Well rather than clog up my timeline on Facebook with stuff for a bit (well 24 hours or so), I thought I would get some of my thoughts down in one place..

REFUGEES OR ECONOMIC MIGRANTS?

The events of the last few weeks have shown me both sides of humanity.  I have seen some truly disgusting things written and some wonderful inspiring things written and actions undertook.  There have been some daft comments, pictures and memes I have seen such as “look at these migrants fleeing with their iphones”.  Erm, who says that the hundreds of thousands of people fleeing Syria are fleeing poverty?  They are fleeing for their lives.  Literally.  They probably had better homes and a better standard of living than you and I before the shit hit the fan.  And that could happen to anyone.  Before WW1 and WW2 took place, it was not as if Britain was poor but overnight, millions of British lives were turned upside down as the country became flattened.  So why shouldn’t they have the latest phones and whatnot. Jeez, even the remotest tribes in Africa have a smartphone or two.  I read somewhere how they kept on reproducing even after war broke out and how sex should be the last thing on their mind.  Sex is one of the human race’s most natural actions.  That has and never will change.  Why should war and all, change that?

I have read how they are all scroungers.  Look, let us not be naïve enough to think there is not some economic migrants amongst the millions fleeing.  Of course there will be a sizeable proportion.  Do you know what I have to do to scrounge?  I have to hop on the 154 bus and travel all of 20 minutes or so to sign on at the job centre.  I do NOT have to walk across about 15 countries, putting my life at risk or put myself and my kids knowing full well that boat may sink and kill us all.

ZOMG HERE COME THE TERRORISTS

Again, not naïve enough to think ISIS and their ilk will not use this crisis to their advantage but come on.  If someone is strong willed enough to carry out acts of atrocity, they will do so regardless of this situation.  Lest us forget that any attack on British soil by ‘Islamists’ have been home grown.  That means statistically, you have more chance of myself blowing shit up in the UK than any of these people.  About half the people fleeing from Syria and IS are Christians but hey let us ignore that fact eh.  We can just conveniently use this all as a smokescreen to hide our own pre-existing anti-Islamic views behind.

WHY ARE AREN’T THE (MUSLIM) COUNTRIES SURROUNDING SYRIA DOING ANYTHING?

It is a valid point.  Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman to name but a few are doing bugger all and it stinks.  They are the ones who preach about a “unified ummah” but are doing precious little to illustrate that and they are loaded.  Countries like Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan who immediately surround Syria are doing and have done their best.  Indeed Turkey has taken in about 2 million Syrians in the last couple of years.

WHAT ABOUT ALL THE “SAFE” COUNTRIES THAT THEY ARE PASSING THROUGH?

Again, it is a fairly valid point but put  yourself in their shoes.  You would naturally want to go somewhere where you are confident you would feel most comfortable.  In the UK, the fact we speak English would be a magnet rather than end up in France where they would not be able to speak it and converse.  This could be seen as weak excuse but it is probably one that we would utilise ourselves nonetheless.  And what is a “safe” country anyway?  The whole situation over the last couple of weeks has shown how ineffective the EU is in responding effectively in a joint manner.  Many countries are citing the Dublin Convention.  This was drawn up years ago and stated that asylum seekers must be processed in the first country they touch upon in the EU.  When this convention was drawn up, no one had any idea we would be talking about the number of refugees like we are seeing now.  It is clearly not practical to use now as it is totally unfair for the likes of Italy and Greece on the coast to bear the brunt, yet this and other ancient rules are being used by each EU country to pass the buck to the next.  You have Hungary where they would not even put trains on for the refugees, leaving them to literally walk across a country on their bare feet.  Slovakia, who stated they would only help Christian refugees.  Yes, well safe countries and conditions there.  Of course, other countries such as Austria and Germany have been fantastic.

WHAT ABOUT OUR OWN?

Yes there are many things wrong in our own country.  There are ex-soldiers living in dire straits and whatnot but why is it a competition?  Why are we pitting multiple issues against each other.  Both causes can be helped, they are not mutually exclusive.  As individuals, it is up to us how we donate our time and money.  On other things, you have the ability to lobby your local MP’s to do more for marginalised sections of society.  But that does not mean demonising other sections of society.  It is not their fault.  They are not running your country.  At the end of the day, we have an infrastructure, we have a welfare system, we have a school system, we have a health system that will nearly always be there for us and is not in danger of being smashed to smithereens any time soon.  There has been quite a lot of debate on the facebook pages of my town Wallington.  A pretty well off town in one of the more prosperous boroughs of London and some of the comments just make me want to cry.

DO NOT FORGET YOUR PAST BRITAIN

All this talk of “letting them in”, “we are full” “close the borders”.  Did Britain ask before they took over half the world?  No, they invaded, raped and pillaged their way through territory after territory.  They may have brought positive things to some of these regions but at what expense?  Especially the human cost.  Indeed our generation had little to do with this, but that does not mean we should not forget this.  We have evolved as a compassionate nation since on the whole, and I see no reason why we should suddenly abandon our tradition of being a helpful country now.  We helped create some of the conditions that have led to this sorry state of affairs in the Middle East region.  We are partially culpable, we must help.

YOU ARE ALL HUMANS, MOTHERS, FATHERS, CHILDREN, JUST LIKE THEM.

Exactly what it says on the tin.  Who is to say you would not make the choices they have/are in the same shoes?  All that separates you from them is chance and luck.

I could go on and on and I probably will at some point.  Delete me if it bores you.  Give a f**k.