Has anyone else been revolted by the level of xenophobia toward refugees today?

It seems everywhere I look people are equating children with ISIS. And demanding they not be allowed into the country.

Thanks Faux News and Co...

TheViking wrote:Thanks Faux News and Co...

And eight governors for playing along.

Disgusted across the board.

I am proud that Pennsylvania is one of a few states welcoming refugees. Hopefully that persists.

I don't see how refusing to accept refugees makes anyone safer. It's not rational or ethical. Just embarrassing.

KnightsFan wrote:

TheViking wrote:Thanks Faux News and Co...

And eight governors for playing along.

Now up to twenty-three Governors twenty-two are Republican one Democratic in New Hampshire. They act like they have the right to say no but they don't.

http://www.vox.com/2015/11/16/9746456/m ... -governors

I think the GOP presidential candidates statements of what they would do is just as reprehensible.

Just feeds to their base. If it's like this next year come elections, it'll be reminiscent of 2004 and all the "terror" warnings.

KnightsFan wrote:

TheViking wrote:Thanks Faux News and Co...

And eight governors for playing along.

Including the republican governor of Massachusetts. Way to stay classy gov.

I've had to mark my 'melt down the Statue of Liberty, turn the Light on the Hill off and put out the closed sign' as sarcasm. I had people agreeing...

Makes me want to hurl.

Those Rethug govs (plus their Dem ride-alongs) infect America with their cowardice and cruelty. They degrade our nation.

And how does saying no really work? Once they come to the US, they can move around as they please. It's really just a feel good measure to make their base happy.

Here's the real moat in the eye; while a few teaheads and other far-right people LOVE institutionalized xenophobia, almost nobody is super pro Syrian immigration. Those governors can pander to the racist right here because nobody gives more than a fraction of a shit the other way.

Paco wrote:Those Rethug govs (plus their Dem ride-alongs) infect America with their cowardice and cruelty. They degrade our nation.

This. For years now, we have squandered opportunities to export that which is best about us: openness, inclusion, generosity, and democratic ideals that we say we care so much about; we could have done all this and more by accepting refugees from the nightmare that is Syria and, in doing so, created populations here and abroad that regard us with appreciation, respect, and maybe even a little gratitude. Pity that so many of our craven state governors and Presidential hopefuls think so little of American ideals. It is worse than disgusting: It is embarrassing. Given our history and cultural makeup, it is also un-American.

While I entirely agree with the OP, it probably isn't extremely helpful to demonize those that don't have the same opinion as us. Painting the "others" as mortal enemies instead of discussing their (mostly stupid) ideas is what got us a polarized society. Applies to xenophobia too.

The Donald has announced that he would consider closing all mosques, proving 1) he doesn't take advise from a set of knowledgable advisors, and 2) he has not read or understood the constitution.

Yeah: thanks faux snooze for all the fear. This is totally lost on them:


Another, text, version of the above cartoon has a pregnant Middle Eastern couple on a donkey seeking refuge from persecution...

CDFingers

Why do you assume that the "refugees" are in fact all innocent women and children? What are the demographics of these refugees? If it's like Europe, the vast majority are young adult men who are obviously well fed and show no signs of enduring the hardships of war. Are you comfortable with the screening that our government does, or does not do, to ensure that each person being brought in is not a terrorist or a terrorist sympathizer?

FiremanBob wrote:Why do you assume that the "refugees" are in fact all innocent women and children? What are the demographics of these refugees? If it's like Europe, the vast majority are young adult men who are obviously well fed and show no signs of enduring the hardships of war. Are you comfortable with the screening that our government does, or does not do, to ensure that each person being brought in is not a terrorist or a terrorist sympathizer?

Srsly? "Show no signs of enduring the hardships of war?" What a load of BS.

Wondered when the right wing trolls would make an appearance.

And now this:

http://www.nationalreview.com/article/4 ... hLPBPPA.01

Trying to show us that it makes financial sense to keep them in countries close to their own. Except those countries cannot afford to help them, and our GOP-ruled government would block aid for that.

FiremanBob wrote:Why do you assume that the "refugees" are in fact all innocent women and children? What are the demographics of these refugees? If it's like Europe, the vast majority are young adult men who are obviously well fed and show no signs of enduring the hardships of war. Are you comfortable with the screening that our government does, or does not do, to ensure that each person being brought in is not a terrorist or a terrorist sympathizer?

http://www.factcheck.org/2015/09/stretc ... -refugees/

UNHCR’s data show that 50.5 percent of refugees are women. Females age 18 to 59 make up 23.9 percent of the refugees, while males in that age group make up 21.8 percent.

Even younger males — age 12 to 17 — represent 6.5 percent of refugees, while females that age are 6.1 percent. The majority of refugees — 51.1 percent — are under age 17, including 38.5 percent who are younger than 12 years old. These numbers were as of Sept. 6.

US is not Europe. Heterogeneous population of 320,000,000, two and a half times more land than all of EU, much less population density, different cultural values, etc.

The benefits of accepting a handful of refugees greatly outweigh the negligible security risks, in my opinion.

He does bring up a point. What is the vetting process? Even in our heyday running people through Ellis Island, they did quarantine people and send people back. According to the tour I took there.

I think bringing them here wouldn't have the same issues of a million or two walking across the border and overwhelming the local border areas and cities.