the sad truth

[orphanedhawk]

Peter Bouckaert of HRW: Shutting the Door on Refugees Would Be Propaganda Victory for Islamic State

Peter Bouckaert, Human Rights Watch’s emergencies director, has spent the last few months in the Balkans and Greece speaking to refugees coming mostly from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq. Posting messages on Twitter, Bouckaert has helped expose the realities of life for refugees fleeing violence at home. He was one of the first people to share images of Alan Kurdi, the three-year-old Syrian boy who drowned off a Turkish beach.

( full video/transpript @
http://www.democracynow.org/blog/2015/11/18/inside_the_refugee_crisis_extended_interview )

( I posted the below excerpt to point on that these things do not happen in a vacuum. We are responsible for setting up the actions that are now taking place.)

"PETER BOUCKAERT: You know, I do think it’s important for people to understand that the 2003 Iraq invasion, and especially the very irresponsible policies which were put in place by the Bush administration, played a very direct role in creating the Islamic State. It ripped apart the Iraqi state and allowed for the rise of Islamic extremism. The only way we can respond to that is not just with a military strategy, and certainly not with brutality. I mean, we’ve seen that the kind of brutal policies pursued by the Bush administration and Rumsfeld and Cheney utterly failed. They failed on the ground. They achieved nothing in terms of stabilizing Iraq or dealing with the threat of Islamic extremism. So, you know, I certainly understand that in the aftermath of the Paris attacks people want to respond, they want to go strike against the Islamic State, but we have to be smart and learn from our own history. And actually, our values, respect for human rights and welcoming refugees is an important part of fighting against the kind of Islamic extremism that the Islamic State represents."

[orphanedhawk]

U.S. to House 250,000 Syrian Refugees at Navajo, Standing Rock Indian Reservations

http://realnewsrightnow.com/2015/09/u-s-to-house-250000-syrian-refugees-at-navajo-standing-rock-indian-reservations/

[orphanedhawk]

In order to understand how we got into this mess, so we don't repeat it, I  posted this, which yes, the blame does fall on Bush/Cheney disastrous decisions.

"Those who do not learn history are condemned to repeat it."

On an individual level, I try to learn from my mistakes, our country, and the world would benefit from  doing the same.

[Vance2335]

No one ever accused the French of being smart.
How many homeless people does America have? How many homeless vets? Should these people not be given food, clothing and shelter before people from Syria?

OH-You once again post something that is blaming Bush, good job.

[brice1967]

I don't think anybody "fears" it.  We have too many rules which we have to follow in order to deal with the situation.  Syria is basically lawless compared to us, pretty much ruled by a dictator just like nearly everywhere else we are accepting refugees from.

[clement4now]

What's your point?
Come back with an education about the subject before you try to talk trash.

[ajadamama]

Paris was the country that was actually attacked and are still taking something like 30 thousand refugees. America...Home of the brave and land of the free?These refugees are fleeing the very thing that have americans shaking in their boots for.  They have lived it and we at home fear the thought of it so we turn them out? I guess we will have to scrub the base of the statute of liberty if we keep this up.