They're Not Just Refugees, They're People

With all that's been said and written in the last few days about Trump's EO regarding immigration, the part that upsets me the most is including the Syrian refugees.

Americans did not make these people refugees. No, it was Syria's own troops, backed by Russian leadership, that did that. But we didn't stop it. I don't know if we could have. Or if we should have. Should we have gone in, boots on the ground, and fought? Were there diplomatic remedies that Obama couldn’t, or wouldn’t get done? I don't know.

But I do know this. We let it happen. And whether that was the right or wrong decision, there are still hundreds of thousands of people who no longer have a home. We sometimes forget who these people are. We call them “refugees” because that has its own set of internal images and attitudes associated with it. But these are not just “refugees,” these are people: moms, dads, children, infants, grandparents, and families. These people are not just a burden to be taken care of. Until a year or so ago, these were merchants, teachers, electricians, carpenters, day-care workers, and nurses—just like you and me. They had jobs and families. Their lives had purpose. They are no different fromany of us, except many worship differently, they speak a different language, and their skin is darker.

Imagine if the bombs came where you lived, and destroyed a few square miles around you. If you survived, where would you go? What would you do? How about a tent city? Really? Of course, when you’re desperate, you’ll take whatever it is that allows you and your family to survive. And you would be grateful for that, for a while. But you wouldn’t want tents. You wouldn’t want hand-outs. You would want a place where you can work, have a home, raise your children, send them to school, live a normal life, and generally make a difference.

That’s what these people want. They don’t want handouts. They want a chance. And we are denying them that. Christians, as much or more than others, are denying them.

Matthew 25: “For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.”

How can we turn our back on these people? And be proud of it? Yet many Americans, many Christians, are.

I’m not 100%  sure what to do. But shutting them out, letting them live in tents, or hoping someone else takes them, is not the right choice. It certainly is not the Christian choice.

They're not just refugees. They're people. Let's not forget that.

NBA vs. Federal Government

I remember when I was in seventh grade. Basketball was the first time in our lives where there were “cuts.” If you weren’t good enough, you didn’t make the team. So of course, I didn’t even try. I was horrible. But lots of kids did try out, and some of them made it, but lots didn’t. That was the very first difficult, but probably necessary step, in getting the best athletes on the court. Those dozen kids who made it were "the best." Of our seventh grade class anyway.

When we moved to high school, we now had several classes competing for the team, so a few more  got cut. After high school, only the very very best could play at the college level. Finally, of all the thousands that played in college, only a tiny fraction made the NBA. I don’t know the exact numbers, but I read somewhere that only .03% of high school players make the NBA, so from those original seventh graders? Very few.

It's a clean, simple, obvious, though sometimes painful method, of choosing the best of the best. Only the extremely talented, the very best of the best of the best, make the NBA.

Now let’s turn to government.

Well, it doesn’t work that way. Oddly, when I was a kid, I just assumed that on some level it did. That every senator, for instance, certainly had to be the smartest of the smart, even if he’s not, compared to the other senators. Kinda like the 10th player on the Cavaliers may not seem very good, but he’s way better than almost everyone else on the planet.

But that doesn’t happen. Getting into politics in Washington depends on intelligence, integrity, and many other good qualities. But it depends much more on how well known you are, how much money you have, who your parents are, or just plain luck.

Was Schwarzenegger really the most qualified to be CA governor? Is Trump the LeBron of politics? Or Al Franken: he was famous from Saturday Night Live. But is he the best possible senator of all the people in Minnesota? Probably not, to all those.

But it doesn’t mean they can’t be good. Sometimes it works, and we get someone who is very good. Of those three mentioned above, you probably have positive views of at least one of them. But sometimes, maybe most times, it doesn’t.

I’m not offering a solution. I don’t know a solution. I just know that the way we do it now is unfortunate and unproductive. I have no training in politics at all, but I’m pretty sure I would be a better congressman than some that I see in Washington. (Or maybe I’m just like the pickup gym player who is convinced that he could beat LeBron 1 on 1 if he just had the chance.) Who knows?

It’s an unfortunate way of doing things. But I do know this. If we had a method of picking our politicians anything like we pick our basketball players, this country would be in way better shape.

I’m guessing this is something we can all agree on.

America First

“America First.” I heard President Trump say that in his inaugural address. A couple times. It was meant as a rally cry. Like “red white and blue” or USA! But I couldn’t help think: “I’m not sure I’m crazy about it.”

Honestly, I’ve hesitated to post this. I don’t want to sound like a communist or leftist scum or America hater. Because I’m none of those. (I don't think!) I love my country. Which is why some things happening bother me so much. Yet, the expression bothered me.

Am I alone on this one? Maybe.

But I couldn’t help thinking that it just didn’t seem right, and I couldn’t put my finger on it. So I stewed on it a while longer. And I realized what it is that bothers me.

It seems, well, selfish. Yes, I think we always must look out for America. And we should never put it down, or demean it. Obviously. But America is more than the world’s mightiest super power. I like to think that we are, or at least try to be, its moral compass as well. We help countries that can’t help themselves. We protect those who are helpless. And we give to those that are in need. And in doing all three of those things, we will not necessarily be putting “America First.”

Because almost by definition, acting for the greater good, sometimes means that you will not be helping yourself.

No really moral, and certainly no Christian individual, would ever say, “Me first, always.” I would doubt if any person who said that would be a particularly caring, giving, or even moral individual. Does this same thinking apply to nations, not just individuals?

I don’t know. But that’s where my trouble with that statement resides.

It could be that Trump was just talking in grand trends, and he doesn’t mean he will just forget and give up on those who need us. I hope that’s what he meant. But maybe not. I don’t know.

If I did know for sure, then maybe I would more readily cheer his sentiment.

America First.

A Different Perspective

Hypothetical story:

I can't find a decent job anywhere, no matter how I try. After a long time trying, I finally find a job. But it’s in Toronto. A good job, with decent pay. But I have to move. To Canada.

Will I? I don't want to. I'm a patriotic American. I love this country. I fly the flag all the time. Yet....

I have no choice. I can't feed my family here. So I move to Toronto.

I find a place to live. And now, a year later, I'm pretty happy here. The job is great, the people are wonderful. Life is good.

Am I Canadian? Hell no. I'm an American, and I'm proud of it. I'm not going to become a citizen of Canada. I love America. Always have, and always will. And I fly my American flag every day. Because I'm proud of where I came from.

Yes, Canada has been good to me, but I'll always be an American.

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This hypothetical story makes sense to all us Americans. But just for fun, read it again, with a few changes. I've changed all the "America" references to "Mexico." And all the "Canada" to "America."

*******************

I can't find a decent job anywhere, no matter how I try. After a long time trying, I finally find a job. But it’s in San Antonio. A good job, with decent pay. But I have to move. To America.

Will I? I don't want to. I'm a patriotic Mexican. I love this country. I fly the flag all the time. Yet....

I have no choice. I can't feed my family here. So I move to San Antonio.

I find a place to live. And now, a year later, I'm pretty happy here. The job is great, the people are wonderful. Life is good.

Am I American? Hell no. I'm a Mexican, and I'm proud of it. I'm not going to become a citizen of America. I love Mexico. Always have, and always will. And I fly my Mexican flag every day. Because I'm proud of where I came from.

Yes, America has been good to me, but I'll always be a Mexican.

*******************
Maybe the parallel isn't 100% accurate. But maybe it is. Either way, it's another way to look at it.

You Take Your Chances

Recently, Jeanne and I were driving somewhere. She was driving, I was in the passenger seat. We came to a stop sign where we were supposed to turn right. When we stopped, I didn't hear a turn signal. I didn’t think she was going to turn. So being the ever-helpful husband I am, I said “We turn right here.” The response? “I know!” OK, I thought. (I was just trying to help!)

A few weeks later, we’re at the same stop sign. Same situation. Same no turn signal. Do I say something? Does she remember? Or do I shut up, having learned my lesson from earlier. Well, I shut up. As any husband knows, that’s normally the right choice.

She immediately drives straight through. No right turn. So, again being the ever-helpful husband, I say “You were supposed to turn right back there.” The response? “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Later, I explained my dilemma. If I remind her of something she already knows, I get an “I know.” But if I don’t remind her and she forgets, I get a “Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked her how I’m supposed to know which to do. The answer, in typically female fashion was “You take your chances.”

I could probably cite 50 examples like this, but you get the idea. Men, you ALL understand where I’m coming from. It’s just one of the things we deal with. But to be fair, there’s a lot of things about us that our women deal with as well.

And to be even more fair, there’s a good chance this happens with the gender roles reversed, and I don’t realize it. But I’m writing the blog, so I get to tell the story!

*Final note: Jeanne Morgan approves this message.

It's a Bizarro World

When I was a little kid, I used to read comic books. Like most kids. My favorite was Superman. I mean, how could it not be? He could do anything, he always did what was right, he helped those less fortunate, and never sought credit for it. (A great role model, looking back on it.) But once in a while in the comic books, they talked about "Bizarro World." Bizarro world was just like the earth, except shaped like a cube. And everything was backwards. Bad was good, stupid was smart... You get the idea. The biggest heroes were just like Superman, except instead of saving lives, they killed as many as possible. And were admired for it.

It recently occured to me that we have come to live in a Bizarro world of our own. I've heard this reference lately, but it wasn't until now that I realized how applicable it is.

I recently saw a video of Trump giving a speech at his New Year's Eve party at Mar-a-Logo. He was saying his usual stuff, and of course, all the people would cheer. But they saved their loudest and most boisterous cheer for this: "We're going to get rid of Obamacare." The place went wild. Of course, this place was filled with really rich people, most of whom have never had to worry about enough money to go to a doctor. And yes, if Obamacare is repealed, they could conceivably get a decent tax reduction. Not that they need it of course; the rich keep getting richer in this country, and nobody is questioning that.

But what bothered me was this: I can understand objections to Obamacare. And I can even understand why some people think it should be replaced. But just repealed? Cold turkey? It's not clear that's what will happen, but it's clear that a lot of wealthy people WANT it to happen. Just get rid of it, right now. And millions of people will now be without any way to afford even simple health care. You  would think these people would care, just a little bit. Don't they feel bad that some people will get sick and even die because they can't afford to go to the doctor? And if they don't feel bad, why doesn't every other single person in this country think those people are just selfish, cruel, people? Or is this the Bizarro world where it's become cool to love rich people and hate poor people?

In fact, that is exactly what we've become. Remember "It's a Wonderful Life?" Who was the bad guy? Mr. Potter, the greedy banker who wanted to take over the town. The good guys were the poor guys who worked hard, for almost nothing. That is no longer the America I know. In Bizarro America, we would cheer for Mr. Potter, and scorn the low-life working class. In Bizarro America, it has become cool to praise the rich guy. We don't care if he gets paid more in an hour than his workers do in a year. And it's fine that when one of these guys gets fired because he was incompetent that he gets a multi-million dollar bonus. All that's OK. But just wait till some fast food worker who is trying to support his family wants a wage he can live on. Now that's horrible! Really, isn't this Bizarro World? I mean, how is it not?

But what makes this even more sad, it's not just the rich people who feel that way. Just hang around on Facebook sometime when a story comes on about minimum wage. You'll see all kinds of hardworking people slamming these poorer hardworking people. But the rich guys who get zillions? That's all fine.

In today's Bizarro World, we adore and praise the wealthy people. They are the "job creators" and the "backbone of our country" and "the brains we need to run this country." And we despise anyone poorer than us. Treat them as slugs living off the system. They're "welfare queens" or "spoiled brats" who "need to get a real job." Or "lazy scum who just want a free ride." Or something like that.

I remember when we used to have empathy for those who couldn't make ends meet. And we wanted to help them. (Like Jesus told us to, if you need a reminder.) Now, we chastise them. After all, if they had some work ethic, they'd be doing just fine. (sarcasm intended)

Now, I know this is a cyclical thing. Periodically the world gets messed up. We start turning against each other, try to cut off rights for anyone "not like us." And in general, just get selfish. And since it's cyclical, I'm pretty sure this will turn around, and we'll get back to the times when we all work together and watch out for each other.

But I'm not holding my breath.