Capitalist Tool II: Defending Dynamism

An interview with Malcolm Forbes, Jr.

Virginia Postrel & Charles Oliver from the May 1991 issue

(Page 4 of 4)

Reason: So you support fairly open immigration policies?

Forbes: This country has the capacity to absorb more immigrants than we are absorbing now. There are several benefits with immigrants. One is they don't let you get set in your ways. That kind of constant prodding is very important as many societies do get set in their ways and take their advantages for granted. When you get new people coming in, you can't do that as much as you would otherwise. It keeps the rest of us on our toes. This country can absorb people so much better than any other country. We're not a Lebanon. We're not a Soviet Union. When people get to America, they're glad to be here, most of them. Allowing people to come in who are neither members of existing families nor political refugees but who want to come and do something is all for the good.

Reason: You're not worried about any sort of threat to the culture?

Forbes: There are always threats to culture when you bring new people in. That's why it's important to have a society that's fairly confident of itself. A hundred years ago people said we could absorb the Germans, the Irish, and the English, but how in the world could we absorb these southern Europeans who have no democratic tradition at all. Well, for a while, it was touch and go. That's why you had rough political machines in some cities. It wasn't very democratic, but that was part of the adjustment process. Now political scientists say, "Gee, these machines did help the transition." Even though they stole everyone's money, they performed a service--probably better than some of the social services today--because they wanted to get votes.

New York City, for example, will never be as smooth or gracious a city as others because you always have a new crowd coming in that wants to muscle its way in. So New York has a harder edge than the rest of the world.

Reason: Are you optimistic about New York?

Forbes: Short term, no. The state of New York and the city of New York have very severe financial problems, but again, the raw energy level is high. So we will survive. Over the next 10 years, local government budgets will be under such pressure they will be forced to try things that they never would have tried before. Just as inflation enabled us to deregulate transportation, so will budget crises force governments to try things--whether it's privately owned highways or whatever--that they never would have fathomed before, just because they can't afford the old way of doing things anymore.

Reason: Thank you.