--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Economists argue about the relative…" description: "\"Economists argue about the relative impact of immigrants versus robots on wage stagnation - voters don't care much. They blame immigrants. It's easier ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19a/katty-kay-8472_blame_economists-argue-about-the-relative-impa_55417.jpg" --- # Economists argue about the relative impact of immigrants… ![“Economists argue about the relative impact of immigrants versus robots on wage stagnation - voters don't care much. They blame immigrants. It's easier to get mad at a person from Macedonia or Mexico, taking your job than it is to get mad at a piece of technology from Silicon Valley.” quote by Katty Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19a/katty-kay-8472_blame_economists-argue-about-the-relative-impa_55417.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19a/katty-kay-8472_blame_economists-argue-about-the-relative-impa_55417.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19a/katty-kay-8472_blame_economists-argue-about-the-relative-impa_55417.jpg) > “Economists argue about the relative impact of immigrants versus robots on wage stagnation - voters don't care much. They blame immigrants. It's easier to get mad at a person from Macedonia or Mexico, taking your job than it is to get mad at a piece of technology from Silicon Valley.” [Katty Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katty-kay/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote highlights how public discourse blames human immigration for wage issues, while overlooking the larger, less visible impact of automation and technology on labor markets. **In simple terms:** Immigration scapegoated over tech disruption. Key Takeaway Tech's role in wage stagnation is under‑recognized. Themes Economic inequality Labor market dynamics Technology displacement Immigration politics Public perception Mood Critical Skeptical Concerned Type Analytical Commentary Observation When to use this quote - Policy debates on job security - Media framing of economic issues - Voter attitudes toward immigration - Corporate tech adoption - Labor union discussions Key Concepts Wage stagnation Automation Immigrant labor Political rhetoric Practical Applications - Designing balanced economic policies - Educating public on automation impacts Questions to Reflect On - How might acknowledging automation change policy priorities? - What evidence could shift public blame from people to technology? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Immigrants](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/immigrants/) [Immigration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/immigration/) [Impact](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/impact/) [Job](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/job/) [Robots](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/robots/) [Silicon valley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silicon-valley/) [Technology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/technology/) ## Related quotes > [ \[Donald\] Trump is explained with the intersection of a number of things: our economic crisis, the way it's easier to blame immigrants, with the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junot-diaz/donald-trump-is-explained-with-the-intersection-of-a-number-of-things/) [Junot Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junot-diaz/) > [It is always easier to have somebody to blame, but immigrants are not the cause of the country's economic woes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pramila-jayapal/it-is-always-easier-to-have-somebody-to-blame-but-immigrants-are-not/) [Pramila Jayapal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pramila-jayapal/) > [It's the age old thing: If you want to get elected, blame immigrants. 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Athens in 50 BC, Florence 1500, Silicon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-weiner/you-look-around-the-world-at-geniuses-and-they-don-t-appear-randomly/) [Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/) > [Silicon Valley is like Wall Street in that it will fill and pursue market opportunities to their logical extremes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-yang/silicon-valley-is-like-wall-street-in-that-it-will-fill-and-pursue/) [Andrew Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-yang/) > [...Something we once loved, and love now, in the shape of a book. Maybe eBooks are going to take over, one day, but not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-t-davies/something-we-once-loved-and-love-now-in-the-shape-of-a-book-maybe/) [Russell T Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-t-davies/) > [Silicon Valley does not breed great technology. Instead, the smartest people from around the world tend to move to Silicon Valley.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-collison/silicon-valley-does-not-breed-great-technology-instead-the-smartest/) [Patrick Collison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-collison/) > [I think there are four or five interesting pockets where a lot of cool technology companies are getting started. Chicago is one of them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-lefkofsky/i-think-there-are-four-or-five-interesting-pockets-where-a-lot-of/) [Eric Lefkofsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-lefkofsky/) > [Autism is a big continuum, going from someone who remains nonverbal, all the way up to geniuses on Silicon Valley. And some kids are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/temple-grandin/autism-is-a-big-continuum-going-from-someone-who-remains-nonverbal/) [Temple Grandin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/temple-grandin/) > [The reason why Silicon Valley is a worldwide innovation center is because it is a open culture that embraces diversity. You see people from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-yuan/the-reason-why-silicon-valley-is-a-worldwide-innovation-center-is/) [Eric Yuan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-yuan/) > [Sometimes it feels hard to remember that Silicon Valley is an actual place, a collage of parched suburbs, and not just the collective noun…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tatiana-schlossberg/sometimes-it-feels-hard-to-remember-that-silicon-valley-is-an-actual/) [Tatiana Schlossberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tatiana-schlossberg/) > [Some article called me the most feared man in Silicon Valley. Good Lord! Why? My teenage boys got a kick out of it: 'Dad,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/some-article-called-me-the-most-feared-man-in-silicon-valley-good/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) ## More by Katty Kay > [“For years, she had a debilitating habit. She would sit on the bus on the way home from her lab creating a long list…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katty-kay/for-years-she-had-a-debilitating-habit-she-would-sit-on-the-bus-on/) [Katty Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katty-kay/) > [Globalisation, with inexorable speed, has changed the world we live in. For all of us. Jobs have changed, the way we trade has changed,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katty-kay/globalisation-with-inexorable-speed-has-changed-the-world-we-live-in/) [Katty Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katty-kay/) > [People are far too wrapped up in their own lives to care about what's happening to other people. Even if it is a moment's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katty-kay/people-are-far-too-wrapped-up-in-their-own-lives-to-care-about-what-s/) [Katty Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katty-kay/) > [In Rwanda, which has gone through a devastating civil war and has a per-capita income of $16 per year, half of members of Parliament…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katty-kay/in-rwanda-which-has-gone-through-a-devastating-civil-war-and-has-a/) [Katty Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katty-kay/) > [If you choose not to act, you have little chance of success. What’s more, when you choose to act, you’re able to succeed more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katty-kay/if-you-choose-not-to-act-you-have-little-chance-of-success-what-s/) [Katty Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katty-kay/) > [Politicians live in mortal terror of ever saying they are sorry about anything, because that would suggest they have been wrong. It is often…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katty-kay/politicians-live-in-mortal-terror-of-ever-saying-they-are-sorry-about/) [Katty Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katty-kay/) > [I read the news every night to millions of people around the world. It doesnt test my confidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katty-kay/i-read-the-news-every-night-to-millions-of-people-around-the-world-it/) [Katty Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katty-kay/) > [Boris Johnson and Donald Trump appeal to the heart not the head, they offer simple solutions in a time of complex problems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katty-kay/boris-johnson-and-donald-trump-appeal-to-the-heart-not-the-head-they/) [Katty Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katty-kay/) > [But democracy needs structure to work, in the form of laws and policies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katty-kay/but-democracy-needs-structure-to-work-in-the-form-of-laws-and-policies/) [Katty Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katty-kay/) > [My best teacher was my mother. 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