Syrian War

Who’s Violent?

cjones11182015

It’s hard to draw a cartoon on something that’s already a cartoon. A state legislature in Texas, who’s a gun advocate and has an A plus rating from the NRA, says we shouldn’t allow refugees into this country because guns are so easy to buy here. You can’t make up this kind of irony.

That’s a new one in the argument against allowing Syrian refugees into this country. It falls into line with conservatives saying we can’t afford benefits for the refugees. Conservatives are fighting against benefits to poor people, minorities and women who have been born here. It’s also a little bizarre that the pro-life crowd cares about a fetus, but not a child fleeing a civil war…but then again, they also don’t care about American children shot in their classrooms. Conservatives are cowards.

Back to the argument about terrorist sneaking in with refugees:

In fact, over 2,000 on the terrorist watch list has legally purchased a gun in the past decade. You can thank the NRA for that.

Your odds of being killed in a terrorist attack is one in 20 million. Meanwhile, everyday in the United States 33 people are killed by guns. Since 1968, more Americans have died from guns than all of our wars combined. In 2010, 2.694 young Americans were killed by guns including 1,773 victims of homicide, and 67 elementary school-aged children. You’re really worried about being killed by a refugee? You have better odds of being killed by your neighbor in a lawnmower dispute.

Conservatives like to point out that the Boston Bombing Brothers were refugees. Not true. Their family sought asylum after arriving in the U.S. on tourist visas. The brothers were children at the time. Does that mean nobody should be allowed entry into this country?

If a Muslim shoots someone in this country there are immediate fears of terrorism. If a black man kills a white man we look for gang violence. If a white guy shoots up a church we wonder where did that boy go wrong. The odds are that if you’re murdered the perpetrator will be a member of your own race.

Now don’t you feel like you need to stop worrying about Syrian refugees and return your neighbor’s lawnmower?

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Rejected Refugees

cjones11172015

It seems apparent that one of the terrorists who attacked Paris sneaked in with Syrian refugees. Whether the passport he used is fake or not doesn’t seem relevant as the Greek government took his fingerprints as he came across their border.

Republicans didn’t need to know that to freak out. They tend to be xenophobic on any given day. Jeb Bush says we should only take in Christian refugees and deny Muslims. Nothing like a dash of Islamophobia to go with your xenophobia.

Twenty six (as of this blogging) Republican governors have declared their states will not take in any Syrian refugees. Never mind the fact they don’t have the authority to do that. You would think that out of 26 people capable of being elected governor of a U.S. state, at least one would have some sort of concept of the law, or at least look into it before spouting off.

If the U.S. takes in refugees it will only be about 10,000, which isn’t many compared to the numbers fleeing the civil war in Syria. These people forget that white people born and corn fed here in the good ole U.S. of A. pose a greater danger than any number of refugees ever will. ISIS couldn’t kill as many Americans as Americans can. We’re good about that.

These refugees are not terrorists. They’re fleeing terrorists. They will be vetted better than most immigrants who come here, and hopefully with a better vetting process than Jeb Bush is offering (do you accept Jesus?). Speaking of immigrants who come here, everyone complaining is a descendant of immigrants and refugees.

Here’s another pesky fact: Under the Refugee Act of 1980, the president may admit refugees who face “persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion” into the United States, and the president’s power to do so is particularly robust if they determine that an “unforeseen emergency refugee situation.” Guess who fits that description? No. Not Alabama liberals. Syrian refugees.

In fact their situation is so bad, they will probably think Arkansas and Oklahoma are improvements upon their current situation.

These governors can prevent refugees from benefiting from state services. Since these guys are Republicans are grandstanders I think they should just assure us that no state services will pay for Syrian refugee abortions.

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