Let the bidding begin!

Recent headlines have overwhelmed us with the news that the annual quota of H1-B visas were reserved in one day. This was cause for celebration by the US Chamber of Commerce, Bill Gates, and the entire "cheap labor" propaganda machine. They say that it is proof that we need unlimited immigration of cheap laborers into the US.

These people claim to be Capitalists, and with that in mind, there is an obvious solution to the current H1-B issue: Let the market decide who gets the H1-B visas. Auction off the annual quota to the highest bidders. Do this four times a year to spread it out. How could you be more market oriented than that?

They claim that they can't hire the "best and brightest". An auction would certainly allow them to prioritize that vague requirement. If they have candidates that they can't do business without, they will bid to get a visa for that person. It's simple supply and demand. It's true Capitalism.

Of course those in search of cheap labor don't want real Capitalism. They only want it when it is convenient to them. They are more than happy to pretend that they are standing in a Communist bread line, and claim "we couldn't get our fair helping of free cheap labor".

The Heart of the Matter

Any desirable product that is given away for free in limited quantities (like the visas) will have too much demand. If the US Government offered 65,000 free Plasma TVs to the public, how many days would it take for that quota to be taken? The line would be longer, and go faster than the H1-B visas!

But who deserves free Plasma TVs from the government? No one, and certainly not Bill Gates. He can afford to pay for his own Plasma TVs, just like he can afford to pay for his so called "indispensable" best and brightest foreign workers.

Let the free, competitive market decide.