The Hateful Ten
Six Nine Ten governors have declared NO SYRIANS ALLOWED. Not because they are tending to their own needy and are thus unable provide food, clothing, or shelter for them. Or that their states are strained for space for even their own citizens. But because the refugees are Syrian and brown and how can they possibly know if any of them are terrorists?? You may have already read their remarks explaining why they steadfastly refuse to help victims of war, but if not I want you to read them all now:
Robert Bentley, Alabama: Stated he would “not place Alabamians at even the slightest possible risk of an attack on our people. Please continue to join me in praying for those who have suffered loss and those who will never allow freedom to fade at the hands of the terrorists.
Greg Abbot, Texas: Said to President Obama: “Neither you nor any federal official can guarantee that Syrian refugees will not be part of any terroristic activity. As such, opening our door to them irresponsibly exposes our fellow Americans to unacceptable peril.”
Mike Pence, Indiana: “[Indiana] has a long tradition of opening our arms and homes from around the world but, as governor, my first responsibility is to ensure the safety and security of all Hoosiers. Unless and until the state of Indiana receives assurances that proper security measures are in place, this policy will remain in full force and effect.”
Bobby Jindal, Louisiana: “I just signed an executive order instructing state agencies to take all available steps to stop the relocation of Syrian refugees to LA.”
Rick Snyder, Michigan: “Michigan is a welcoming state and we are proud of our rich history of immigration, but our first priority is protecting the safety of our residents.”
Asa Hutchinson, Arkansas: “This is not the right strategy for the United States to become a permanent place for relocation.”
Charlie Baker, Massachusetts: “No, I’m not interested in accepting refugees from Syria…My view on this is the safety and security of the people of the Commonwealth of Mass[achusetts] is my highest priority.”
Pence and Snyder seem to be suffering from some sort of multiple personality disorder. Both of their statements reduce to “We’re proud of our history of welcoming those in need.” followed by “We aren’t welcoming those in need.” Up until Monday, Michigan was actively working to attract Syrian refugees but Snyder shut that right down.
Governor Abbot feels it is irresponsible to open our doors to Syrian refugees because President Obama is not clairvoyant and is unable to foresee future terrorist acts on US soil and who will be committing them. Pop quiz. Name the ethnicities and religions of the perpetrators who committed the overwhelming majority of the terrorist acts on US soil in the last decade?
Baker seems to not have closed the door entirely. But he’s a Republican, so he has to at least appear to have shut the door and hope no one notices he left it unlocked.
Then there’s Bobby Jindal.
But my favorite quote comes from Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson. “This is not the right strategy for the United States to become a permanent place for relocation.” That’s right. The US is NOT a place for permanent relocation. I apologize for using the following cliché: Someone really should have let the Native Americans know.
I understand the concern of allowing wave upon wave of refugees into any nation without a plan for how to house, feed, and care for them but the alternative here is to condemn them to death by leaving them stuck in the middle of a war-zone, one side of which who uses the slaughter of innocent men, women, and children as a measure of success. Possessing the means and ability to help people and refusing not to out of fear isn’t American. It’s cowardice.
It’s not just politicians either. On social media there’s relentless fear mongering regarding Paris, terrorists, and refugees. Blaming Muslim President Obama for aiding the terrorists and criticizing those visibly standing in solidarity with the French simultaneously welcoming refugees as if one precludes the other. Whining that we need a REAL leader to stand up for the American people. Perhaps most insultingly, demanding we keep all Syrian refugees out while at the same time expressing sympathetic and empathetic tendencies to all those whose lives have been destroyed by terrorism. There are no prefixes needed there. Endorsing genocide and xenophobia is just pathetic. Neither are traits that should be found in a leader.
As I was about to hit publish on this post, I read an article that says Ted Cruz is calling for admission of Christian refugees only into the US. No Muslims allowed. I literally can’t even.
I am not afraid to care too much. All humans should be humanitarians. All of us should strive to face the challenges we see our neighbors facing and give them a hand when they trip or fall along the way. We live in a big world, with billions of people, we’re separated by oceans, by valleys, by mountains, but what separates us from each other the most are our own prejudices and fears. How sad that it is not the tens of thousands of miles from coast to coast [that separate us] but rather our own ignorance and selfishness. -Christy Mannering
For all the disagreements I’ve had with President Obama over the last 7 years, I can say he is a leader and an adult and acting like both:
“We also have to remember that many of these refugees are the victims of terrorism themselves. That’s why they’re fleeing. Slamming the door in their faces would be a betrayal of our values. Our nations can welcome refugees who are desperately seeking safety and ensure our own security. We can and must do both.”
“We don’t have religious tests to our compassion.” – President Barack Obama.
Tags: Barack Obama, compassion, genocide, Immigration, integrity, ISIL, ISIS, Leadership, Paris, President Obama, racism, refugees, Syria, War, xenophobia
Republicans always seem to go for the easy action that sounds like it is accomplishing something. Trump (leading the GOP) wants to “bomb the shit out of them” as if that is some policy.
Because of our vast wealth, and physical isolation, the USA is the laziest, stupidest country in the world.
“Because of our vast wealth, and physical isolation, the USA is the laziest, stupidest country in the world.”
Yup… But we’re “exceptional” at that laziness and stupidity, so Yay American Exceptionalism!
For what it’s worth check out Chris Coons post on Facebook about a job fair at Deltech, all the comments are about Syrian refugees and I don’t think all came from Sussex either. Most are of the semi hysterical variety, some are openly racists and many drip hatred as well. Delaware, be not proud.
Brian Stephan, are you inferring that we should let any refugee in to our country who wants to come here without vetting them?
No Rusty. I’m inferring that we already do “vet” refugees, even those fleeing in emergent situations like being slaughtered for just being alive if they stuck around. To use the argument that we are just letting anyone kick down the door and walk into the country is flat out false, serving no other purpose than to generate unfounded fear.
I hope Jack Markell says we won’t take any of them. It’s win win for me as a liberal. I get to bitch and whine about us not being like the hateful people of this world, and I get to be secretly happy I don’t have to worry about a terrorist in Delaware.
I hope Jack does the right thing, so I can yell from my soapbox
Brian Stephan, we obviously don’t vet them stringently enough, because they have been proven responsible for a substantial amount of violent crime.
Who are “they”, Rusty?
Brian, who have we been talking about? Refugees
Refugees have been proven responsible for a substantial amount of violent crime? You wanna stick with that claim?
I was going to ask him the same question, Pandora. Because everything I’ve read says immigrants and refugees commit less crime than their native born counterparts. Many understand what it would mean for them to run afoul of the law.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigration_and_crime_in_the_United_States#Crime
Where did you see data to support your claim Rusty?
This particular masacre did not happen “this time” in our country, but it will, and soon, if we do things Brian’s and Pandora’s way
One of the three bombers in the Paris killings who detonated themselves at the Stade de France late Friday arrived on the Greek Island of Leros on October 3rd, among numerous Syrian refugees. An unnamed French senator told CNN that the man was carrying a fake or doctored Syrian passport and also a registration document for refugee status issued by Greek authorities
http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/15/world/paris-attacks/index.html
The Boston Bombers were “refugees”!
I’m not convinced that we have the ability to vet someone, who has no identification, from a war torn country where records, if they exist at all, are piecemeal at best. It doesn’t change the fact that they are refugees. But let’s not paint a picture that we are able to ascertain who is or is not a threat with any degree of certainty
49,933 = the Number of Homeless Veterans in the US. Let’s take care of the ones, who fight for our freedom!
http://www.endhomelessness.org/library/entry/fact-sheet-veteran-homelessness
Was Timothy McVeigh a refugee? Or the kids in Columbine or the shooter in Connecticut? I could go on and on…
It really is quite fascinating when one takes time to look up some information. And where in the world did this “Syrian immigrants v. homeless veterans” debate come from? Come on people, is that the best you can do? Now, perhaps I could understand an “Syrian immigrant v. adequate funding for schools in Wilmington” but even that would be stretching it.
From the Economic Policy Institute (a fascinating read: http://www.epi.org/publication/immigration-facts/.)
“Immigrants have an outsized role in U.S. economic output because they are disproportionately likely to be working and are concentrated among prime working ages. Indeed, despite being 13 percent of the population, immigrants comprise 16 percent of the labor force. Moreover, many immigrants are business owners. In fact, the share of immigrant workers who own small businesses is slightly higher than the comparable share among U.S.-born workers. (Immigrants comprise 18 percent of small business owners.)”
From what I have seen and heard, many of the Syrian refugees are well-educated professionals looking for peace. There is a shortage of tech workers in our economy; this is holding back economic development. To me, embracing Syrian refugees is a win. How do I sign up to host a family?
Evolve de, first you should contact the parents of the U.S. citizen who was killed in the paris attacks, and 2nd, email the state department and make them your offer to host syrian refugees. If you wont do those two things, then your words are just that, words, and they are meaniglesd. Make sure and copy me on both those emails
What really sickens me is that the racists seem to think that this is a good time to trot out their disgusting racism for all to see. …and a good time for the politicians to pander to those very racists.
The exploitation of Paris is disgusting!!
Thar be racists here.
Yep, LE. They don’t even hide behind dog whistles anymore.
Rusty is ridiculous, as usual. Holding all Syrians responsible for the Paris attack? There is only us and them to Rusty, and if innocents die he only cares if they are American. That sounds exactly like what ISIS says.
Anonymous loves his either/or strawman arguments. He uses them when he’s losing an argument.
And it’s largely because of immigrants that the US doesn’t drift off into being a fat, white, lazy mediocre nation
Google contributions of Syrian immigrants.
why don’t we pay the saudis or somebody to take care of the immigrants in their own area? seems like some of you are more worried that you’ll be perceived as racist (or anti-religion) than with taking ordinary precautions to keep out people who are more likely to be terrorists than other immigrants would be. we’re not talking about rounding up people who are already here and putting them in camps or something.
the far left is out of step with most people in this country on this. be careful you don’t help get some awful republican elected because of your sanctimonious attitude.
I see. We’re racists for wanting to help people fleeing wars instead of keeping them out because they might be terrorists even though plenty of Syrians have built successful lives for themselves in the US. Yep. That’s racism right there.
Good point on the Saudis caring for them though. They have an outstanding human rights record.
I wonder what percentage of conservative republicans have any idea of the policy issues and complexity associated with sorting out Sunni, Shia, Alewife, Persian and Kurd. I wonder what percentage could discuss the historical implications of rounding up 12 million people for deportation. Rubes
From Rusty: “first you should contact the parents of the U.S. citizen who was killed in the paris attacks”
I’ll happily go speak with them, Rusty… But first I’m going to stop and speak to the parents/family of the folks gunned down by the Roof kid in Charleston. Then I’m going to swing up to Connecticut and talk to the families of the kids and teachers killed by the Lanza kid. Then, on my way out to California to speak to the parents of that girl, I figured I’d stop off in Colorado to talk to the families of the people killed in Aurora and Columbine. Topic of conversation will probably be that most American citizens and officials don’t give a shit about containing and controlling their own homegrown terrorism and mass-killings.
I know I’m tilting at windmills with this statement, but you really should stop pretending like you give a shit about loss of life and terrorism and protecting American citizens, because there have been 325 mass shootings in the U.S. through November 9th (“mass”=3 or more k/w) and all we’ve heard from the likes of you is the old yarn “the only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun.”
brian stephan: learning to read would help you discuss these things. i said you’re afraid you’ll be perceived as racist unless you support letting the refugees in. (might have been worded a little better, but the point is clear.) most regular dl commentators are better than what you show here. no, not rusty.
and i think the saudis might do anything at all for money. in any case, the refugees are a middle-eastern problem.
@mouse: “I wonder what percentage of conservative republicans have any idea of the policy issues and complexity associated with sorting out Sunni, Shia, Alewife, Persian and Kurd.”
Probably a unshockingly low percentage since the only complexity those same folks would see is “They’re Brown… Brown bad… Me hate brown.”
and by the way, i want the refugees to be helped. that’s why i’d be willing to spend money to make that happen. i just want it to happen in the region where the problem originated.
Yeah, and ignorance gains high status in conservative republican circles. Especially for those who “believe” dogma over science
Much like our inability to care for the veterans we send to war, we as a nation want to bomb away our problems, and not deal with the fall out which in this case is refugees.
I’m waiting for an adult in the room of Congress to say, “See…see….this is what happens when you launch perpetual war”
Much like the war on drugs, the war on poverty, the war on terror creates more problems then it solves.
But it’s very profitable business to be in…
by the way again, i realize the refugee question is a relatively small matter (though not to them!) compared with other terrorist-related things. it just seems to be the issue of the day.
Well other anonymous, guess I’ll have to live with not being up to par with the regulars here. And so will you. I’ve diligently been practicing my reading skills for the last 30 years maybe one day I’ll attain your level of mastery. Until then I’ll just have to plug along.
I read what you wrote. Perhaps you should read what I wrote. I have no fear of being perceived as or actually being racist. It’s laughable that you identify fear of being racist as the motivation for doing the right thing for these civilians who are just trying to stay alive. I think that says more about you than me.
War and refugees are global problems. I know we’ve got it good with two big oceans insulating us from those Middle Easterners but the fact you are now so worried about Syrians coming here (even though they’ve been immigrating here for years) tells me that you really don’t believe it’s confined the Middle East. Whatever keeps you happy in your bubble though, I guess.
I’m sure you do want the refugees helped. Just not in your backyard.
It’s not like we have a giant statue that expressly welcomes people from all over the world….. I wanna say… yearning to breathe free, or something like that.
brian stephan: i said fear of BEING PERCEIVED AS racist might be your motivation. when you say you “have no fear of . . . actually being racist” (read your sentence again) that’s not what you mean. if i thought finding another way of helping these people was ACTUALLY racist i would not suggest it. but if you defend yourself against a person of color who is trying to hurt you, is that racist?
again, i think too much focus on the refugee issue kind of gets us sidetracked. it’s a small part of the overall terrorist problem. and i want liberals to get this right, because i don’t want some yahoo like cruz or huckabee or trump to be president. or god forbid, ben carson. that’s not racist either.
and brian stephan: i’m not meaning to insult you. you’re clearly a smart guy. i just think it’s important we all understand each other. that can be hard in quick-hit blog posts.
Understanding is key. Don’t worry, I’m not insulted in the slightest. And I understand my motivation for writing what I have. None it because of a fear of being perceived as racist if I didn’t write it. I wrote it because it’s the right thing to do. It’s what I’d expect other nations to do for us if the US were in a similar predicament. If the US were torn apart by civil war, I wouldn’t want to barred entry to Canada as a refugee because I’m a young white male and in the US young white males are more likely to commit mass murder. How could Canadian officials tell me, as a white guy, apart from a mass murdering white guy?
Barring entry because they’re all brown and from one part of the world and “how can we tell if a terrorist is mixed in with them” is discriminating against an entire group of people based on appearance and ethnicity. And that, believe it or not, is racist. And xenophobic. I’m not really looking to agree with you or reevaluate my liberal ideology.
Asking Saudi Arabia to take in refugees isn’t racist on its own, though it’s not very smart given the Saudis track record of human rights violations. But asking them to do so because we’re can’t tell which brown person might be a terrorist is, I’m afraid, a tad bit on the xenophobic side. Just like when you say the refugee issue is getting us sidetracked because it’s a small part of the terrorist problem. The equation of middle eastern people of color with terrorists is absurd. “Defending yourself against a person of color who is actually trying to hurt you.” I really don’t know who the people of color you want to defend yourself from are.
I don’t want Carson, Trump, Huckabee et al elected either but not because they’re black, white, old, young, or male. It’s because they’re insane, racist, xenophobic, homophobic, regressive fear mongerers. See the difference?
Copy me on all those emails your are sending prop joe