Why are people still interested in migrating to the USA?

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In this NYT article "Some Countries Lobby for More in Race for Visas"

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/12/us/po ... h_20130512

it says

Well, in India there are not enough jobs for everyone. People think the scramble for jobs in the USA is difficult, but it has NOTHING on India. So many Indians try elsewhere in the world. The UK, Australia, and USA mostly.

My ex came to the USA from Japan because the life of an surgeon over there usually means not leaving the hospital for days on end, not sleeping, and the salary is much less than it is here. Surgeons in Japan rarely see their families and just basically work themselves to death.

Those are the only two countries I have personal knowledge of.

Maybe America is like a pie being carved up and the other nations all want their piece.

Maybe because, although the West is going down the pan, it is still a lot better than the rest of the world, and the USA is the poster boy for the West with the biggest economy.

i think people who want to go to America are suffering from terminal short termism.

The financial crisis is heading for the states soon enough, like a tsunami building up.

The smart people are hedging their bets in the far east.

It is still possible to make one's fortune in the U.S.A. by luck and by pluck. It is not as easy as it used to be, but it is possible. In the U.S.A. the individual is till held to be higher than the State or Society.

ruveyn

I don't judge the worth of a country by the strength of the economy, but by the standards of living of the people. The Chinese are imprisoned if they speak out against their government, there is a much bigger poverty problem than in America, and the Chinese have to work a lot harder, even from a very young age. There are serious problems with mental health. Some women are forced to have abortions. In rural areas, the water is not safe to drink. Many cannot afford healthcare, there is a lack of doctors, and the doctors have strange incentives placed upon them which have led to accusations that they don't act in the patient's best interests.

As Fnord pointed out, there are plenty of jobs here that Americans don't want.

People from other countries actually want to be scientists, doctors, and engineers.

Personally, I wouldn't mind if a lot of people left the US and didn't come back.
Without exception all the ones I've heard moaning about how awful the US is and longing to be somewhere else are the types that I want gone. In fact, I'll come and help them pack.

Everyone wants to be in America until they fall and break their leg and get a bill for 5000 dollars.
But don't worry, the government will force you to buy extremely expensive insurance that will cover a percentage of that!
Land of the free! We're number one!

I can't speak for everyone, but:

Though its dominance is not quite what it was even ten years ago, the U.S. university system is still by far the best in the world in most humanities and science fields. I'm speaking in particular for postgraduate study, a necessary part of a prospective academic career.

Besides academia, the U.S. still seems to have an advantage in the entertainment and "high skill" industries ("high skill" including work in engineering and finance).

Also many young Irish people have decided to emigrate due to terrible economic conditions in Ireland since 2008, with youth unemployment being about 30%. Many hope to one day return to Ireland after conditions improve, so they don't really think long-term about this.

There are plenty of reasons to want to be in the U.S. The standard of living is extremely high relative to most nations, but that alone is not enough to attract people. There are plenty of jobs here still, though not nearly as plentiful as a few years ago (that will change in a few years). It is a relatively big country you can spread around in. Americans also tend to be open to new ideas, considering it is a nation of immigrants.

I think the most important reason is actually easy access to capital markets. It is relatively easy to start a business here, and not much of a problem to get a loan or seed money. There is still far less red tape here than many other nations, although I worry that is changing. Aside from Hong Kong, Singapore, and a few small European states, I can't think of anywhere else you can start a business so easily.