About the Refugees

[peacetraveler22]

"In the end only kindness matters." It's not merely a phrase or tag line for my blog. I care about humanity, and hope to leave a positive legacy and impact on the world during my lifetime, no matter how small. Almost everywhere I travel, I try to understand the humans I encounter, their place in the world, and how they got there. This was the case during my trip to Israel last year, where so many of my travel companions visited only holy sites. While in East Jerusalem, I left the group to visit a refugee camp. It wasn't filled with Syrians, of course, but Palestinians who basically live in dire circumstances, and garbage filled plots. This experience changed my life, and the emotions that overcame me during the visit will never be accurately conveyed in words. It was there I met the young girl pictured in this photo, and many others like her, who are basically born into chaos and instability. Perhaps I'll tell you their story later this week, but I just want to say a few words about the current refugee crisis.

Last week, I grew tired of watching media coverage of this event. I don't support the decision of the press to publish the photo of that poor drowned child, Aylan, on the Turkish shore. In my view, it's mere exploitation, and shows a lack of respect for the family. The purpose of it I'll never understand, except to note that in today's society provocative images feed mass culture and generate hysteria, for both better and worse. Each night on various American channels, we see dramatic stories about the crisis, pulling on viewers' heart strings by showing weeping mothers with children desperately clinging to their arms. Weary fathers and young men stepping out of boats and flimsy rafts, their feet now on safer shores after harrowing sea journeys. Angry old women screaming about abuse by Hungarian and other European border officials. Many of the refugees seemingly unwilling to settle for anything other than Germany or Britain - two of the most prosperous countries in the EU. This is the most perplexing part of the current situation for me. Having personally worked with refugees and asylum seekers in my legal career, I can say that most who are desperate to leave behind the horrors of their homeland will seek refuge in the first country in which they cross. They don't make demands, or pick and choose the country into which they will assimilate. Their new home is almost always the first foreign soil on which they step foot - either by land, sea, train or other transport. The goal - to make it to ANY country that is safer and better than the one from which they fled. The current crisis is unique to some extent, as Hungary and other countries have made it clear the refugees aren't wanted and there's no ability to accommodate them.

What's the answer? No one can know, not even the leaders of nations who are partly to blame for the crisis, including the EU and America. Russia also, as Putin has openly admitted supporting the Assad regime. I've read a lot of posts about this situation on LiveJournal, and hundreds of comments. Xenophobia runs rampant, complete intolerance and even a gleeful attitude by some that Europe and America is getting what they deserve. Yet almost none of the commentors offer any type of solution. The crisis is here, staring Europe and the West in the face, and inaction isn't a viable option at this point. The influx of humanity is too large.

I've said over and over again that I'm very sympathetic to immigrants, and civil societies should make efforts to accommodate refugees, but there are limits. And this is the dilemma. The intricate balance between true humanitarian relief, and allowing millions of free loaders into a system that will eventually feed them money, medicine and other social benefits. Or, even worse, allowing a select few to seek refuge, only to have them turn in the future and try to annihilate the citizens of the very country which took them in. We've seen it before right here on U.S. soil, with the Chechen bombers.

I've noticed that many people in comments to other posts focus on the fact that the majority of those crossing are young men. Where are all the women and children, they say? To me, this isn't so unusual. Young men come, they have the ability, strength and capacity to work and earn in a new country. Poor families don't have the financial resources to pay smugglers to escort entire families. Once the men are settled, and especially if they are able to obtain some type of asylum protection, there is a solid basis to bring the rest of the family over legally under most Western systems.

Then, I see photos like this in the press. Young men taking selfies after arrival on the Greek shoreline. I'm sorry, but true refugees are typically terrified and would never contemplate such action. Or, has social media and technology made the world so narcissistic that even those fleeing war and tragedy need to post selfies on Facebook? It's completely unfathomable to me. I'm a tolerant person, but such images cause a lot of doubt in my mind about the plight of some of the people demanding entry into Europe. This group of men - they are clearly economic migrants. Not refugees. There's a huge difference. Both under the law, and from a humanitarian perspective.



What do you think?  How should Europe handle the crisis? What will America do? Open the flood gates and allow asylum petitions for the Syrians? I would offer my opinion, but honestly I have no idea how to handle this political and humanitarian crisis. Offer your opinions, but please be respectful in the comments.

Comments

[leo-sosnine.livejournal.com]

Build a wall and pass through this wall only those who proved their worthiness.

[serjiojitser.livejournal.com]

Сирийские дети выглядят кротко, но их родители не всегда ведут себя хорошо. Многие беженцы приносят фундаментальный Ислам, криминал и средневековые обычаи на Запад. Не удивительно, что их никто не хочет принимать.
Я думаю, Запад должен помочь остановить войну на Ближнем Востоке. Это будет лучшей помощью.
Как конкретно я не знаю. Возможно надо отбомбится по Ассаду, как было сделано с Каддафи.

Syrian kids look cute, but their parents, not always behave in the best way. A lot of refugees bring fundamentalist Islam, crime and mid evil customs to Western World. So no wonder they are not welcome.
I believe West should help to stop war(s) in the Middle East. This would be best help.
How exactly I'm not sure. Maybe just bomb Assad, similar to previous dictator Qaddafi.

[sov0k.livejournal.com]

Global government that will abolish all private property is the only chance for the survival of human civilization. Until that changes are going to be only for the worse.

[bloger-d.livejournal.com]

these are black haches and churkas

they are famous for their composers and mathematicians

[agathpher.livejournal.com]

I totally agree with your assessment of the current refugee crisis, and totally at odds with your opinion of the Palestinian refugees.

Why do they stick around in Israel when they hate it so much? (I presume you are aware that annihilation of Israel is one of the major goals of the Palestinian leadership, which they announce periodically).

Why was Israel able and willing to absorb hunderds of thousands of Jewish refugees from Arab countries after the 1948 war, but the Arab countries did not accept pretty much anyone from Israel?

This moaning about the palestinian's plight is what perpetuates their troubles. They should be transferred and the world should move on, don't you think?

[sergechel.livejournal.com]

No or limited social support for unemployed migrants and deportation for illegal ones.

[3as7.livejournal.com]

I agree that most of them are economic immigrants. I've seen some complaints from German people willing to help those immigrants, that those "refugees" don't want basic necessities and food, they demand smartphones and calling cards.

[wojzeh.livejournal.com]

Recently I shared my vision on the situation in my livejournal (in Russian.)

I wonder if you know how many people are displaced in Syria, how many of them quit the country, and how many of them applied for asylum in EU? Please answer first without checking the data on the official sources. I was surprised by the real data.

[yarowind.livejournal.com]

Are you sure that is refugees?
https://www.facebook.com/martin.gerlach1/videos/10204119888751934/?pnref=story
http://kniga-bukv.livejournal.com/165266.html

[creaze.livejournal.com]

Solution?

Settle them down on any vacant land, fence it off, call it a temporary camp and introduce a military regime for 12 years. Provide them with food, enforce security (i.e. arrange police on the inside). And my favourite — forced labour. Provide with construction equipment and make them build roads, houses, powerplants, waste water purification plants, etc. Virtually force them to build their own neighborhood. Same applies to farming lands (vehicles going to have to be provided as well, unfortunately). Maybe some industry, which is unpopular in the western countries, so that this community would repay at lest partly the expenses spent on it.

So that a refugee would have a choice: go in, apply to the rules, work hard, and in return you'll be perfectly safe, fed, medically trated and eventually even get some of those civilised properties like a house, fresh veggies on the table and so on. Either that or get the hell out.

This would require quite some investment, one or two thousand soldiers to enforce order, all those machines and materials, but i believe the cost is comparable to what europe bears right now.

You could go for a half measure of course: fence the same area off, put them on there, just make sure no weaponse are smuggled in, and then just let them be by themself. Just live off that land in their traditional fashion. Boil in their own "culture". It's cheaper, but you'll soon find out, that there is a little middle east inside that fence, with their own jews and palestines, assad and isis, and plenty of bloodshed.

Either way, i would reccomend to NOT place that area within the borders of your country. Make it all somewhere wehere they come from, issue a UN mandate or something, that expropriates that territory from whichever country there is. And bring all those refugees over.

[aavenger.livejournal.com]

There is no real crisis - it is artificially created by media. Those people are not refugees, as real refugees settle in camps close to the nearest border they've crossed in their flee waiting for resolution of where they are to be dispatched - for temporary or permanent residency. No demands, no claims.

Receiving party (the same nearest neighbour country) has to enforce such attitude and order - those not willing to comply will get a bullet in a head and their "flee" will be over for eternity. Not to mention that such a number of young people refusing to protect their own land and fight for it... just rats, and rats tend to bite the hand feeding them. And they bite hard.

[kremlin-curant.livejournal.com]

In my strong opinion Europa and other NATO countries must accept all refugees from the places where the war rages. This is the NATO what helped to remove dictators as Saddam and Qadaffi and supply the weapon to Syrian rebels not mentioning the war in Libya and Aphganistan. Kudos to Germany. It feels her guilt toward all unfortunate displaced people and offer them to register in the Germany for apply for refugee or sanctuary status.
U.S. also must accept more refugees than now only 2000 people from there permitted to live here.

[onkel-hans.livejournal.com]

I am with you.

Regarding Europe, the Old Lady will eventually solve the problem.

[Юрий Безфамильный (from livejournal.com)]

>>>I'm a tolerant person,

Tolerance destroy the white man.
Shannon Sorry, but you have how many children? And how much of the Arab women's children?
And add to this and abortions, emancipation, sexual promiscuity, and it turns out that white people lose. But the trouble is that few people are aware of this.

Hard work reporter
Find a stillborn child
(http://hostingkartinok.com/show-image.php?id=ed93f1fefb21472e0feb19517e3bcf5e)
Move it to a convenient location and photograph
(http://hostingkartinok.com/show-image.php?id=d5ba4fc890f682715b875ce331ade54a)

[beloborodoff.livejournal.com]

The old people of these countries say it is internet to blame. Youngsters see other life, how first world lives, naked womans and so on. And they wants it all. So they pack the bag and call himself syrians runing from war. Because europeans feels guilty for this war and humanitarian crysis. While the EU borders are open the will run into it.

[weilami.livejournal.com]

Totally agree with every word of yours. I wrote a similar post on my blog the other day, where I also said that people fleeing from the war would seek asylum in any country where there is no fighting and bombing, rather than demand all the social benefits in a particular place where the level of life is 100 times higher than where they came from. I also read a blog of a Russian girl who lives in Budapest very close to that tailway station, Keleti, and she writes quite a lot about the behaviour of those people who call themselves 'refugees': they have no respect towards the country, the borders of which they violated or even the volunteers that are trying to help them, they try to dictate their own rulls and take all the help for granted.
Although I don't live in Europe and unlikely ever will, it bothers me personally, because I really like that region as it is, with it's quiteness, politeness, neatness and predominantly secular culture. But these newcomers don't look like they are willing to assimilate - they are more likely to try and dominate, make the local culture change according to their own ideas of right and wrong. It's kinda scary, considering what those ideas are like...

[dorli87.livejournal.com]

The end of the war would be the best solution.

[don-oles.livejournal.com]

they are unsolicited, like spam
and then they multiply
and then they flee to another place
until those who pity perish

[don-oles.livejournal.com]

solution? in order to fix problem for once you need to fix the cause. what is the cause? people are mad with multiplying, people buy cheap love with kids and pets because they are unable to love other people. before being imported into 'better place' they were first imported onto the planet, "born".

[anna-sollanna.livejournal.com]

I completely agree with you about provocative images for generating hysteria, such images almost do not work on me because I've got a kind of immunity to them. As for people seeking for refuge I think that some drastic measures should be taken. For example, have you seen photos of garbage heaps the people claiming they are refugees have left on places of their camps and especially in buses and trains? Not to mention broken bus windows and so on... I think for such a behavior all the people who did it should be expelled. Furthermore, all the people who had got a status of refugees but later did something violating the laws of the country where they got it should be expelled too. All the people seeking asylum should know that they can't simultaneously live and behave as they used to in their native countries when their are in civilized EU or US; if they want to live in civilized countries they should behave like civilized people. If their religion rites and habits are more valuable for them than safety - they should go back to the countries where they came from. The rest of civilized population of EU and US shouldn't suffer from all these "barbarians".
My friend from Germany just told me that in the city where they live the amount of so called "refugees" has been increasing and increasing, and among "refugees" there are very aggressive people, and now the family of my friend sometimes do not feel safe meeting these aggressive people on the streets of their city...

[eltelfo.livejournal.com]

Effects of Americans & Co games with "democracy".
Current world's most powerful empire looks underdeveloped.
Next one, please !

About the Refugees

[livejournal.livejournal.com]

User creamy_mood referenced to your post from About the Refugees (http://creamy-mood.livejournal.com/154897.html) saying: [...] Не знаю только, не поздно ли уже будет осознать это... Originally posted by at About the Refugees [...]

[zhang-fei.livejournal.com]

Some think, that everything's fine, they could handle it but that looks like an invasion rather than migration, and sense of entitlement of those "refugees" is rather scary. If I was German, I would be terrified. I mean, you can find such examples in your own history.

Just imagine, that we were two warchiefs of Narragansett tribe in the early XVII century, when pilgrims just started to arrive. We would be sitting in our little wigwam, smoking pipes and chatting.
- Hey, great warchief Wiggling Bottom, I think, we have a problem on our hands.
- What's that, great warchief Smells-Like-Bison? Is it Sioux that are causing troubles again?
- No. no, it's those weird palefaces, that are coming to our land on those huge boats.
- So, what's the problem? They seem like nice people, and as far as I know, they suffer a lot in their homeland, so they have to flee from wars and oppressive government. I don't mind helping them and giving them some of our food.
- Oh, but what if they cause trouble?
- How is that even possible? There are barely hundreds of them, while there are hundreds of thousands of us. What are they going to do? Would they grab our land and send letters back to Europe saying there's plenty of it here, so that more and more angry, ruthless invaders will come in an attempt to claim more land from us? Would they bring some terrible desease, that will decimate our population, and seeing this, they would give us blankets with plague, to finish us off? Would they hunt us like animals and pay money for our scalps? Would they bring foreign religion and culture that encourages exploitation of others,expansion at all costs, racism and hatred for women? And in the end, do you believe, that as soon as they are powerful enough, they would tell us to fuck off, sending us along the Trail of Tears, where we'll lose the majority of our population?
- Uhm... yes?
- No, don't be ridiculous, that's never gonna happen!

[africanstranger.livejournal.com]

I think, both Europe and USA must change the legislation for refugees. No food and accomodation, no pension or benefits for those who do not want to make any job. Are you a refugee? Ok. We have some agriculture areas to cultivate (for example). Take your shovel and show us that you can be useful for our society. In other case, please, go home. Strict legislation which will oblige the refugees to do some work will stop the flow of young impudet people who thinks that european fools will feed them for free.

[igorend.livejournal.com]

Regarding the last wave of "refugees": I think, a lot of them - not just migrants, but an ISIS soldiers, infiltrating into Europe to bring to war for an "Islamic state" to Europe also. Regarding this Budapest "refugees" you can read here:
http://kniga-bukv.livejournal.com/165266.html
Unfortunately, it's in Russian, but I know, you're manage to read also blogs in Russian. And one more thing: European people doesn't realize, that mentality of such "refugees" completely different, than all European people: they doesn't searching for safe place to work and live decently, but to a place, which will give everything to them without working a second! Until they will be a "pure refugees", they will receive everything! And they have a leaders, telling them to do so. About 20 years ago, during my army duty, I was in an "occupied territories". One day, sitting in the bus I'm suddenly saw a beautiful village: new white houses with red roofs... I've asked people, that is this, and I was told, that this houses were build by UN for a "Palestinian refugees", but Yaser Arafat said, that his people is no need charity, and forbid them to move there... Since than, the houses is still there, just everything they could dismantle and take, was steeled from this sites... And that's how they want to leave, at least they leaders want them to live: to be pure, to receive a lot of money from Arab countries and to steal most of it. And, to avoid questions regarding the money - to tell, that Israel - is the root cause of all the situation...