John Capener

As far as migrant numbers go, 135,000 sounds like a lot of people, as cited by ACE Campbell in the May 8 Beacon.

That is until one breaks it down to a percentage of the population, then subtract the annual death rate and factor in the falling number of births.

At that point immigration can be seen to be within the bounds of manageability.

What is behind this angst for most people is not that there is immigration, but where they are coming from.

In other words, “they don’t look like us.” The “us” being an amalgam of anyone who looks European.

My late brother held this view, or should I say, was taught this view, by his favourite media source.

Whenever he made the statement “immigrants should be sent home” my response was, okay, so who do we send back first? Dad back to England or our grandmother to China?

He didn’t like it when I made the debate personal. But that’s the thing, isn’t it? A lot of us Kiwis either immigrated here or are descendant from immigrants.

Now some want to pull the ladder up behind them, because, in my opinion, they see themselves as better than their fellow wannabe New Zealanders as it gives them, frankly, a false sense of their superiority.