For many years democrats were quite happy to let Texas and the other border states deal with this. It only took six months for New Yorkers to throw a fit over it - and the media who ignored the issue for years are suddenly treating it like a crisis. You all voted for Biden - you get what you deserve. Stop complaining about getting what you literally asked for.
Progressives pride themselves on being empathetic. In sympathy with migrants, they can imagine themselves fleeing war zones or abject poverty. They're supposed to be educated, well-read, able to imagine themselves occupying different positions, in different societies, at different points in history. Yet they could not imagine themselves managing scarce public resources, in a small border town, in present day America. That failure of imagination is shameful. Here again. Luxury beliefs.
Sadly, I think many of them actually think if we could just get Elon Musk and Bezos to pay their "fair share" we would all be on easy street. They can't do math enough to know that could rob Bezos and Musk blind and barely pay a month or 2 of rent for everyone.
Right, years ago I found that if the government confiscated all of the wealth of the top 400 wealthiest people in the U.S. it wouldn't cover eight months of federal spending. Since then federal spending has more than doubled.
Truth. We've had broken schools, ER's that can't be used by taxpayers, and lots of uninsured motorists who don't observe US traffic rules for years, but it has exploded under the Biden administration's open borders. So, for all of the Sanctuary Cities that are now getting a small fraction of the illegal aliens we deal with daily in Texas....you voted for it, you've got it. The one question I'd love answered is who is paying to bring all the Africans, Asian's and Islanders to our southern border? They aren't, by and large, professional people with money. They are uneducated people who don't have the money to fly to Mexico or Central America and then walk over the border. They aren't swimming from Africa and Asia, so who is buying the ticket to bring them to our border and, more importantly, why?
I’ve asked reporters, immigration advocates and US Senators. No one seems to know. No curiosity about 10,000 Chinese men of military age? Who paid for their airline tickets to Mexico and why?
And once they cross the border, NGOs within the U.S. help them move the the part of the U.S. they select. These NGOs are sometimes funded by... the U.S. Government.
Jane, do you really need to ask this? The countries south of our border are dumping their poor and emptying their prisons. The cartels are sending their foot solders for the purpose of drugs, prostitution, etc. (thousands of illegals are arriving daily with different color wristbands based on which cartel they belong to). Iran, China.... are sponsoring their terrorists. And...... progressive American do-gooders are sending a boatload of aid and money.
To bring some perspective to the statistics shared in the article...
> while crime may be down by just over 25 percent in Sunset Park, it doesn’t feel that way
*Arrests* are down 25%. Very different from any change in crime. In particular, New York City has decriminalized a lot of things including petty theft.
> every night a migrant family is in the city’s care, the local government spends an average of $394 for food, shelter, and medical care
That's about $12,000 a month. The median family income in New York City is roughly $5,800 a month. So a migrant family is getting more than double from the government than a native family makes (might not be entirely comparable, since native families will also get some city benefits).
It's also worth noting that over 80% of migrant "families" to the US are just single men, although perhaps that's less true of those that make it to New York. Still, it suggests the actual disparity between the amount the government spends on migrants is far greater than the amount a local makes working an actual job.
Thank you for picking up the misleading statistic, which is starting to be cited more by the MSM, that crime is on the decline. As any person who shops, or walks city streets, and has functioning eyes knows, this is not at all the case.
The reality is that crime REPORTING and arrests are down. People and businesses no longer report them all, because they know nothing will be done. Police avoid every public interaction they can, because they know that most arrested crooks will be back out in hours, and are unlikely to be prosecuted. And many blue cities refuse to report crime statistics to agencies that track them, further diminishing the accuracy of the statistics.
The combined result is we're making ourselves too dysfunctional to even have reliable measures of the problem.
The U.S.'s immigration rate is so far beyond the nation's ability to absorb it, it boggles the mind to see national leaders do nothing about it. We are literally digging our own grave, and the administration's "response" has generally been to dig faster.
Exactly right. If you don't report incidents of crime, they magically "disappear", and crime goes down. Except in the toniest of neighborhoods and academia, every American knows better.
The same for inflation. Some MSM outlet will report that the economy is great (All hail Bidenomics), but everyone on the ground knows that they are poorer than they were a few years ago, no matter what the 'data' says.
Thanks for sharing some clarifying nuances to the statistics.
I’m struck by Adam’s comment that “Our hearts are endless but our resources are not.” Like what did you think was going to happen with such permissive immigration policies? Lefties want so badly to seem compassionate but fail to see the practicality (or impracticality) of many other policies. It’s not compassion to fail to think through the full consequences of a policy and end up hurting everyone. And for what? Just to “seem” compassionate to voters? I hope more people from the left can see through this false compassion before poor policies completely break our country.
That is one of the cruxes of the issue. They think that if they yell enough, they can change reality, likely because they spent their young lives yelling, and people did in fact change for them. So why wouldn't they think it can continue?
My parents and in-laws immigrated legally like Mr. Marte. Like him, they worked hard and never took a penny of welfare. They are disgusted by how progressives have destroyed the city and the country. All vote red, but New York missed a big opportunity with Zedlin. Is it too late to save the sinking ship?
NYC going bankrupt again is going to be spectacular. The articles write themselves... Billions to Ukraine but sorry, we don't have anything for NYC.... All tapped out.
Sadly, I am not so sure they WILL be tapped out. Just throw money at every problem and deny inflation. NYC is a good little Blue city...you honestly think our current administration won't happy reward them for it?
Depends on whose in office next year and when they go bankrupt but you're probably right. I'm just laughing at the image of some of the arguments that will be made when it does finally happen.
Billions aren't going to save New York, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Chicago, St. Louis, Detroit, Minneapolis, Seattle, LA, San Francisco, New Orlean or Portlad.
It's going to take billions EVERY YEAR for decades to regain what the progressives have squandered away.
Yes, it's too late. It was too late even prior to the 2022 election. Enough Republicans had fled the state in the prior four years that it made the difference between victory and defeat for him.
NYS is now doomed to be a one-party leftist state forever. Even when it collapses, people will still vote leftist.
I am extremely concerned about the migrant situation but what is most concerning is the number of military aged young men arriving without families.i am concerned that many are being sent here to destroy America.
I think it's more primitive -- you g men are the most likely group by far to want to emigrate and take a chance - leave behind families, go somewhere else, live an easier and better life. Heck, if I were 10 years younger, I'd be looking to emigrate away from the US -- not to get benefits, just think there are places in the world that are declining more slowly than the Anglosphere.
Another, almost as bad possibility is that they’re being imported to fill the ranks of our military in an exchange of citizenship for fighting in the next pointless war racket. Either way it’s not good.
*Tinfoil hat* I have wondered about something like this. For years one of my defenses of the 2nd amendment has gone like this: We need to be able to defend ourselves, even from our government. Counter: You think you could take on the government with a silly rifle? The military would destroy you. Me: yeah, but most of the people in the military would be on MY side.
Now I am not so sure. The Dems have done their best to drive out people who actually care about this country and want to preserve it and instead fill it with people who will tow the line, so they can wear makeup while in uniform or claim to be the first "Alphabet People" in a certain military position. Adding a bunch of loyal immigrants would just be another layer to my conspiracy about how the Dems are trying to destroy our military in case they need to use it against us.
The amount of actual battle experienced experienced high level officers and troops in general, and police around the country that have been pushed into retirement by the culture of diversity/equity/incusion/safety/"harm" is definitely troubling.
No kidding- Blinken seems to be right there all the time. Did you see that Blinken dressed his son to be Zelensky for Halloween and his daughter the Ukraine flag? It’s sick - no doubt the kids were too young to see how their parents were using them. It’s craven.
Either we remove this criminal regime by impeachment or the 25th Amendment or we simply rise up in massive civil disobedience until the border is sealed and the criminal aliens deported. And yes it really is that simple.
They are all criminal aliens. They broke our law by illegally entering. We need to do what Eisenhauer did in the 50s, round them up and send them home.
The family earning $148,000/year (12 x $12,000/month) gets the same indirect benefits (subway, sanitation, busses, roads, etc.) as any illegal immigrant family and has to pay federal, state, and local income taxes on their income. So, the net for the family trying to make it a go in the city is little better than one who merely sits on the dole.
And a question that immediately came to mind when seeing the picture of youth selling sneakers and other bits of clothing...Where are they getting the merchandise from? Someone who as stolen them? Certainly not from a local shoe store....
That is because the hotel / property owners the city pays to house the migrants charge much higher fees than a New Yorker would pay for rent. Hotel rooms cost far more than apartments. It is insanity to put migrants int he most expensive city in America. They should be going to Poughkeepsie, or Rochester, or Utica.
Well, Mayor Adams, don't count on your situation improving. You will undoubtedly figure a way to let alllllllll those illegals vote, and they will surely make all those nice benefits permanent.
Same. I grew up in a mostly chaotic society in Mexico. My anger towards progressives over this matter is immeasurable. Indeed this is not the same country as 30 years ago. Indeed I will very likely vote red.
Because it is equally possible that I might abstain. I am positive that I will not vote democrat again in any foreseeable future, but I’m not completely convinced that voting red is good for the country either. The likely choices are awful.
This migrant influx is a devil’s bargain between extreme leftist “no borders” types, who seem to be running the Biden Administration, and big business that wants cheap, compliant labor. Hardest hit will be poor Black Americans in cities. Who wants to hire a man from the ‘hood with a prior record when a new arrival will do it for half the cost and not complain?
You would think that those high profile people who claim to represent the African American community would speak up on this issue, but they don't. Crickets. Sure tells me something.
There's another chilling thought that New Yorkers don't seem to be thinking: NYC has the second largest population of Jews outside of Israel. How many of the 600 daily arrivals are Hamas, Hezbollah, or other terrorist factions sponsored by Iran? No one knows, or even can know. At least until they act.
I was interested to read today in the WSJ that Europe has 1.3 million Jews, and - following years of rapid immigration - over 20 million Muslims. Think about that, especially projecting out the next 50 years or so.
Europe as a Judeo-Christian society is over. The Muslims with their high birth rates have it conquered. Jews have no future in Europe which is why 20k French Jews have already left for Israel.
I am also shrinking at the idea that once more strict immigration rules are in place the situation in the Middle East deteriorates further… and then the US faces again ships with Jews escaping another Holocost, and they will be…. turned around AGAIN? Now due to strict immigration rules that were finally just applied?
Gee.. what a mess. God, please make this in unlikely scenario.
"Now that he’s here, he dreams of becoming a veterinarian who cares for animals like his camel back home, named Nasir. But he just wants a job, period." ....I can't tell if the FP thinks this adds credibility to this piece? I guess they are trying to humanize this illegal immigrant. It makes me realize the absurdity of what is going on. Except to say, he will probably get free college and veterinary education, while a hard working white kid won't. And if he says he is transgender, they probably will make him the head of Pfizer. He can oust Bourla.
I do feel sorry for this young man, as I have friends who have needed to escape that same bloodshed happening in Africa. They came through refugees systems though, not illegally. But we can’t make bend the rules for every sob-story out there. I’d like to see a better refugee/asylum system for folks like this young man, but I’m afraid that won’t happen when illegal immigrations is so out of control.
However, I don’t think we need to lose our sense of humanizing people in this situation. We don’t need to lose all compassion. We need a rule of law and we need laws to be followed and enforced, this serves everyone. But we can still lament that some people may get the short end of the stick at the same time. We should never dehumanize anyone for any reason. There is space to be compassionate for people but also not take that compassion too far into undermining the rule of law and good policies that work. Please dont fail to see migrants as people— you don’t have to dehumanize them to say that we need better immigration policy.
Sure, absolutely. But that still doesn’t mean you have to dehumanize people caught up in corrupt governments. The situation in Africa is so bad that I personally know too young men who were beat up and left for dead by their governments for speaking up against corruption. It’s a miracle they lived and even made it to the US. I can simultaneously feel for their hardships and understand their very real urgent need to escape or risk death, AND affirm that we need firm laws and policies that help these people who really suffer go somewhere safe in a legal manner. I do think there is a difference between refugee or those seeking asylum from actual risk of death and those who come merely looking for better economic opportunities.
What I am saying is that, let’s not view migrants as “less than human” even while we may need to turn them away from our country. The Left makes it seem that you need to either let them in to be compassionate or dehumanize them to keep them out. Bullshit. That’s a false dichotomy, and you are playing into the Left’s hands when you do that.
Rather, acknowledge that people are hurting and suffering. View people as people. AND seek laws and policies that actually help, uphold/enforce the law, understanding that it may be tragic that some will fall through the cracks. But no one needs to demean people in order to uphold the law. Let’s not fall into that trap. We can do what needs to be done AND lament any hurt that may come from an imperfect policy and bad situations.
Having represented both refugees and immigrants, I can testify that there is often a huge difference in motivation. Immigrants want to come to the US and become part of the US, culturally and intellectually. Refugees, understandably, just want to be somewhere where no one is shooting at them. They aren't necessarily interested in assimilating or becoming Americans in the broad sense of the word. If conditions improve in their home country, a fair number of refugees will actually go back. But, in the meantime many of these refugee communities just replicate their old homes in our country. There are Somali neighborhoods in the US that are "no go" zones where local law enforcement must get the permission of the neighborhood "war lord" before coming into the area. In our local elementary we had "tribal problems" among the refugees brought in by the International Rescue Committee. Eventually, you can get enough refugees who become unassimilated citizens and they elect their own Congresswoman (See Ilhan Omar from Minnesota)
I don't know anyone who dehumanizes immigrants. We all feel sorry for them and would probably do the same given their circumstances. But that is not the point. The U.S. is not capable of becoming one big refugee tent, where everything is free. This is particularly true when the country is already riven by civil and criminal disorder and faces geopolitical regimes which seek to impose their will on and erase free societies around the world. An open border is extremely destabilizing for a country that is really struggling at present. I feel for our brothers and sisters in many countries, but my priority is the USA. Without a healthy America, the plight of those you are concerned about will get worse. Much worse.
I completely agree that open borders are bad. But many I do feel dehumanize migrants, based on how they talk about them. The above comment that I first replied to said, “I guess they are trying to humanize this illegal immigrant.” We shouldn’t have to “humanize” humans. This implies that some DO dehumanize immigrants. It sounds like you don’t, which is good. But I see far too many people talk about immigrants as if they are less than human. We can agree that immigration policy needs to be stricter without resorting to dehumanizing the actual immigrants.
I hear what you are saying. KB but we have to be practical. This is too much too fast and is unsustainable. And, it is impacting our own citizens in dangerous ways for multiple reasons. Will you leave your doors open in your home and allow anyone in? To live in your backyard or eat the food in your house? Will you give all your money to help and then go hungry yourself. There are already many homeless here. Many that cannot afford rent and food and utilities. Do we have enough jobs to offer these folks, or housing? What about the imposition of streets or schools? What about the national debt? How long can we afford to pay for millions who just walked in the door, when folks like me have paid taxes for 50 years and am barely making it? Or the the people in East Palestine, how did we help them? We can no longer pay for the world. We can have compassion but if we use all our resources we will have nothing to give.
You misunderstand me. We absolutely have to be practical. We cannot take everyone in. I agree with you. All I am saying is that we don’t need to dehumanize the people we may have to turn away at the border. We can still see immigrants as people, even if they are people we cannot or will not help. We can still feel sympathy for their plight, even if we say “I’m sorry my friend, I cannot help you this way.”
Why Bruce? Why should a locust continue to feed on the field it has already stripped bare?
The question remains (to continue the analogy), are we as a neighboring farmer going to watch the locust destroy our fields, debate how horrible it is, or will be move to eradicate the pest?
Don't blame the locust - locust do what locust do. Blame the farmer who does nothing.
P.S. Give the Israelis credit for knowing the importance of taking the fight to the pest.
Of course. But, unlike some, I'm not as concerned about the need to compromise my ethics to get it done. War is hell. I didn't make this problem or fire the first shots, so I feel no burden about what needs to happen to correct it.
At one point, “asylum” was a narrow category. But smartphones mean that every single person crossing the border, whether from Punjab, Russia or Ecuador, knows exactly what story to tell when they cross. While I don’t begrudge any individual from trying to come here, let’s acknowledge that 99.99% of the migrants’ asylum claims are fraudulent. Yes, they probably come from difficult lives and want something better, but that is not the same thing as seeking political asylum. And let’s acknowledge that policies created for totally different purposes (eg chronic homelessness) have massively backfired in an unpredictable way and are now serving as a magnet.
As an immigrant, I have many, too many, immigrant friends and acquaintances who came to the US 30-40 years ago. We all say the same thing: this is not the America we came to.
Not only because we had to survive a “swim or sink” conditions, with no help from the state but also because we no longer feel the exhilarating freedom we came for, the freedom to say what you think, the freedom to gain pride from your work.
Having grown up in a one party state made me allergic to the word “party”. Hence, I never registered in a party and voted, alas! for whomever I considered less bad.
"Mayor Adams says the influx is due to “a propaganda machine” driven by coyotes—or human smugglers—who charge migrants for their help crossing the Mexico border, and who promise New York City will give them a “five-star hotel,” along with an automatic job."
Adams is an idiot. The influx is due to simpletons like Adams and other progressives who proclaimed their cities to be "sanctuaries" - exempt from our nation's immigration laws. And then abetted by the Senile Imbecile who opened our borders, releasing a tidal wave of illegals to destroy our country and "eat out our sustenance. " I don't know about you but I make this pledge - I will not vote for any presidential candidate who won't swear to begin deporting every single one of these criminals on his or her first day in office. Let's take back our country.
Its kind of amazing how once progressives start en acting their utopian ideas everybody hates it. I think the slow death of the woke ideology has begun. I commented awhile back that once the Free Press writers start going red the Dems will be in trouble. Looks like thats happening.
To switch to Republican would require swimming against decades of propaganda. 'Sure, I don't like what's happening, but can I vote with the dumb racist xenophobic homophobes? They want to kill non-whites and usher in a theocracy.'
Bari et. al. have been trying to shed their preconceptions, for what, years? They still have huge blind spots. Much like building Rome, reordering one's entire conception of the world is not done in a day.
It doesn't help that Trump just screams 'loathe me'. I believe his boorishness and the left's inability to see past the orange eclipse is a big reason why things have gotten so bad. Still, flaccid Mitt Romney was portrayed as someone who wanted to kill your grandparents. Regardless who's representing the Right, they will be depicted as the worst thing since, and possibly exceeding, Hitler. Folks have spent their lives believing that claptrap.
I am against the illegal immigrant influx. However, I have a hard time sympathizing with those who came illegally who are now complaining. Just because they came earlier and in smaller numbers, doesn't make what they did right or fair to those who came legally or are legit US citizens.
Of course, in both cases, the real culprit is the government for turning a blind eye to the actions of the illegals AND their US employers.
Yes. My sister in law is from Morelia, Mexico and she became a US citizen legally. She got a visa and came to the USA to visit a family member and ended up meeting my brother (who obviously an American). They got married about 15 years ago. She followed all of the correct steps to become a US citizen. It was a long process but she savored every moment of it and is so proud to be an American. It really frustrates and angers her(and our family) that people can so easily and freely just walk through the border when she did it the right way.
I know many such people from all over who did it the right way and it took years, but they stuck with it. I don’t think it should take as long as it has for them, but in some ways, the arduous process probably helps cement the loyalty and pride in being an American that we need.
It's not at all surprising. It's simply human nature to want to immediately pull up the draw bridge once you yourself sneak into the castle. No amount of "immigrant solidarity" can change that.
We are watching the Cloward-Piven strategy unfold in real time. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloward%E2%80%93Piven_strategy. The idea is to overwhelm the system so that it breaks and a new system (guaranteed universal income, communism, etc.) can be implemented. The Progressives aren’t empathetic, they are Marxists continuing the long march. The Democrat Socialists of America control the NYC City Council and are using the right to shelter as a club to advance their agenda. They want to eliminate private ownership of property (it’s in their charter) and forcing the government to provide shelter is a step in that direction. All those hotels that are taking the migrants are going to look like the St. Nicholas Houses projects in a year or two, leaving them in government hands.
Whoever found a way to make New York City’s Democrats feel the effects of their naïve beliefs about immigration is a genius. I hope every Democrat voter nationwide gets similar skin in the game. It is the only way things can change.
Everywhere I go I see a crowd of insidious Oath Keepers. They are everywhere.
When i see a crime committed ... I know it's an Oath Keeper.
When I hear someone yell an ethnic slur ... yep, Oath Keeper.
When I read the newspaper or go online and read about innocent women being raped, children being abused, the mass murder of victims ... it's always an Oath Keeper.
And these tens of millions of Oath Keepers almost Overthrew Our Democracy on January 6th. We were all so close to losing it all.
No wonder the media says Maga white supremacists are the #1 terror threat in our country.
For many years democrats were quite happy to let Texas and the other border states deal with this. It only took six months for New Yorkers to throw a fit over it - and the media who ignored the issue for years are suddenly treating it like a crisis. You all voted for Biden - you get what you deserve. Stop complaining about getting what you literally asked for.
Progressives pride themselves on being empathetic. In sympathy with migrants, they can imagine themselves fleeing war zones or abject poverty. They're supposed to be educated, well-read, able to imagine themselves occupying different positions, in different societies, at different points in history. Yet they could not imagine themselves managing scarce public resources, in a small border town, in present day America. That failure of imagination is shameful. Here again. Luxury beliefs.
Empathetic as long as other people pay the price, yes.
Sweetheart, progressivism is about robbing Peter to give to Paul. It isn't about making sacrifices that affect yourself, or your own children.
Sadly, I think many of them actually think if we could just get Elon Musk and Bezos to pay their "fair share" we would all be on easy street. They can't do math enough to know that could rob Bezos and Musk blind and barely pay a month or 2 of rent for everyone.
Right, years ago I found that if the government confiscated all of the wealth of the top 400 wealthiest people in the U.S. it wouldn't cover eight months of federal spending. Since then federal spending has more than doubled.
Truth. We've had broken schools, ER's that can't be used by taxpayers, and lots of uninsured motorists who don't observe US traffic rules for years, but it has exploded under the Biden administration's open borders. So, for all of the Sanctuary Cities that are now getting a small fraction of the illegal aliens we deal with daily in Texas....you voted for it, you've got it. The one question I'd love answered is who is paying to bring all the Africans, Asian's and Islanders to our southern border? They aren't, by and large, professional people with money. They are uneducated people who don't have the money to fly to Mexico or Central America and then walk over the border. They aren't swimming from Africa and Asia, so who is buying the ticket to bring them to our border and, more importantly, why?
That is an excellent question, and note how no one is investigating it.
I’ve asked reporters, immigration advocates and US Senators. No one seems to know. No curiosity about 10,000 Chinese men of military age? Who paid for their airline tickets to Mexico and why?
And once they cross the border, NGOs within the U.S. help them move the the part of the U.S. they select. These NGOs are sometimes funded by... the U.S. Government.
Jane, do you really need to ask this? The countries south of our border are dumping their poor and emptying their prisons. The cartels are sending their foot solders for the purpose of drugs, prostitution, etc. (thousands of illegals are arriving daily with different color wristbands based on which cartel they belong to). Iran, China.... are sponsoring their terrorists. And...... progressive American do-gooders are sending a boatload of aid and money.
"The one question I'd love answered is who is paying" for all this? Quick answer, you/we are.
See: https://cis.org/Bensman/UN-Budgets-Millions-USBound-Migrants-2024
It took about 24 hours for Martha's Vineyard to throw a fit over it.
Not accurate.
It was more like 24 minutes.
They off-loaded them to Cape Cod's migrant center.
YES!!!
To bring some perspective to the statistics shared in the article...
> while crime may be down by just over 25 percent in Sunset Park, it doesn’t feel that way
*Arrests* are down 25%. Very different from any change in crime. In particular, New York City has decriminalized a lot of things including petty theft.
> every night a migrant family is in the city’s care, the local government spends an average of $394 for food, shelter, and medical care
That's about $12,000 a month. The median family income in New York City is roughly $5,800 a month. So a migrant family is getting more than double from the government than a native family makes (might not be entirely comparable, since native families will also get some city benefits).
It's also worth noting that over 80% of migrant "families" to the US are just single men, although perhaps that's less true of those that make it to New York. Still, it suggests the actual disparity between the amount the government spends on migrants is far greater than the amount a local makes working an actual job.
We truly are entering a Marxist socialist utopia!
Thank you for picking up the misleading statistic, which is starting to be cited more by the MSM, that crime is on the decline. As any person who shops, or walks city streets, and has functioning eyes knows, this is not at all the case.
The reality is that crime REPORTING and arrests are down. People and businesses no longer report them all, because they know nothing will be done. Police avoid every public interaction they can, because they know that most arrested crooks will be back out in hours, and are unlikely to be prosecuted. And many blue cities refuse to report crime statistics to agencies that track them, further diminishing the accuracy of the statistics.
The combined result is we're making ourselves too dysfunctional to even have reliable measures of the problem.
The U.S.'s immigration rate is so far beyond the nation's ability to absorb it, it boggles the mind to see national leaders do nothing about it. We are literally digging our own grave, and the administration's "response" has generally been to dig faster.
Exactly right. If you don't report incidents of crime, they magically "disappear", and crime goes down. Except in the toniest of neighborhoods and academia, every American knows better.
The same for inflation. Some MSM outlet will report that the economy is great (All hail Bidenomics), but everyone on the ground knows that they are poorer than they were a few years ago, no matter what the 'data' says.
They no longer sell bacon by the pound... Soon it will be offered priced by the slice.
People are tired of hearing about all the crime and our government(s) ordering police to stand down.
The news media is tired of writing about it because it doesn't fit the narratives they have been constructing.
Thanks for sharing some clarifying nuances to the statistics.
I’m struck by Adam’s comment that “Our hearts are endless but our resources are not.” Like what did you think was going to happen with such permissive immigration policies? Lefties want so badly to seem compassionate but fail to see the practicality (or impracticality) of many other policies. It’s not compassion to fail to think through the full consequences of a policy and end up hurting everyone. And for what? Just to “seem” compassionate to voters? I hope more people from the left can see through this false compassion before poor policies completely break our country.
Thomas Sowell called this "Stage One Thinking", in other words, good intentions trump logical consequences!
That is because the left hates reality. Reality is hard and at times cruel.
The left loves rainbows and unicorns and hates reality.
That is one of the cruxes of the issue. They think that if they yell enough, they can change reality, likely because they spent their young lives yelling, and people did in fact change for them. So why wouldn't they think it can continue?
Ha! I like that, although Sowell is kinder than I would be. I’d simply call it “poor thinking.”
They don't even bother with consequences. The credit you get from useless posturing is all the currency they need.
My parents and in-laws immigrated legally like Mr. Marte. Like him, they worked hard and never took a penny of welfare. They are disgusted by how progressives have destroyed the city and the country. All vote red, but New York missed a big opportunity with Zedlin. Is it too late to save the sinking ship?
NYC going bankrupt again is going to be spectacular. The articles write themselves... Billions to Ukraine but sorry, we don't have anything for NYC.... All tapped out.
Sadly, I am not so sure they WILL be tapped out. Just throw money at every problem and deny inflation. NYC is a good little Blue city...you honestly think our current administration won't happy reward them for it?
Depends on whose in office next year and when they go bankrupt but you're probably right. I'm just laughing at the image of some of the arguments that will be made when it does finally happen.
Oh, I would be right there with you if I wasn't such a cynic.
Billions aren't going to save New York, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Chicago, St. Louis, Detroit, Minneapolis, Seattle, LA, San Francisco, New Orlean or Portlad.
It's going to take billions EVERY YEAR for decades to regain what the progressives have squandered away.
Yes, it's too late. It was too late even prior to the 2022 election. Enough Republicans had fled the state in the prior four years that it made the difference between victory and defeat for him.
NYS is now doomed to be a one-party leftist state forever. Even when it collapses, people will still vote leftist.
I am extremely concerned about the migrant situation but what is most concerning is the number of military aged young men arriving without families.i am concerned that many are being sent here to destroy America.
I think it's more primitive -- you g men are the most likely group by far to want to emigrate and take a chance - leave behind families, go somewhere else, live an easier and better life. Heck, if I were 10 years younger, I'd be looking to emigrate away from the US -- not to get benefits, just think there are places in the world that are declining more slowly than the Anglosphere.
Another, almost as bad possibility is that they’re being imported to fill the ranks of our military in an exchange of citizenship for fighting in the next pointless war racket. Either way it’s not good.
*Tinfoil hat* I have wondered about something like this. For years one of my defenses of the 2nd amendment has gone like this: We need to be able to defend ourselves, even from our government. Counter: You think you could take on the government with a silly rifle? The military would destroy you. Me: yeah, but most of the people in the military would be on MY side.
Now I am not so sure. The Dems have done their best to drive out people who actually care about this country and want to preserve it and instead fill it with people who will tow the line, so they can wear makeup while in uniform or claim to be the first "Alphabet People" in a certain military position. Adding a bunch of loyal immigrants would just be another layer to my conspiracy about how the Dems are trying to destroy our military in case they need to use it against us.
The amount of actual battle experienced experienced high level officers and troops in general, and police around the country that have been pushed into retirement by the culture of diversity/equity/incusion/safety/"harm" is definitely troubling.
Just call them the wrong pronouns and they will scatter like flies.
That thought has crossed my mind- Biden is looking for ‘war meat grinder’ material….
Do you mean president Blinken? 🥸
No kidding- Blinken seems to be right there all the time. Did you see that Blinken dressed his son to be Zelensky for Halloween and his daughter the Ukraine flag? It’s sick - no doubt the kids were too young to see how their parents were using them. It’s craven.
It seems kinda obvious lately. What a sociopath. Yeah, those are going to be some messed up adults one day.
Either we remove this criminal regime by impeachment or the 25th Amendment or we simply rise up in massive civil disobedience until the border is sealed and the criminal aliens deported. And yes it really is that simple.
They are all criminal aliens. They broke our law by illegally entering. We need to do what Eisenhauer did in the 50s, round them up and send them home.
The family earning $148,000/year (12 x $12,000/month) gets the same indirect benefits (subway, sanitation, busses, roads, etc.) as any illegal immigrant family and has to pay federal, state, and local income taxes on their income. So, the net for the family trying to make it a go in the city is little better than one who merely sits on the dole.
And a question that immediately came to mind when seeing the picture of youth selling sneakers and other bits of clothing...Where are they getting the merchandise from? Someone who as stolen them? Certainly not from a local shoe store....
That is because the hotel / property owners the city pays to house the migrants charge much higher fees than a New Yorker would pay for rent. Hotel rooms cost far more than apartments. It is insanity to put migrants int he most expensive city in America. They should be going to Poughkeepsie, or Rochester, or Utica.
Well, Mayor Adams, don't count on your situation improving. You will undoubtedly figure a way to let alllllllll those illegals vote, and they will surely make all those nice benefits permanent.
Same. I grew up in a mostly chaotic society in Mexico. My anger towards progressives over this matter is immeasurable. Indeed this is not the same country as 30 years ago. Indeed I will very likely vote red.
I’m curious: If your anger towards progressives is immeasurable, why hedge and say “very likely” instead of “will vote red”?
Because it is equally possible that I might abstain. I am positive that I will not vote democrat again in any foreseeable future, but I’m not completely convinced that voting red is good for the country either. The likely choices are awful.
Red is still better than Blue.
This migrant influx is a devil’s bargain between extreme leftist “no borders” types, who seem to be running the Biden Administration, and big business that wants cheap, compliant labor. Hardest hit will be poor Black Americans in cities. Who wants to hire a man from the ‘hood with a prior record when a new arrival will do it for half the cost and not complain?
You would think that those high profile people who claim to represent the African American community would speak up on this issue, but they don't. Crickets. Sure tells me something.
🪒🛎️
I was pilloried as a racist for taking a hardline against illegal immigration, because I knew this was the obvious outcome. I have a few choice words:
1. You made this bed. Time to sleep in it.
2. I told you so
3. F*** you
There's another chilling thought that New Yorkers don't seem to be thinking: NYC has the second largest population of Jews outside of Israel. How many of the 600 daily arrivals are Hamas, Hezbollah, or other terrorist factions sponsored by Iran? No one knows, or even can know. At least until they act.
I was interested to read today in the WSJ that Europe has 1.3 million Jews, and - following years of rapid immigration - over 20 million Muslims. Think about that, especially projecting out the next 50 years or so.
Europe as a Judeo-Christian society is over. The Muslims with their high birth rates have it conquered. Jews have no future in Europe which is why 20k French Jews have already left for Israel.
I am also shrinking at the idea that once more strict immigration rules are in place the situation in the Middle East deteriorates further… and then the US faces again ships with Jews escaping another Holocost, and they will be…. turned around AGAIN? Now due to strict immigration rules that were finally just applied?
Gee.. what a mess. God, please make this in unlikely scenario.
"Now that he’s here, he dreams of becoming a veterinarian who cares for animals like his camel back home, named Nasir. But he just wants a job, period." ....I can't tell if the FP thinks this adds credibility to this piece? I guess they are trying to humanize this illegal immigrant. It makes me realize the absurdity of what is going on. Except to say, he will probably get free college and veterinary education, while a hard working white kid won't. And if he says he is transgender, they probably will make him the head of Pfizer. He can oust Bourla.
I do feel sorry for this young man, as I have friends who have needed to escape that same bloodshed happening in Africa. They came through refugees systems though, not illegally. But we can’t make bend the rules for every sob-story out there. I’d like to see a better refugee/asylum system for folks like this young man, but I’m afraid that won’t happen when illegal immigrations is so out of control.
However, I don’t think we need to lose our sense of humanizing people in this situation. We don’t need to lose all compassion. We need a rule of law and we need laws to be followed and enforced, this serves everyone. But we can still lament that some people may get the short end of the stick at the same time. We should never dehumanize anyone for any reason. There is space to be compassionate for people but also not take that compassion too far into undermining the rule of law and good policies that work. Please dont fail to see migrants as people— you don’t have to dehumanize them to say that we need better immigration policy.
They need to work on saving their own countries and not remaking ours in their own depraved images.
Sure, absolutely. But that still doesn’t mean you have to dehumanize people caught up in corrupt governments. The situation in Africa is so bad that I personally know too young men who were beat up and left for dead by their governments for speaking up against corruption. It’s a miracle they lived and even made it to the US. I can simultaneously feel for their hardships and understand their very real urgent need to escape or risk death, AND affirm that we need firm laws and policies that help these people who really suffer go somewhere safe in a legal manner. I do think there is a difference between refugee or those seeking asylum from actual risk of death and those who come merely looking for better economic opportunities.
What I am saying is that, let’s not view migrants as “less than human” even while we may need to turn them away from our country. The Left makes it seem that you need to either let them in to be compassionate or dehumanize them to keep them out. Bullshit. That’s a false dichotomy, and you are playing into the Left’s hands when you do that.
Rather, acknowledge that people are hurting and suffering. View people as people. AND seek laws and policies that actually help, uphold/enforce the law, understanding that it may be tragic that some will fall through the cracks. But no one needs to demean people in order to uphold the law. Let’s not fall into that trap. We can do what needs to be done AND lament any hurt that may come from an imperfect policy and bad situations.
Having represented both refugees and immigrants, I can testify that there is often a huge difference in motivation. Immigrants want to come to the US and become part of the US, culturally and intellectually. Refugees, understandably, just want to be somewhere where no one is shooting at them. They aren't necessarily interested in assimilating or becoming Americans in the broad sense of the word. If conditions improve in their home country, a fair number of refugees will actually go back. But, in the meantime many of these refugee communities just replicate their old homes in our country. There are Somali neighborhoods in the US that are "no go" zones where local law enforcement must get the permission of the neighborhood "war lord" before coming into the area. In our local elementary we had "tribal problems" among the refugees brought in by the International Rescue Committee. Eventually, you can get enough refugees who become unassimilated citizens and they elect their own Congresswoman (See Ilhan Omar from Minnesota)
And I am sure it’s complicated to parse out various motivations during the process of receiving immigrants as well.
I don't know anyone who dehumanizes immigrants. We all feel sorry for them and would probably do the same given their circumstances. But that is not the point. The U.S. is not capable of becoming one big refugee tent, where everything is free. This is particularly true when the country is already riven by civil and criminal disorder and faces geopolitical regimes which seek to impose their will on and erase free societies around the world. An open border is extremely destabilizing for a country that is really struggling at present. I feel for our brothers and sisters in many countries, but my priority is the USA. Without a healthy America, the plight of those you are concerned about will get worse. Much worse.
I completely agree that open borders are bad. But many I do feel dehumanize migrants, based on how they talk about them. The above comment that I first replied to said, “I guess they are trying to humanize this illegal immigrant.” We shouldn’t have to “humanize” humans. This implies that some DO dehumanize immigrants. It sounds like you don’t, which is good. But I see far too many people talk about immigrants as if they are less than human. We can agree that immigration policy needs to be stricter without resorting to dehumanizing the actual immigrants.
What is it about “illegal” that eludes you?
I hear what you are saying. KB but we have to be practical. This is too much too fast and is unsustainable. And, it is impacting our own citizens in dangerous ways for multiple reasons. Will you leave your doors open in your home and allow anyone in? To live in your backyard or eat the food in your house? Will you give all your money to help and then go hungry yourself. There are already many homeless here. Many that cannot afford rent and food and utilities. Do we have enough jobs to offer these folks, or housing? What about the imposition of streets or schools? What about the national debt? How long can we afford to pay for millions who just walked in the door, when folks like me have paid taxes for 50 years and am barely making it? Or the the people in East Palestine, how did we help them? We can no longer pay for the world. We can have compassion but if we use all our resources we will have nothing to give.
You misunderstand me. We absolutely have to be practical. We cannot take everyone in. I agree with you. All I am saying is that we don’t need to dehumanize the people we may have to turn away at the border. We can still see immigrants as people, even if they are people we cannot or will not help. We can still feel sympathy for their plight, even if we say “I’m sorry my friend, I cannot help you this way.”
Aside from making you feel better and more virtuous, what difference does it make?
They are harming our country. They need to be deported.
Why Bruce? Why should a locust continue to feed on the field it has already stripped bare?
The question remains (to continue the analogy), are we as a neighboring farmer going to watch the locust destroy our fields, debate how horrible it is, or will be move to eradicate the pest?
Don't blame the locust - locust do what locust do. Blame the farmer who does nothing.
P.S. Give the Israelis credit for knowing the importance of taking the fight to the pest.
I assume you agree with me that the illegals need to be deported.
Of course. But, unlike some, I'm not as concerned about the need to compromise my ethics to get it done. War is hell. I didn't make this problem or fire the first shots, so I feel no burden about what needs to happen to correct it.
Yes, I'm a little pissed.
I feel sorry for these young men who bought a pig in a poke.
I just don't think that it is America's duty to bail them out of their unrealistic choices.
He's going to wake up to find that the NY authorities aren't got to let him have a camel roaming the streets!
At one point, “asylum” was a narrow category. But smartphones mean that every single person crossing the border, whether from Punjab, Russia or Ecuador, knows exactly what story to tell when they cross. While I don’t begrudge any individual from trying to come here, let’s acknowledge that 99.99% of the migrants’ asylum claims are fraudulent. Yes, they probably come from difficult lives and want something better, but that is not the same thing as seeking political asylum. And let’s acknowledge that policies created for totally different purposes (eg chronic homelessness) have massively backfired in an unpredictable way and are now serving as a magnet.
As an immigrant, I have many, too many, immigrant friends and acquaintances who came to the US 30-40 years ago. We all say the same thing: this is not the America we came to.
Not only because we had to survive a “swim or sink” conditions, with no help from the state but also because we no longer feel the exhilarating freedom we came for, the freedom to say what you think, the freedom to gain pride from your work.
I am guessing you voted Democrat when you became a citizen (or maybe even before in some places!) ??
Having grown up in a one party state made me allergic to the word “party”. Hence, I never registered in a party and voted, alas! for whomever I considered less bad.
"Mayor Adams says the influx is due to “a propaganda machine” driven by coyotes—or human smugglers—who charge migrants for their help crossing the Mexico border, and who promise New York City will give them a “five-star hotel,” along with an automatic job."
Adams is an idiot. The influx is due to simpletons like Adams and other progressives who proclaimed their cities to be "sanctuaries" - exempt from our nation's immigration laws. And then abetted by the Senile Imbecile who opened our borders, releasing a tidal wave of illegals to destroy our country and "eat out our sustenance. " I don't know about you but I make this pledge - I will not vote for any presidential candidate who won't swear to begin deporting every single one of these criminals on his or her first day in office. Let's take back our country.
Its kind of amazing how once progressives start en acting their utopian ideas everybody hates it. I think the slow death of the woke ideology has begun. I commented awhile back that once the Free Press writers start going red the Dems will be in trouble. Looks like thats happening.
No, I don't think so...Nellie will still be wearing that t-shirt with an old man using his walker, with the banner ""2024" underneath.
Or the T shirt with the slick-looking but utterly clueless governor of California.
🤣🤣🤣
Some of these Democrats MIGHT vote Republican next year?
You mean they want more of this disaster?
Look what Democrats have done in just 2 1/2 years.
They have one more to go, and they want 4 more!
If this isn't the very definition of insanity, I'd hate to see what's next with them.
To switch to Republican would require swimming against decades of propaganda. 'Sure, I don't like what's happening, but can I vote with the dumb racist xenophobic homophobes? They want to kill non-whites and usher in a theocracy.'
Bari et. al. have been trying to shed their preconceptions, for what, years? They still have huge blind spots. Much like building Rome, reordering one's entire conception of the world is not done in a day.
It doesn't help that Trump just screams 'loathe me'. I believe his boorishness and the left's inability to see past the orange eclipse is a big reason why things have gotten so bad. Still, flaccid Mitt Romney was portrayed as someone who wanted to kill your grandparents. Regardless who's representing the Right, they will be depicted as the worst thing since, and possibly exceeding, Hitler. Folks have spent their lives believing that claptrap.
I am against the illegal immigrant influx. However, I have a hard time sympathizing with those who came illegally who are now complaining. Just because they came earlier and in smaller numbers, doesn't make what they did right or fair to those who came legally or are legit US citizens.
Of course, in both cases, the real culprit is the government for turning a blind eye to the actions of the illegals AND their US employers.
I agree. The only ones who have a right to complain are those who came legally.
Yes. My sister in law is from Morelia, Mexico and she became a US citizen legally. She got a visa and came to the USA to visit a family member and ended up meeting my brother (who obviously an American). They got married about 15 years ago. She followed all of the correct steps to become a US citizen. It was a long process but she savored every moment of it and is so proud to be an American. It really frustrates and angers her(and our family) that people can so easily and freely just walk through the border when she did it the right way.
Good for her for doing it the right way!
I know many such people from all over who did it the right way and it took years, but they stuck with it. I don’t think it should take as long as it has for them, but in some ways, the arduous process probably helps cement the loyalty and pride in being an American that we need.
Bingo.
Period.
It's not at all surprising. It's simply human nature to want to immediately pull up the draw bridge once you yourself sneak into the castle. No amount of "immigrant solidarity" can change that.
We are watching the Cloward-Piven strategy unfold in real time. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloward%E2%80%93Piven_strategy. The idea is to overwhelm the system so that it breaks and a new system (guaranteed universal income, communism, etc.) can be implemented. The Progressives aren’t empathetic, they are Marxists continuing the long march. The Democrat Socialists of America control the NYC City Council and are using the right to shelter as a club to advance their agenda. They want to eliminate private ownership of property (it’s in their charter) and forcing the government to provide shelter is a step in that direction. All those hotels that are taking the migrants are going to look like the St. Nicholas Houses projects in a year or two, leaving them in government hands.
Whoever found a way to make New York City’s Democrats feel the effects of their naïve beliefs about immigration is a genius. I hope every Democrat voter nationwide gets similar skin in the game. It is the only way things can change.
“While left-wing commentators like to blame “white nationalists,” “xenophobes,” and “MAGA Republicans” for any anti-immigrant sentiment”
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We must unite to stop the Oath Keepers from taking over society. The real threat is the Oath Keepers and we need $7.5 trillion to stop them.
So true.
Everywhere I go I see a crowd of insidious Oath Keepers. They are everywhere.
When i see a crime committed ... I know it's an Oath Keeper.
When I hear someone yell an ethnic slur ... yep, Oath Keeper.
When I read the newspaper or go online and read about innocent women being raped, children being abused, the mass murder of victims ... it's always an Oath Keeper.
And these tens of millions of Oath Keepers almost Overthrew Our Democracy on January 6th. We were all so close to losing it all.
No wonder the media says Maga white supremacists are the #1 terror threat in our country.
Not to mention the white nationalists hiding under every bed.
Truly, progressive Democrats would have no principles if not for venality, stupidity and cowardice.