Bryan Caplan’s latest post, “Reflections on the United Arab Emirates,” Swish with itOctober 21, 2024, very good. It’s all about his experience in the UAE and how it informs his thinking on open borders. His main point is hard to summarize but his points #2 and #3 are close.
Point #2:
A key ingredient for Emirati success: 88% The population of the UAE is foreign born. That is the highest share of any country in the world. Why is the share so high? Because the UAE is closer to open borders than any other country on Earth. They just don’t accept petroleum engineers and architects. They accept drivers, maids, guards, waiters, and clerks. They just don’t accept Europeans and East Asians. They welcome South Asians, Pacific Islanders, North Africans, and many sub-Saharan Africans. I talked to workers in Zimbabwe and Sierra Leone. Yes, migrant workers go through a government approval process, so the border is not 100% open. But if you want to work hard to make a better life for yourself, your chances of getting a work visa are good no matter how low your credentials are.
Point #3:
Abu Dhabi and Dubai are living proof that Michael Clemens’ “billions of billions of dollars by the wayside” are real. Both cities look like Coruscant from star Wars. They are wonderful wonders: Glorious cities of the future where humanity gathers to generate great wealth. And without mass migration, almost none of these could be built! They need immigrants to help them run the petroleum industry. They need foreigners to build their skyscrapers, malls and mansions. And they need foreigners to run their hotels, restaurants, and shops.
The subject, not the title of the article, is the actual fact. There really are no trillion dollar bills, except in Zimbabwe. But Clemens’ article argues, successfully in my view, that allowing more immigration would create billions of dollars in economic output every year.
Every piece should be read. It’s Bryan Caplan at his best. It is informed, data-rich, analytically rigorous, and completely free of social desirability bias.
New thing I learned: “Homosexuality is illegal… but no one has been arrested for it since 2015.” Think about that. You wouldn’t say that in 1960 Britain. (Cue Alan Turing.) You wouldn’t say in the United States, say, 1975. (Think Stonewall.) So that one fact is pretty amazing. .
Bryan’s post received more comments than his regular Substack posts. Many of them are appreciated.
The main thing I learned from the comments, which wasn’t in Bryan’s post, is that the UAE does not have open borders; has a guest worker program. Bryan would not deny this; it’s just that he didn’t say the word “business guest.”
Here’s one thing I’m wondering. One commenter, “The Bacon Boss,” said, “When you lose your job, you go home.” Is that really true? Couldn’t you be given, say, 2 months, to find another job?
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