flattr this!   In discussing this topic on that website and
amongst friends here in Amsterdam, one common concern that
people bring up to defend the policy sounds something like this:
“Using DNA will ensure that immigrants aren’t lying about who is
family.”  I realize many people agree with this, on the surface
it is a simple request, that people not lie. But when I hear
this comment, my mind travels to the past.. to who I am and how
I got to be where I am.. or better yet.. how I got to be at all.
Or beyond me, what about all the people all over the world, who
are the children of immigrants or the grandchildren of
immigrants… what if they had had DNA testing? The idea that
people would not have been able to lie in any aspect of the
immigration process would have basically changed the entire face
of the western world, destination for many immigrants over the
past 300 years. The midwest of the United States, with its huge
Scandinavian population… imagine they had not been able to lie
about who is who’s cousin o