Your argument is that Americans are lazy and dumb, but your evidence is weak. One could argue that Americans are smart because they realize that the opportunit

Your argument is that Americans are lazy and dumb, but your evidence is weak. One could argue that Americans are smart because they realize that the opportunity cost of pursuing a PhD is too high to be worth it for most. Trying to run an exe on Linux is a newbie mistake, not an empirical statement on American versus H1B quality of candidates. This just means that particular individual had limited experience with multiple operating systems--not all that uncommon. I'd argue, instead, that the H1Bs are more motivated in general (having known a few). The labor market is less liquid for them so they're more motivated... Some I've known are super paranoid about underperforming, losing their jobs, and getting deported. Versus an American employee who knows they can find another job, and have no concern about deportation. Add to this the selection bias (H1B is intended to bring over the best and the brightest), and you have your answer