Trump's deplorable immigration policy is only getting worse it seems. While the administration has supposedly stopped separating undocumented children from their parents at the border, the children thay have been separated already have still not been reunited. And as there is currently a crisis at the border with all of the recent asylum seekers, they are increasingly being detained in deplorable conditions without adequate food, water, and sanitation. We literally have innocent children being treated worse than convicted felons in this country.
And yes, "concentration camps" is the correct term, since the dictionary definition is "the mass detention of civilans without trial". So it looks like AOC is apparently spot-on. This is how it started in 1930s Germany, after all--first they had detention camps, then slave-labor camps, and only from 1941 onward did they have extermination (death) camps.
Look, it is clear that a lot of people don't like the term "concentration camps". Maybe we should call them "torture camps" instead, given that what all too often occurs in them meets the internationally recognized definition of torture, especially when it involves children. Or perhaps we should call them "Trump Camps" to guarantee that historians forever attach their memory to his name and vile and disgusting legacy, while ironically giving him a perverse ego boost without him even seeing the irony.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration is planning even more ICE raids for the purpose of deporting more and more undocumented immigrants, including those who have been living here for years or decades and have no criminal records.
Clearly, such cruelty for cruelty's sake has NOT been any sort of deterrent, as the number of illegal border crossings has gone from the lowest it has been in years in much of 2017 to the highest it has been in decades by March 2019. Let that sink in.
That kinda backfired, didn't it? Meanwhile, the 100% preventable illnesses, injuries, and deaths of both children and adults in these camps just keep piling up every day that goes by. We can no longer call our country a "shining city on a hill" anymore as long as this continues. Even the late Ronald Reagan (who coined both that phrase, as well as the MAGA slogan, by the way) must be spinning in his grave right now.
To be sure, the crisis at the border does not have any easy, ready-made solutions at this point, and certainly requires thinking outside the box. Ideally, all immigrants should come in through the proper channels legally. But the system is currently broken, and when those proper channels are blocked off by the powers that be, for political reasons, clearly something has to give as a result. And the train has basically left the station at this point.
Don't look away. This is how it starts, people. The banality of evil, and "we were just following orders" and "the law is the law". So where's the long-overdue outrage? Remember, the only thing it takes for evil to prosper, is for good people to do nothing. Seriously.
Tuesday, June 25, 2019
Sunday, June 16, 2019
No War With Iran!
After the recent attacks on oil tankers in the Sea of Oman and Strait of Hormuz by an unknown attacker, Trump and his warmongering cronies are now hastily blaming Iran for these attacks. But there is plenty of reason to believe they are being, shall we say, "economical with the truth".
The timing alone is suspicious, as Trump has every reason to "wag the dog" to deflect from his ever-mounting scandals including, but not limited to, Russiagate. Also, the evidence is lacking and what little there is, just doesn't really seem to add up. And we know that Trump has been hell-bent on provoking Iran ever since pulling out of the nuclear deal last year. Time will tell, of course, but this really has "false flag" written all over it.
Besides, going to war with Iran would most likely be a disaster of epic proportions, and certainly not something to take lightly. And even if Iran does somehow turn out to be the culprit, the fact remains that the ships attacked were not even American tankers (they were Norwegian and Japanese), and fully zero Americans were harmed in the process. In fact, this was apparently a "property damage only" (PDO) incident. So let's NOT fall for this would-be modern-day Gulf of Tonkin incident and get sucked into yet another decades-long quagmire again.
The best foreign policy can be summed up in four words: "first, do no harm". Seriously, this is not a game, and the stakes have never been higher now.
UPDATE: Just a few days later on June 20, Iran confirmed that they shot down an unmanned American spy drone (again, PDO) that they claim was flying in their airspace, while the Trump administration claims it was over international waters. Time will tell who is telling the truth, perhaps even both if, for example, it turns out that the drone entered Iranian airspace first but was subsequently shot down over international waters. Maritime borders can be tricky and nuanced. Regardless, this is still not a good reason to go to war with Iran.
It is exceeding unlikely that the Orange Cheeto in Chief actually wants a shooting war with Iran. He himself has said as much. He would rather just bluff to make himself look tough while distracting from his myriad scandals closing in on him in the late stage of his failed presidency. And his puppetmaster Putin apparently doesn't want him to go to war with his buddy Iran, either. But now that Iran apparently called his bluff, and Bolton and Pompeo are still itching for war, the United States is now in a very precarious situation thanks to Trump's stupid bear-poking saber-rattling routines, and a war may still happen inadvertently in spite of him canceling it at the last minute. He is clearly like a crackhead playing with matches and gasoline, and every day he seems more and more unfit for the office of dogcatcher, let alone for the office of the Presidency.
The timing alone is suspicious, as Trump has every reason to "wag the dog" to deflect from his ever-mounting scandals including, but not limited to, Russiagate. Also, the evidence is lacking and what little there is, just doesn't really seem to add up. And we know that Trump has been hell-bent on provoking Iran ever since pulling out of the nuclear deal last year. Time will tell, of course, but this really has "false flag" written all over it.
Besides, going to war with Iran would most likely be a disaster of epic proportions, and certainly not something to take lightly. And even if Iran does somehow turn out to be the culprit, the fact remains that the ships attacked were not even American tankers (they were Norwegian and Japanese), and fully zero Americans were harmed in the process. In fact, this was apparently a "property damage only" (PDO) incident. So let's NOT fall for this would-be modern-day Gulf of Tonkin incident and get sucked into yet another decades-long quagmire again.
The best foreign policy can be summed up in four words: "first, do no harm". Seriously, this is not a game, and the stakes have never been higher now.
UPDATE: Just a few days later on June 20, Iran confirmed that they shot down an unmanned American spy drone (again, PDO) that they claim was flying in their airspace, while the Trump administration claims it was over international waters. Time will tell who is telling the truth, perhaps even both if, for example, it turns out that the drone entered Iranian airspace first but was subsequently shot down over international waters. Maritime borders can be tricky and nuanced. Regardless, this is still not a good reason to go to war with Iran.
It is exceeding unlikely that the Orange Cheeto in Chief actually wants a shooting war with Iran. He himself has said as much. He would rather just bluff to make himself look tough while distracting from his myriad scandals closing in on him in the late stage of his failed presidency. And his puppetmaster Putin apparently doesn't want him to go to war with his buddy Iran, either. But now that Iran apparently called his bluff, and Bolton and Pompeo are still itching for war, the United States is now in a very precarious situation thanks to Trump's stupid bear-poking saber-rattling routines, and a war may still happen inadvertently in spite of him canceling it at the last minute. He is clearly like a crackhead playing with matches and gasoline, and every day he seems more and more unfit for the office of dogcatcher, let alone for the office of the Presidency.
Friday, June 14, 2019
Take Back The Flag
Just pointing out that today is Flag Day. But this blog looks no different today because we display the Stars and Stripes every day (albeit inverted ever since Trump took office, as our nation is in distress).
To all the ignorant fools who burn it, remember what it is that you're really burning, and all those that fought and died for it. Those who consider themselves to be on the political left would be better served by "taking back the Flag" and waving it proudly, so it is not perverted into an ultra-right-wing symbol by the fascists. Make it clear that the government policies you oppose are not in the national interest. And let everyone know that you can just as strongly love this country as you fear its government. In fact, plenty of true patriots often do feel that way, and as Jefferson once said, "dissent is the highest form of patriotism."
The Flag is not Republican, Democrat, liberal, conservative, or belonging to any other faction. It is the American Flag, and it belongs to all of us. Live free or die!
To all the ignorant fools who burn it, remember what it is that you're really burning, and all those that fought and died for it. Those who consider themselves to be on the political left would be better served by "taking back the Flag" and waving it proudly, so it is not perverted into an ultra-right-wing symbol by the fascists. Make it clear that the government policies you oppose are not in the national interest. And let everyone know that you can just as strongly love this country as you fear its government. In fact, plenty of true patriots often do feel that way, and as Jefferson once said, "dissent is the highest form of patriotism."
The Flag is not Republican, Democrat, liberal, conservative, or belonging to any other faction. It is the American Flag, and it belongs to all of us. Live free or die!
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