Don't Bother With Your Tired, Your Poor, Or Your Huddled Masses

used by permission © 2015 Steven G. Artley

If Mary and Joseph showed up at the refugee table next week, they might be denied visas because a rather vocal segment of these here United States has decided that only Christians from Syria should be allowed refugee status. Problem is, Mary and Joseph weren't Christian. They were Jews and they were from the Middle East. Based on Jeb!'s statement, or Dr. Ben's rhetoric, they would not have been granted refugee status.  

Seems to me, Clown Cavalcade of GOP hopefuls, all your religiosity is nothing more than hot air. Where is the compassion? Where is the desire to help your fellow human? All the stuff your savior preached throughout his career is meaningless to you? 

You would rather wage war over a ridiculous red coffee cup then lift a damn finger to help with the humanitarian crisis raging in half the world. You talk about boots-on-the-ground and bombing Syria with not a single thought about what happens next. Like Iraq was such a screaming success, let's do it again.

Come to think of it, the GOP isn't all that far removed from radical Islam, is it? They talk about everlasting life when instead they broker death with their guns-for-everyone policies. They want to put prayer in schools just like the madrases. They want everyone to follow their particular brand of religion while demonizing everyone else. Gee, fellas, I would think you would welcome ISIS with open arms and boxes of ammo.

In his speech on Monday, November 16th, President Obama said:

When I hear folks say that, well, maybe we should just admit the Christians but not the Muslims; when I hear political leaders suggesting that there would be a religious test for which a person who’s fleeing from a war-torn country is admitted, when some of those folks themselves come from families who benefitted from protection when they were fleeing political persecution—that’s shameful. That’s not American. That’s not who we are. We don’t have religious tests to our compassion.

Apparently POTUS was wrong, because there are a whole lotta petitions going around saying that's exactly who we are. 

The governors who say they are closing their borders to refugees are morons. Unless you are checking all travel papers at the interstate toll booths, there is no restriction on travel within the US. These are the same clowns who talk about the importance of life, but do not give a damn about helping people survive. They talk about the sanctity of the family, yet they throw entire families to the wolves of war. Talk about hypocrites!

And for the record, you don't exactly walk up to the gangplank and say, "Hi, I'm a refugee; take me to America." The steps to even get refugee status are rigorous and begin with an appearance before the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) who determines status based on the parameters established in 1951. Once refugee status is conferred, you will be referred to one of several countries who have opened the doors to certified refugees. No, the system isn't perfect, but it sure as hell beats people swimming across the Mediterranean and walking north from Greece. By the way, those aren't refugees....those are migrants. Apples and oranges. 

Syrian refugee family arrives in Canada

This is a big country. There is plenty of room for a few thousand broken families to find peace and security if only for a little while. Many expect to return to Syria when it is safe again, and view the US not as a permanent address, but as a place to heal. These are not radicals. These are not terrorists. These are people whose lives have been disrupted and destroyed by ISIS. We should be taking them in. We should be a safe haven. We should be everything we tell ourselves we are. Leaving them to die in a war zone is the most uncharitable act I can think of. That anyone can think of. 

If you consider yourself to be an American, if you consider yourself to be patriotic, if you consider yourself to be a believer in the Constitution of these here United States, and consider yourself of be a dues-paying member of We, the People, get off your collective butts and start acting like it. Tell your governors and your congressclowns that  we want to host and help the Syrian refugees. We want them to experience a free and productive society. We want to give them something to take home: the idea that freedom is worth the fight.

Wifely Person's Tip o'the Day

Now would be a good time to go through closets and drawers

to get clothing ready for donation. 

Keep in mind, furniture will also be needed.