Commentary: Immigration response for Pope Francis

Americans must rise to the occasion and accept more refugees.

Father John Michalowoski, s.j. calls for response to accept refugees.

Dear Julie, (writes Father John)

Pope Francis in Greece

I agree with much of what you have said about the Pope bringing 12 refugees with him to Rome. He is trying to enlighten people’s consciences. However there is a glaring omission. What about the U.S.? We could accept 50,000 refugees a year for a number of years. We did more than that after Vietnam and for Cubans who fled their country. In doing so, we would simply be following the good example of our Canadian neighbors who are accepting more than 25,000 this year. Instead we are caught up in the zenophobia of many presidential candidates.

Secondly, although many Muslim nations are closed to the refugees, clearly Jordan (over 90% Muslim) and Lebanon (over 60%) are doing more than their share. Somewhere between 20-25 % of each nation’s population are refugees. Turkey also has millions of refugees, though it is a much larger country (perhaps 75 million) and treats them rather poorly.

A third point is to recognize the fact that Pope Francis went to Lesbos with the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholemeo and the Greek Patriarch. Catholic and Orthodox Christianity are united in preaching the message that all are called to care for their neighbor in distress, as Jesus taught in the Parable of the Good Samaritan. Although popes since Saint John XXIII have worked with the Ecumenical Patriarchs of Constantinople, this is the first time that I can think of where the Greek Patriarch has participated.

Peace in the Risen Lord Jesus,  John, SJ

(Maine Writer- what I don't understand is how one evil man, President Assad of Syria, can continue to be the root cause of such horrific humanitarian carnage. He is just one man.)

Assad crimes against humanity- Syrian Refugees continue escape to Europe

American intervention in the Middle East during Operation Dessert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom contributed to the terrible instability, causing the humanitarian crises in Syria, Yemen, Iraq and beyond. 
In fact, Syrian refugees are causing a lot of stress in Jordan.

Syrian Refugees map

Nevertheless, the Republicans, whose policies led to the invasion of Iraq, are unwilling to assist the refugees who are suffering as a result of agressive American foriegn policy.

A horrific humanitarian crisis is destroying Syria and, at the same time, causing upheavel of social stability networks in Germany and throughout Europe. Nevertheless, Europeans are doing their best to respond, to the extent they can do so. Americans, not so much.

A refugee resettlement graph by nation is at this link.

Bashar al-Assad  is one evil man. He's only one man, who is at the root of the horrific humanitarian crisis in Syria. Obviiusly, Assad is guilty of crimes against humanity. The relentless persecution of his citizens is the root cause of the mass exodus of desperate refugees who are floating across the Mediterranean Sea, into Europe on dangerous inflatable boats, after they flee to Greece. 

There's no way to know how many refugees drowned. 
Moreover, the world will never know how many died in the Syrian civil war, during the carnage that's causing the exodus.

Refugees of the Syrian Civil War
More than four million refugees of the Syrian Civil War left the country during the course of the war. 

Most fled to neighboring Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan,[43]and Iraq, while thousands ended up in distant countries of the Caucasus, the Persian Gulf, North Africa and Europe. 

As of December 2015, Turkey was the world's biggest refugee hosting country with close to 2.5 million Syrian refugees; the nation had spent more than 8 billion Euros since 2011 on direct assistance to them according to estimates by Turkish Ministry of Education deputy secretary Yusuf Büyük.

The refugee crisis began in 2011, when thousands of Syrian citizens fled across the border to neighboring Turkey and Lebanon. By early July 2011, 15,000 Syrian citizens had taken shelter in tent cities, set up in theYayladağı, Reyhanlı and Altınözü districts ofHatay Province, near Turkey's border with Syria. By the end of that month, 5,000 of the refugees had returned to Syria.[46] However, by late June 2011, the number of Syrian refugees in Lebanon had reached around 10,000 people. By mid-July 2011, the first Syrian refugees found sanctuary in Jordan, with their numbers reaching 1,500 by December. On September 21, the European Union approved a plan committing to taking in 120,000 refugees. The newly elected Liberal Government announced that it would bring 25,000 Syrian refugees to Canada by the end of 2015 and fast tracked their resettlement.

Refugees are paying for false documentation to help them enter Europe. In 2015, fake Syrian passports were being used by non-Syrians in the hopes of fraudulently gaining legal residency in Europe. According to the European Union border agency, Frontex, trafficking in fake Syrian passports increased. In September 2015 German customs officers seized packages containing Syrian passports which police suspect were being sold illegally to those hoping to gain entry to the country

Unfortunately, tragically, America has not agreed to accept the numbers of refugees we should be receiving. Although President Barack Obama is opening up immigrations to the Syrians, the Republicans are resistant to increasing their numbers. 

I'd like to apologize to Syrians and the European nations that are responsibly accepting refugees who are desperately fleeing their homes, one of the consequences of America's agressive foriegn policy and Assad's  persecution. 

If it were possible to turn back the clock, to prevent our invasion of Iraq, I'd join millions of Americans and do it.

Of course, the probability of time travel to the past is an impossibility. Therefore, all I can do now is to apoligize and sincrely pray for Middle East peace. Yes, and to support bringing more Syrian refugees into the US.

Great Britain's Prince Charles is opening up a discussion about the radicalization of youth

This is a socialogical discussion raised by Prince Charles, about what he calls "radicalization" of youths.  

In fact, it's an alarming question.

Prince Charles suggested "....when he becomes king, he may still be sworn in as Defender of the (Christian) Faith. There had been speculation that the title could be changed to encompass all faiths."

Why is it we're reading and seeing startling imagery of our world's youths being rallied to fundamentalism and Islamic extremism? 

Moreover, others among our world's youths who are trying to expose the evils caused by extremists. Both sides are exposing themselves to extraordinary dangers and death.

Honestly, I doubt the world's youth would respond to nations where leaders were commanding them to take up banners in support of seditious extremists groups.  Obviously, there'll always be fringe elements that seem to find their voice in extremism. Yet, radical terrorism movements have found their stride in recruiting young people, while reasonable voices have had little, if any, impact on curbing the flow of sympathizers who take up sedition, especially those who kill while screaming the name of the Prophet Mohammed.

Sadly, there's something innate in the psyche of the young that drives them towards seeking out risk taking behaviors. 

Prince Charles calls for an awareness about "radicalization" of Great Britain's youth.  Yet, his Royal awareness should also put the world on notice.  Obviously, the "radicalization" Prince Charles speaks about isn't exclusive to Great Britain.

8 February 2015 Last updated at 09:11 ET

Prince Charles says radicalisation of young people 'alarming'

The Prince of Wales has described the extent to which young people are becoming radicalised as "alarming" and one of the "greatest worries".

In an interview with Radio 2's The Sunday Hour, Prince Charles spoke of his hopes to "build bridges" between different faiths.

He also spoke of his "deep concern" for the suffering of Christian churches in the Middle East.

He is currently in Jordan on a six-day tour of the region.

The prince arrived in the capital Amman on Saturday night and held talks with King Abdullah II on Sunday.

After a visit to a refugee camp, the prince congratulated the Jordanians on being "wonderfully kind and hospitable" for putting so many Syrian refugees up in their country.

He visited the Za'atri camp, near the Jordanian border with war-torn Syria, and toured a supermarket and a children's centre.

The camp is home to 85,000 people and the prince spoke to families and students. He also spoke to former British police officers who have been training Jordanian officers in community policing.'Constructive paths'

On the radicalisation of young people, Prince Charles says: "Well, of course, this is one of the greatest worries, I think, and the extent to which this is happening is the alarming part.

"And particularly in a country, like ours, where you know the values we hold dear."

"You think that the people who have come here, [are] born here, go to school here, would imbibe those values and outlooks."

"The frightening part is that people can be so radicalised either through contact with somebody else or through the internet, and the extraordinary amount of crazy stuff which is on the internet."

He told the BBC programme he believed part of the reason some young people are radicalised is a "search for adventure and excitement at a particular age".

The prince also discussed the work of his charity The Prince's Trust in combating radicalisation.

He said: "What I have been trying to do all these years with the Prince's Trust, is to find alternatives for adolescents and people at a young age, for constructive paths for them to channel their enthusiasm, their energy, that sense of wanting to take risks and adventure and aggression and all these things.

"But you have to channel them into constructive paths."

The Radio 2 programme covers visits by the prince to Armenian, Roman Catholic Chaldean and Syrian Orthodox churches in the UK, and contains accounts from members of these denominations who have had to flee persecution in Syria and Iraq.

He said: "I particularly wanted to show solidarity really, deep concern for what so many of the Eastern Christian churches are going through in the Middle East.'Protector of faiths'

"Christianity was founded in the Middle East which we often forget. From a morale point I hope it showed they were not forgotten. I wish I could do more. Many of us do wish we could do more.

"I think what doesn't bear thinking about is people of one faith, a believer, could kill another believer. That's the totally bewildering aspect in our day and age."

He suggested that when he becomes king, he may still be sworn in as Defender of the (Christian) Faith. There had been speculation that the title could be changed to encompass all faiths.

However, he said he believed an important part of the role was to be a "protector of faiths", defending every religion in multicultural Britain.

During the interview, the prince also considered how different communities could live alongside each other.

He told the programme: "I think the secret is that we have to work harder to build bridges and we have to remember that our Lord taught us to love our neighbour, to do to others as you would do to you and just to go on despite the setbacks and despite the discouragement to try and build bridges and to show justice and kindness to people."'Activist prince'

The broadcast comes after a new book claiming the prince wants to redefine the monarchy was published.

The book's author, Catherine Mayer, said he has an "extraordinary relationship in the Gulf."

She added: "It's partly just because he's a prince. Also he gave a speech on Islam in 1993 in which he talked about Islam not having a monopoly on extremism and he talked about the Christian crusades, and he talked about the good things in Islam."

But anti-monarchy group Republic said the prince's views must be subject to scrutiny.

Graham Smith, Republic's CEO, said: "MPs in particular need to face up to the new reality of an activist prince and must be free to openly challenge what Charles says."

• The Sunday Hour was broadcast on BBC Radio 2 on 8 February.

Evil ISIS (Islamic State) is a state consumed by hate - followers are Islamic Satinists

Let's get over the euphemisms about the evil, self declared Islamic State of ISIS. Whether they're branded Islamic extremists, terrorists or hate filled right wing fanatics, the facts are, they're driven by Satanic obsession. 

There's simply no other way, except Satanic, to describe the ISIS terrorist group's despicably evil actions. They're become inhuman robots by executing a series of public beheading of non-combatants. Now, they've diabolically burned one of their Muslim brothers alive, when he was a legitimate prisoner of war.

In my opinion, the video being shown by ISIS is a media terrorism gimmick to scare other Muslims from joining coalition forces. But, was the "burning alive" part real? Or, rather, was it a made for terrorism purposes impact?  I suspect the latter.  Frankly and sadly, Lt. Moaz al-Kasasbeh was likley already dead before he was burned alive.  Evil ISIS was angry with his corpse for being dead because they no longer could use him for ransom. Nevertheless, these Satanist ISIS anti-human creatures decided to make a spectacle of his body, while he was dead.  My deepest sympathy to the grieving family of Lt. Moaz al-Kasasheh.  

Although all of Jordan is mourning with the pilot's family, they must also remember to honor him by destroying the evil ISIS forces that murdered him. These ISIS creatures should have allowed Lt. Moaz al-Kasasbeh the dignity of being tried as a prisoner of war.

BBCNews reports 

Jordan pilot hostage Moaz al-Kasasbeh 'burned alive'

Frank Gardner reports on Moaz al-Kasasbeh's death

Jordan confirmed the death of pilot Moaz al-Kasasbeh after a video published online by Islamic State (IS) claimed to show him being burned alive.

An evil ISIS video shows a man standing in a cage and engulfed in flames. Intelligence officials are working to confirm it is genuine.

Jordan vowed "punishment and revenge". (Julie's note - let's summon all Muslims to eradicate the evil ISIS, by joining with Jordan in retaliation and not retreating from their public demonstrations of Satanic obsession.)

Lt Kasasbeh was captured when his plane came down near Raqqa, Syria, in December on a mission to support the US-led military coalition against IS.

The video posted online on Tuesday was distributed via a Twitter account known as a source for IS propaganda.

The highly produced 22-minute film includes a sequence showing the Jordanian pilot walking at gunpoint amongst rubble apparently caused by coalition air strikes that targeted jihadists.

The BBC's security correspondent, Frank Gardner, says the new and horrific video is aimed at a world already shocked by the calculated cruelty of Islamic State's actions.

Jordanian state TV reports that Lt Kasasbeh, 26, was killed a month ago - since when Jordan has continued attempts to secure his release.

Julie's note- surely the Muslim people must realize how evil ISIS is on a path towards total Satanic domination of all who oppose their heinous extremist beliefs. Sadly, Lt. Kasasbeh could have been any Muslim. Indeed, he is a Muslim Martyr, because he was opposing the proliferation of evil ISIS terrorist barbarianism, while he brutally lost his life.

Evil ISIS terrorists don't appear to care anything, at all, about murdering practically anybody. Therefore, it seems to me, coalition forces should forego any concern we have for protecting their civilians (who are, by the way, protecting the terrorists) in bringing down this force of barbarians.

ISIS terrorists must be genetic mutations of the Homo Sapien genus

There was a time, eons ago, when two sorts of humanoids apparantly lived in conflict throughout Europe. Although I'm certainly not an anthopologist, I believe the two human types were Neanderthals and Homo Sapiens. They were different from one another, although the Neanderthals exhibited human attributes.  Homo Sapiens prevailed while the Neanderthals became extinct.
(Neanderthals are an extinct species of human in the genus Homo They are closely related to modern humans, differing in DNA by just 0.12%. Wikipedia)

Now, we have a human genus named ISIS. 

This group of radical Islamic terrorists are not humans. Rather, this group of "human like" animals are different from other human "like" groups. They use the shield of Islam to proclaim a radical interpretation of the religion founded by Mohammed but, in reality, they're subhuman genetic mutations of the Homo Sapien genus.
Although ISIS terrorists are a group of sub humans, they're also somewhat like their other animals in that they can organize themselves for the purpose of survival. 

The anatomy of ISIS: How the 'Islamic State' is run, from oil to beheadings is a CNN report about how this subhuman life form group is organized.  

Like apes and packs of wolves, this evil ISIS group of creatures have a hierarchy. It seems like they could be hunted down like other dangerous animals and made to be extinct. ISIS can disappear, just like the Neanderthals of eons ago.

CNN reports:

Put yourself in the shoes (and seventh-century black robes) of ISIS' Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the mysterious (sub human) boss of the terror group that is striking fear into the hearts of leaders around the world.

In the past couple of years you've managed to avoid drone attacks and survive civil wars, unify militant groups in two different countries under your banner, raise an army of jihadis from across the globe, and seize a chunk of land stretching from northern Syria to central Iraq.

Your newly-declared "Islamic State" is the size of Pennsylvania, so how do you govern it? You compartmentalize.

The research shows how ISIS has gone from being a purely military force to building a system that can provide basic services, such as making sure that gas and food are available, to its new citizens.

From the cabinet and the governors to the financial and legislative bodies, ISIS' bureaucratic hierarchy looks a lot like those of some of the Western countries whose values it rejects -- if you take away the democracy and add in a council to consider who should be beheaded.

New data (i.e. intelligence) from the Terrorism Research and Analysis Consortium (TRAC) has revealed that ISIS is putting governing structures in place to rule the territories the group conquers once the dust settles on the battlefield.

Baghdadi, his Cabinet advisers and his two key deputies comprise the executive branch of the government, known as "Al Imara."

The two deputies -- Abu Ali al-Anbari and Abu Muslim al-Turkmani, veteran Iraqi military officials who served under Saddam Hussein -- oversee Syria and Iraq, respectively.

ISIS has probably split the governance of the "Islamic State" into Syrian and Iraqi branches simply to make it easier to run, according to Jasmine Opperman, TRAC's Southern Africa Director.

"They see the caliphate as one state, yet there are two different governments," Opperman told CNN. "I believe this split is purely administrative at this time. They don't want to be seen as downplaying the caliphate, but to make it easier to govern they were forced to make a separation between Syria and Iraq."

The two deputies deliver orders to the governors in charge of the various sub-states in Syria and Iraq under ISIS control, who then instruct local councils on how to implement the executive branch's decrees on everything from media relations and recruiting to policing and financial matters.

The Shura council -- which reports directly to the executive branch -- is the caliphate's religious monitor, appointed to make sure that all the local councils and governors are sticking to ISIS' version of Islamic law.

The recent murders of Western hostages James Foley, Steven Sotloff, and David Haines would have fallen under the Shura council's purview, according to Opperman.

"Let's say a significant execution is going to take place, something that will get ISIS on the front page of the newspaper," Opperman said. "It cannot be done without Shura council approval."

The Shura council also has the power to censure the leadership for running afoul of its interpretation of Sharia law, according to Opperman.

"The Shura council has the right to tell Baghdadi to go if he's not adhering to ISIS' religious standards," she told CNN. "It would most probably never happen, but the fact that it's possible indicates the council's prominence."

Baghdadi -- who was once imprisoned by U.S. forces in Iraq --seems to have incorporated the American military's own counter-insurgency mantra of "Clear and Hold" to win territory, establish control over the area, then get the locals to help govern it.

As time goes on, ISIS is evolving into a government whose political decision-making cannot be separated from its military capabilities, according to Opperman.

"It's two sides of the same coin," she said. "We've seen the military side, with the war cabinet that directs brigades. But now on the other side we're seeing how ISIS wants to govern. The two processes inform one another."

*********

Well, now CNN knows how this group of human genetic mutations called ISIS are organized. Unfortunately, real humans don't have time to study the cultural habits of ISIS for much longer because the beheading creatures are creating chaos for the sake of generating power, by creating fear.   

Finally, threatened Arab nations like Jordan,Saudi Arabia and Dubai have come to realize how they have the equivalent of a pack of humanoid creatures threatening their civilized existences. 

Even Turkey is "getting it" by providing support for the war against ISIS. 

It's unbelievable that 21st century societies, with all our marvelous technologies and amazing scientific advances, are being seriously undermined by a group of pre-medieval Islamic zealots, who diabolically behead innocent people. 

It's essential for the human race to make the ISIS sub-humans become extinct.

President Obama Gets High Marks During Mid East Visit: Did American Mainstream Media Miss This? I Think So.....

Where was the American press?  Thank you Frida Ghitis.

A CNN Twitter post shed light on the extraordinary reception President Obama received during his recent Mid East diplomacy. Although the President's visit was given second tier coverage (in my opinion), this CNN.com news story should have received many more headlines.
So, I'm posting the entire coverage from CNN in my blog:

In Mideast, Obama knocks it out of the park

By Frida Ghitis, Special to CNN

updated 8:18 AM EDT, Mon March 25, 2013

 

"...He made a persuasive case that the U.S.-Israel alliance is, in his words, 'eternal, it is forever'."

Editor's note: Frida Ghitis is a world affairs columnist for The Miami Herald and World Politics Review. A former CNN producer and correspondent, she is the author of "The End of Revolution: A Changing World in the Age of Live Television." Follow her on Twitter: @FridaGColumns

Amman, Jordan (CNN) -- They're bringing down the American flags in Jordan and Israel and putting them back into storage after they got slammed in a sudden sandstorm during the last part of President Barack Obama's visit. Perhaps it was nature's way of keeping Obama from feeling he had gained the upper hand in this famously unpredictable region. Sandstorm or not, the president had reason to feel good about his trip. After deliberately lowering expectations about what he might achieve on the trip, Obama knocked it out of the park.  

He even managed to take the skeptics by surprise, helping broker the restoration of relations between Israel and Turkey.

Bolstering friends, strengthening alliances and sending everyone in the Middle East a clear picture of America's vision and priorities for the region -- this was the common thread in everything the president did in Israel, the West Bank and Jordan.

He made a persuasive case that the U.S.-Israel alliance is, in his words, "eternal, it is forever." He spoke passionately and effectivelyin favor of Palestinian statehood and the need to restart the peace process. He made it clear the United States will not tolerate a nuclear Iran but prefers to prevent it through diplomacy. He reiterated his call for an end to the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria and showed his strong support for Jordan's King Abdullah, a moderate king who says he is trying to democratize his country without the need for bloodshed.

As Obama returns to Washington, not everyone is happy about what they heard. But, if power is the ability to influence the behavior of others and the course of events, then he managed to make America a bit more powerful after a mere three days in this turbulent region.

In a visit filled with poignancy, symbolism and, yes, substance, one of the most dramatic and unexpected moments came minutes before Air Force One departed Israel for Jordan. As the milky white sky gave signs of trying to clear, Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stepped inside a trailer on the tarmac and made a historic call to Turkey's prime minister.

When the call was over, Israel and Turkey had restored diplomatic relations. After an acrimonious three-year dispute over a botched and lethal 2010 Israeli raid on a Turkish-flagged flotilla trying to break the Gaza blockade, Netanyahu apologized.

The reconciliation was not all Obama's doing, but he gave the final push that allowed two pivotal Washington allies to work out their differences at a time when events in Syria and Iran demand the United States and its friends work closely together.Opinion: Obama goes over Netanyahu's head to the Israeli people

A major objective of the trip was to convince Israel and its enemies that the United States is committed to Israel's survival. The goal is fundamental to regional stability, because as long as anyone has any doubts, those who advocate destroying Israel will continue pursuing the objective and gaining followers while making Israelis more hesitant to take risks for peace.  From the moment he landed, Obama alluded to 3,000 years of Jewish history on the land. He told Israelis -- in Hebrew, lest they miss it -- "Atem lo levad," "You are not alone." "You are not alone." He talked about Israeli tourists recently murdered in Bulgaria, about threats from Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran, about chemical weapons from Syria. And then he made an impassioned call for Israelis to take the perspective of Palestinians, for the sake not only of their own security but also of justice. Israelis cheered.

 

It was a masterly performance.
By spending time in the West Bank, Obama raised the profile of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas relative to that of his rival Hamas. And when he declared that those who seek Israel's destruction "might as well reject the earth beneath them and the sky above," his words threw a punch against Hamas and Hezbollah, whose stated objective he was labeling a hopeless cause.

 

When he arrived in Jordan, America's most reliable Arab ally, he widened the lens to the growing crisis in Syria, which is spilling over, sending more than 400,000 refugees to a country practically devoid of natural resources. He pledged an additional $200 million to King Abdullah for the sustenance of the refugees still fleeing Syria by the thousands every day.

Opinion: The empathy president

 

Standing with the Jordanian king, with the knowledge that Israel and Turkey had healed their rift, Obama projected an air of confidence and achievement, even if events in Syria seem to spin out of control; even as King Abdullah warned the West has become naïve about the agenda of the Muslim Brotherhood, the biggest winner so far in the so-called Arab Spring.

This was Obama's first visit to an Arab country since 2009. Back then, Egypt was America's strongest Arab friend. Today, the Middle East is undergoing a violent and unpredictable transformation.

During barely 72 hours in the region, Obama reasserted a measure of influence. He laid out America's vision and gave a vote of confidence to America's friends. It was a subdued but visible show of U.S. influence and power in a time and a place of unexpected sandstorms and ferocious revolutions, where no man, no nation, has full control over the course of history.  Twitter @CNNOpinion.