Q has hit the nail on the head - "Any solution, as I see it, involves building up opportunities in the regions from which they come, but the 'West' is doing little or nothing in this regard."

Until the 'West' stops waging war in Muslim countries, the tide of immigration from those countries will not cease. Muslim people would prefer to remain in the Middle East and retain their cultural values but are being forced out by war. You can't expect people to stop being who they are because they want to survive. In fact, they want to survive because of who they are.

Alba - I find the Dutch immigration DVD, interesting but I think it may have gone too far or maybe not far enough. I too, see that many Canadian immigrants are ill prepared for the reality of our social system and our laws. I don't see language as a big obstacle. Remember that very few American or Canadian immigrants in the past, could speak English. In fact, I wonder if immigrants from other countries are expected to speak Dutch. The language issue is usually resolved within a generation if the rights of their children are respected.

What I do think immigrants need to know is that they are expected to not only tolerate but embrace, the rights of women and children. These rights must be clearly understood. In addition, they must understand their responsibilities. In other words, freedom of religion is secondary to the laws of the land.

Being Canadian, I have no problem with a liberal immigration policy. I love being a part of a multi-cultural society. People from other countries enrich our understanding of the world and contribute greatly to our economy but immigration officials have to do their part. Its not fair to dump the educational component on the school system or the social-welfare system. Instead of constantly 'putting out fires', the pro-active way is to educate those coming into the country.

Having said that, I think the Dutch government has tried to be pro-active and should not be criticized for 'coming up short'. Perhaps other countries will take the lead and produce a better means of educating immigrants.

Until then, get Halliburton out and start repairing the Middle East with training and education and start paying Muslim labourers a decent wage. Stop importing labour from other countries to repair the infrastructure. Create jobs and stability in the Middle East and the population will not have to flee for their lives.