Good piece. I agree with you that an immigrant's eligibility to stay in America shouldn't be judged only through the lens of professional accomplishments and skills. However, as a legal immigrant to this great country and I can say that it is not all that quick and easy to get permanent residency even though you are highly educated, qualified and working in a "skilled" profession. On top of the legal immigration process being so slow, having to prove that you are "skilled" or worthy enough of to gain approval of the current immigration system is quite taxing and affects our daily lives. Needless to say I have had my share of frustrations with this slow moving system. A good merit based system would be a boon to someone like me, but I am not sure when that is going to happen.