... they're also trying to staff, more and more doctors... that's how we've been here for 12 years, adn could get british passports within 12 months or so. We've payed our taxes through the years, and with out boasting or being arrogant it's certainly more than the average guy pays.
About cultures... I'm not sure, the hardest working two races i've mixed with (and this is big generalisation) are the indians and the egyptains. It's seems becuase of the over crowding and the competition for the places be it in schools/ unis/ jobs etc etc they work extremly hard. However Asians over here do get some racials abuse, and indains do get shtick.. becuase they're lazy? they're not contributing? no, it's cos they're veiwed as outsides competeing with the "true britons"... Which is all aload of bollox..
Imagration has always been a big problem, either it's because there's too much crime, or too many tops jobs seen going to "outsiders"... Imigrants sadly, have nothing to do for up to 18 months... in some of the glasgow places where i've lived (and have recently been reaserched), there are engineers, doctors, poilots etc etc, who are sitting on thier arse most of the day trying to live on food coupons, and not allowed to work (the coupons systhem is being scraped, which i'm very glad of).... Now imagine 14 to 25 year old men from ANY race or background with nothing to do for 18 months, other than hang out in groups... there's gonna be trouble simple as that. It's the same anywhere,give young men nothing to do, and your gonna get crime, nothing to do with race or culture or whatever.
The immagration thing is pretty emotive too, no one want some moocher to come in, suck up tax payers money just to be sent to prison, where he'll also suck up more money. But how true is that idea? No one can really put a scale on such things. Ofcourse the british unemployed should come first, but you cannot turf out a family of 5 from Afganistan because some proudly british junky wont hold down a job.
In france the arabs are pretty much like the asains here... There seem to have been periods of imagration, where people have settled together, and areas have become part of the old country... I Lived on Alison street in Glassow, and the signs were in Urdu and Panjabi, and quite a few poeple in the street simply didn't talk english, and the fact that I didnt speak any Urdu or panjabi didn't help (well... I new a few rude words from the kids form school, and a few things, but that was it)... and soem poepe feel very uncomfortable with that, they feel like they're outsiders.
Phew... sorry about the rant.