Filed under: Bureaucracy, Europe, European Union, Freedom, Immigration, Intelligence, Law, Middle East, National Security, News the Media Doesn't Want You to Hear, Politics, Progressivism, Regulation, Socialism, Statism, Terrorism, United Kingdom | Tags: European Union, Facing Reality, Refugees and Terrorists
There are loaded words out there. Words that have been given meaning far beyond their normal weight, if one can call it that. Refugees is such a word. It is far more loaded than other words in the same family, like immigrants, or migrants. It seems to outrank citizens. Europe has largely surrendered to refugees. The word carries along with itself—ideas of empathy, pity, caring, welcome, fugitive, displaced person, asylum seeker, boat people.
Here’s the bit from Wikipedia. The refugee, of course, is a small child of indeterminate nationality. .
A refugee, generally speaking, is a displaced person who has been forced to cross national boundaries and who cannot return home safely. Such a person may be called an asylum seeker until granted refugee status by the contracting state or the UNHCR if they formally make a claim for asylum.
What brings all this up is a post from Gatestone Europe that contained these pieces.
The foreign minister of the European Parliament said, to justify the EU’s position on migrants, in the session of migration and Trump’s executive order, “If we had to live without migrants, in all our societies and all our economies, we would suffer a lot of negative consequences.”
Second piece: “Gangster Islam: The Problem Europe Ignores” featuring the Dutch-Moroccan rapper Ismo stating “I believe nothing blindly except the Quran””I hate the Jews even more than the Nazis: and “I won’t shake hands with faggots.”
For over a decade, Europe’s struggle to successfully integrate its Muslim population has been evident. But throughout the years a new and distinctly European phenomenon arose, which is as significant as it is underreported: Gangster Islam. It entails the conflation of the seemingly a-religious street culture of youths from a Muslim background on the one hand, and elements of the Islamic religion on the other.
Then, a report that “Hamas Organises Dutch Conference, Intelligence Agencies in Full Denial.”
And a video clip of the Chief of Police of Östersund, Sweden, Stephen Jerand, warning women to adjust their behavior to protect against a spate of violent attacks” (avoid getting raped by gangs of young men)
There’s lots more. They are apparently far more concerned by President Trump than by the Muslim refugees in their midst that are not interested in assimilating, but only in establishing Sharia law and taking over. But perhaps I exaggerate.
On the Left, “refugees” is indeed a loaded word, and we must all care deeply and admit all refugees, and continue to have sanctuary cities, counties, towns and universities, in defiance of federal law. Because if we don’t care then we will be bad people. And we don’t have to worry about future effects because, well, that isn’t now and it will probably all be better anyway when we are in charge again. Is that the mindset? Or is it all just George Soros‘ open borders and Open Society or like Scarlett O’Hara’s plan to go home to Tara and think about it all tomorrow?
We have been told that Europe will be Muslim by 2050, simply because the Muslim birthrate is so much higher, and Europe’s is close to negative.
Filed under: Capitalism, Domestic Policy, Economy, Energy, Politics | Tags: A Clean Energy Economy, Facing Reality, President Obama
A bit of history — June 27, 2009, The White House — President Barack Obama said:
Yesterday, the House of Representatives passed a historic piece of legislation that will open the door to a clean energy economy and a better future for America.
For more than three decades, we have talked about our dependence on foreign oil. And for more than three decades we have seen that dependence grow. We have seen our reliance on fossil fuels jeopardize our national security. We have seen it pollute the air we breathe and endanger our planet. And most of all, we have seen other counties realize a critical truth: the nation that leads in the creation of a clean energy economy will be the nation that leads the 21st century global economy.
The only true part of that entire statement is that the House passed a piece of legislation. Even the “historic” word is false.
Our “foreign” oil mostly comes from Canada and Mexico. Our reliance on fossil fuels has not “jeopardized” our national security. Every airplane, tank, Humvee and truck runs on fossil fuel, every piece of equipment is lubricated with fossil fuel and there is, for the foreseeable future, no alternative. Our national security has been jeopardized by the environmental movement who attempt to block every attempt to increase our domestic supplies of energy.
Since June of 2009, we have had ClimateGate, and the exposure of the fraudulent nature of the global warming scheme. Spain has exposed the false dream of green energy and green jobs. Denmark has exposed the high cost of any dependence on wind energy. And even the IPCC is giving up on global warming and shifting their emphasis to biological diversity — the next enthusiasm.
Our air is largely clean. The planet is not endangered, and the alarmist global warming theme has been debunked by the fraudulent actions of the warmists themselves. There is no prospect for a so-called “clean energy economy.” Wind and solar, inefficient as they are, produce only electricity, and cannot replace even one Deepwater Horizon well.
Wind power is a bunko scheme. Without huge subsidies the wind industry does not exist. Each wind turbine must be backed 24/7 with conventional energy, because the wind blows only very intermittently, seldom at the right speed, and usually not when it is needed. As far as solar is concerned, the sun sinks slowly in the west, and it gets dark at night.
Electric cars have a long history. They are clean and quiet — too quiet — for the government has demanded that manufacturers add noise to warn pedestrians of their approach. The problems are the same as they were in the early 1900s. A battery charge won’t take you far enough. Batteries are too expensive. There are no charging stations, and it takes too long to charge a battery. I have seen figures of 7 hours, but I don’t know if that is accurate.
There may be a clean energy economy in the future, but there is not in the present. Shutting down drilling, trying to tear down hydropower dams and refusing permitting for nuclear plants does jeopardize our national security, and endanger our planet. And in the midst of a recession, with unemployment at high levels, you probably don’t want to waste taxpayer money on schemes that experience teaches are wasteful drains on an economy.
Filed under: Economy, Health Care, Law, The Constitution | Tags: A Warning for Democrats, Democrat pollsters, Facing Reality
Democrats Pat Caddell and Doug Schoen, pollsters for two Democrat presidents, have a warning in the Washington Post for Congressional Democrats:
Their blind persistence in the face of reality threatens to turn this political march of folly into an electoral rout in November. In the wake of the stinging loss in Massachusetts, there was a moment when the president and the Democratic leadership seemed to realize the reality of the health-care situation. Yet like some seductive siren of Greek mythology, the lure of health-care reform has arisen again.
Bluntly put, this is the political reality:
First, the battle for public opinion has been lost. Comprehensive health care has been lost. If it fails, as appears possible, Democrats will face the brunt of the electorate’s reaction. If it passes, however, Democrats will face a far greater calamitous reaction at the polls. Wishing, praying or pretending will not change these outcomes.
The polls are wrong, they say, or Americans will learn to love it once they learn what is in the bill. As soon as Obama gives his 53rd speech on health care, his magical persuasive powers will change everything.
The notion that once enactment is forced, the public will suddenly embrace health-care reform could not be further from the truth — and is likely to become a rallying cry for disaffected Republicans, independents and, yes, Democrats.
The country, Caddell and Schoen say, is moving away from big government , with distrust growing more generally toward government’s role in our lives.
Scott Rasmussen asked last month whose decisions people feared more in health care: that of the federal government or of insurance companies. By 51 percent to 39 percent, respondents feared the decisions of federal government more. This is astounding given the generally negative perception of insurance companies.CNN found last month that 56 percent of Americans believe that the government has become so powerful it constitutes an immediate threat to the freedom and rights of citizens. When only 21 percent of Americans say that Washington operates with the consent of the governed, as was also reported last month, we face an alarming crisis.
We’ll see if Nancy Pelosi’s members of the House share her contempt for what their constituents think, and her lack of concern for her House members jobs.
American Elephants 