Utah isn’t the only state whose
population shies “away from the issue of population growth and
large families” (HCN, 12/22/03: Being Green in the Land of the
Saints). Politicians of every stripe from every state refuse to
talk about it. This, in spite of recent articles about the drought
that is hammering the West while population growth is fastest in
the same area.
The Census Bureau tells us that the U.S.
population grew by 2.8 million in one year, mainly due to
immigration and a high birth rate among Hispanics. It stated that
as of January 2004, this country records a birth every eight
seconds, a death every 13 seconds, and adds an immigrant every 25
seconds. Since politicians control immigration, the scenario
described above seems mad.
One can hardly blame Mormons
for avoiding the issue if non-Mormons do the same thing. The big
elephant in the room is immigration, which accounts for two-thirds
of our population growth. Those who are too politically correct to
talk about it better not complain about lack of water, crowded
schools and highways, sprawl, loss of open space, and high
unemployment.
Lorrie Hall
Duxbury, Massachusetts
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline The elephant in the room.
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