March 1, 2019

"For weeks, President Trump has been criticized for exaggerating the brutality experienced by migrant women on the border as he makes his case for a wall."

"A Rose Garden address in January was only one of the times when Mr. Trump has made the claim: 'Women are tied up. They’re bound. Duct tape put around their faces, around their mouths. In many cases, they can’t even breathe. They’re put in the backs of cars or vans or trucks.' If the president was suggesting that such savagery occurs daily on America’s southern border, then he was indeed exaggerating.... But there is some truth to the president’s descriptions of the threat of sexual assault and of women who have been duct-taped and bound. Undocumented women have been duct-taped and tied up before, during and after their migration to the United States, The Times discovered while reporting a story that will soon be published. Maybe not frequently, but it has happened. 'Because I didn’t want to let them, they tied my feet together and my hands behind my back,' a 45-year-old Honduran woman told us in an interview. She said she was raped after her smugglers forced her into prostitution shortly after she illegally crossed the border in Texas.... In one trailer home in Carrizo Springs, Tex., smugglers raped a Salvadoran woman and tortured two men — covering the men’s hands with plastic bags, putting their hands on a stool and pounding their fingers with a hammer — all because their relatives failed to pay the fees...."

From "Yes, There Was Duct Tape: The Harrowing Journeys of Migrants Across the Border" (NYT).

83 comments:

Laslo Spatula said...

"If the president was suggesting that such savagery occurs daily on America’s southern border, then he was indeed exaggerating...."

I think I missed Trump's comment that this was a daily occurrance.

Maybe it only happens five or six days a month.

Which is no big deal, then.

Which is why I tell women to stop the bitching when they're on their period. It's not like it occurs daily.

Oh fuck. That was very insensitive of me. Let me correct my error:

Which is why I tell women and men to stop bitching when they're on the period.

That's better.

I am Laslo.

MadisonMan said...

Nice use of passive voice. Why didn't the NYTimes says "For week, WE HAVE criticized President Trump...."

Amadeus 48 said...

The NYT--don't read it, and be uninformed. Read it, and be misinformed.

Dave Begley said...

If the wives and daughters of the NYT reporters were suffering that kind of criminal activity, then it would be a major crisis. Send in the army.

NYT reporters are deranged TDS racists. A little bit of rape is okay as long it isn't to "our people."

AOC, NYT, CNN and MSNBC will re-elect Trump.

Dave Begley said...

Now that I see it in print, I like "deranged TDS racists."

Big Mike said...

Maybe not frequently, but it has happened.

The most authoritative figure I've seen is a hair under 32%. The Times says Trump exaggerated because he rounded it up to "one of every three." And 31% seems like "frequently" to me.

Note that this number is unlikely to include women bound and raped and left for dead in remote areas of the Southwest, where scavengers will find their bodies before the Border Patrol does.

Ken B said...

I recall challenging Hanoi Chuck on this — are you saying it never happens? I don’t think he answered ...

This is another “mistakes were made”, or in this case “lies about Trump were told”. The national political press seemingly has no understanding at all that they should check first, report second.

n.n said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
n.n said...

The polling must be cruel, indeed. NYT is feigning concern for immigration reform, refugee crises, in lieu of emigration reform, as a first-order forcing of catastrophic anthropogenic collateral damage at both ends of the bridge and throughout, and left-wing affirmative action to violate civil rights. That said, there should be a Geneva Convention for BOPPs.

Rob said...

The Washington Post and New York Times reported that Jamal Khashoggi was brutalized, murdered and dismembered by Saudi agents in Turkey. If they were suggesting that such savagery occurs daily, then they were indeed exaggerating.

Jersey Fled said...

But ... Trump lies about everything!

mccullough said...

The Times they are a changin the goalposts.

Trump never said how often it happens. Just that it does.

Trump is correct says The Times.

Sebastian said...

Since TDSers instinctively oppose whatever Trumps argues, he should just start tweeting about loving dogs and cats. It'll guarantee victory in 2020.

Anyway, good to see a few progs care about actual illegals as more than just tools. Or are they can going be tools in a different way?

elkh1 said...

Did the president suggest the savagery occur daily?

Question: how did the writer know the savagery did not occur daily. The rapes and attacks were not reported, did it mean they did not occur? How would anyone know, there are millions of illegals in this country.

Ambrose said...

It must kill NYT to print this - even with the "not frequent" qualifier.

MBunge said...

Wait...so you're telling me allowing lawless chaos to reign for 30some years at the southern U.S. border hasn't been all sunshine and lollipops for the people illegally trying to cross?

Mike

Fen said...

Democrat complaints about Trump exaggerating violence against women.

Fen's Law

"Believe all women. #MeToo! Except when their rape interferes with our drive to enslave yet another minority to the Welfare State. But we REALLY care about those poor refugees at our door. But must insist the fill out this voter registration before we dial 911? And could ya do your wailing and lamenting a lil more quietly?"


These are the fictions Democrats must keep spun up in their narrative of lies. And it unravels daily. No accident this one of the cruel punishments the Greek Gods inflicted on mortals. If you have any doubt, imagine what its like to be Inga.

When you lie to yourself you handicap your ability to sense truth, to distinguish fantasy from reality. Nothing is consistent, the laws of physics become situational, tomorrow we may have always been at war with EastAsia and yesterday's kind neighbor a Goldstein sympathizer who must be shunned if not silenced.

And did you just use the wrong pronoun?

If you wonder that liberals are going mad, it's because they are. I wonder what the Wise Athena is punishing them for this time? Abandoning reason for emotion? Slavery in America? The Trail of Tears? The National Socialist's Holocaust? The internment of the Japanese citizens? The infanticide of 120 million babies? Starbucks?

Look upon them with pity. I don't understand how they can live with the shame. If I identified as a Democrat I would eat a shotgun.

YoungHegelian said...

You'd think there'd be a wee bit of cognitive dissonance in the brain of folks who simultaneously preach on the evil of prostitution as involving many "trafficed" foreign women & then insist that Trump's portrayal of sexual abuse of Central American women on their way north is exaggerated.

Doesn't it seem much more likely that if immigrant women are being sexually abused in the US, then they're getting sexually abused on the way here? Or, can immigrant women only be sexually abused by white American guys, with their own males getting a pass?

Enlighten-NewJersey said...

Is there anything good about illegal immigration for American citizens? Not to exaggerate, but it sounds like it can be kinda rough on some foreign nationals trying to enter the country illegally. We really need to stop providing incentives for illegal immigration with sanctuary cities, and dangling the hope of another round of amnesty, Enforce the law, build the wall, mandatory e-Verify, speedy deportation and stop pretending that unvented, unskilled, illiterate people who illegally enter our country are some sort of gift to the nation.

Laslo Spatula said...

"The infanticide of 120 million babies? Starbucks? "

I think you hit on some synergy there.

Starbucks paired with Planned Parenthood.

Abortion in the first 3 months: Short
Months 3-6: Tall
Months 6-9: Grande
Months 9+: Venti. Plus a free biscotti.

I am Laslo.

chillblaine said...

Perhaps we should stop kvetching about migrant women and start caring about ICE agents who are sworn officers, and they are being totally maligned.

Ann Althouse said...

"If the president was suggesting that such savagery occurs daily on America’s southern border, then he was indeed exaggerating...."

How does the NYT know how frequently something like this happens? The people who do it are trying to avoid detection.

How often must rape happen before it's a crisis? Or is it a matter of who it happens to?

tcrosse said...

But was it tape-tape?

Henry said...

How often must rape happen before it's a crisis? Or is it a matter of who it happens to?

It all depends on what your definition of "such" is.

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

How often must rape happen before it's a crisis?

Well with the discredited but widely used 20% figure for college coeds, we had a full-blown "rape culture" in place. So a 50% increase (10%) bring us up to 30% for crisis range. Anything over 30% (either the 31% estimate or Trump's 33.3%) then would be overblown.

We are currently in the overblown zone and it is indeed a crisis. Math doesn't lie.

Paul Zrimsek said...

#YoTambien.

Bob Smith said...

Once you realize that Tuck Frump trumps facts all the stuff BM says makes perfect sense. The media guys got their ace handed to them election night. They’ll never forgive Trump for winning.

rhhardin said...

The brutality is for soap opera women. Protecting the border is a structural argument that works on its own with guys.

Clyde said...

Don't incentivize them to come here with an open border, and atrocities like those won't happen, at least not here.

Fen said...

"How often must rape happen before it's a crisis? Or is it a matter of who it happens to?"

Take a step back and look at it. Some asshole sticks his finger up your but and your life is crisis?

When did rape become the Apocalypse?

And why are you frowning that I didn't qualify my comment with "obviously being raped is a horrible ordeal to suffer" ? Its already obvious right? But we are supposed to preface with that or some nitwit will complain we don't take rape seriously.

And I've had several women involve me in their rape fantasies, some of it more rough than I was willing to do to them. It wasn't such an ordeal for them, or they wouldn't have ask to do it more often. The only real difference is consent. They want Christian Gray of 50 Shades to violate them, not Gary from the Sears Auto department.

You look at America today and everything about women is overdramatized, their every want is catred too. Every slight treated as a crime against humanity. American women are the most coddled creatures on the planet. So it follows that even rape is given disproportionate weight. Similar to how racism has become the AS trump card in politics.







Chuck said...

From Vox:
"Trump claimed women were gagged with tape. Then Border Patrol tried to find some evidence."

I'm not sure if the Times story that Althouse has just blogged is demonstrative of "See, there really WERE some duct-taped women; Trump was right!" If so, that would simultaneously be an instance of, "See, the New York Times can do fair reporting of Trump!", right?

I take the Times at its word; Trump, in his usual fashion, made "duct-taped women" into a simplistic meme for his low-information base. And sure enough, a small number of anecdotal cases can be found so that Trump can avoid pure status as a liar. But none of it is intelligent discussion or debate. It is all in the service of, "Just how much emotional propaganda can Trump get away with?"

Leland said...

How does the NYT know how frequently something like this happens?

If you are a woman that is raped; does it matter if it is daily, weekly, or just a couple of times during the trip vs not at all?

Jim at said...

Somebody find some duct tape for Chuck. Apply generously.

JaimeRoberto said...

If you were to believe the NYT you'd think that attending college is more dangerous for women than illegally crossing the border in the hands of the cartels.

FullMoon said...

Naturally Chuck, who frequently fantasied on this very site attacking 5'1"Greta van Sustern in order to prove some stupid point and win an imaginary argument would minimize women being tortured and raped and murdered.

Ken B said...

See the rhetorical trick in action. If Trump was suggesting it is done by crowds of naked yaks, then he is wrong. If Trump was suggesting the women are ground up into hamburger first then he is wrong. If Trump is suggesting that the moon is made of blue cheese then he is wrong.
Trump was not suggesting it happened every day, and the NYT gives no reason to suppose he did. They are using this trick.

bagoh20 said...

"But none of it is intelligent discussion or debate. It is all in the service of, "Just how much emotional propaganda can Trump get away with?"

Exactly! It's not important if women are brutalized or how often. What matters is are we having an intelligent debate about it, because nuance is very important with brutality and rape of innocents, which why this brutality is not getting fixed. The women being raped must learn to scream out with intelligent and sophisticated lines of debate - not just yell out "rape" like some kind of rube.

Fen said...

Cuck: "Trukp made 'duct-taped women' into a simplistic meme for his low-information base. And sure enough, a small number of anecdotal cases can be found so - "

If I claim women are being raped and it turns out women are indeed being raped... that's fact, not low-information or anecdotal.

This type of intellectual dishonesty is we treat you like Wormtongue.

And stop taking cheap shots at Trump supporters only to run behind mommy when they shoot back.

As for the low-information crack, not only are Trump people wiser and smarter than you, they have more integrity. You are simply a word weasel who fights like a girl. You are not better than them. The only reason you adopted your LLR narrative is because you were to stupid and boring to keep up with the other commenters. So you made up a gimmick to use as a crutcb to get attention.

Two-eyed Jack said...

When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best. They’re not sending you. They’re not sending you. They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.

Fernandinande said...

In one trailer home in Carrizo Springs,

Carrizo Springs-Based Alien Smuggling Operation Ringleader Sentenced to Life in Federal Prison

"In Del Rio today, 45–year-old Eduardo Rocha, Sr. (aka “Lalo”), was sentenced to life in federal prison for his leadership role in an undocumented alien smuggling ring operating in Carrizo Springs, TX, that tortured victims while waiting for ransom payments announced [some lawyer]"

funsize said...

This always happens. Migrant-led violence in Swedish towns? "raking" methods used to control forest fires? "wires" being tapped? Caravans heading to our border? All were false and preposterous until they were true. I'm sure there are plenty more examples. I'm so bored of this.

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

How many duct taped and raped women are enough, Chuck, before you are as outraged by their tormentors as you are by Trump for using their plight to build us a much-needed wall?

gilbar said...

That Lying Trump! How TYPICAL of him to Lie about this.

Thank Goodness that we have Life Long Liberals to point out:
I take the Times at its word; Trump, in his usual fashion, made "duct-taped women" into a simplistic meme


Just the sort of thing that you'd Expect, from a Life Long Liberal

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

Exactly! It's not important if women are brutalized or how often. What matters is are we having an intelligent debate about it, because nuance is very important with brutality and rape of innocents, which why this brutality is not getting fixed. The women being raped must learn to scream out with intelligent and sophisticated lines of debate - not just yell out "rape" like some kind of rube.

Very Swiftian, Bagoh. Nicely done.

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

Vox? Vox!

The same website that said the eeevil israelis were keeping the poor palistinians off the cool bridge they built to Gaza?

That Vox?

Jesus wept.

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

Chuck, are you really the first subscriber to The Bulwark?

Kevin said...

Undocumented women have been duct-taped and tied up before, during and after their migration to the United States, The Times discovered while reporting a story that will soon be published.

Shorter NYT: Holy Crap! We finally did a story on what's happening at the border and you'll never guess what we learned.

Kevin said...

How often must rape happen before it's a crisis? Or is it a matter of who it happens to?

Probably the later.

An assault with a noose, MAGA hats, and bleach didn't even happen to Jussie Smollett and it's still a crisis at the NYT.

Kevin said...

Shorter Chuck: The women were duct-taped.

But they were not duct-taped duct-taped.

narciso said...

a lot of that going around

https://www.jpost.com/Diaspora/Lawyer-wins-against-pro-Iran-German-diplomat-to-unblock-Twitter-for-Post-reporter-581924

Kevin said...

Unlike the Climate Change Alarmists, the things Trump says are happening at the border are actually happening.

Paul Zrimsek said...

If you think the duct tape is bad wait until you hear about the part with the WD-40.

Chuck said...

Mike said...
How many duct taped and raped women are enough, Chuck, before you are as outraged by their tormentors as you are by Trump for using their plight to build us a much-needed wall?


If a woman was duct-taped and assaulted in Chihuahua or Matamoros, that says nothing about a need for any wall.

If a woman is duct-taped while being human trafficked after entering the U.S. legally on a visa, or illegally through a port of entry, that says nothing about the need for any wall.

If a woman is duct-taped in the back of a truck that enters at Nuevo Laredo, that says nothing about the need for any wall.

I am not pro-duct-taping. I am devoutly anti-duct-taping; anti-rape. But somebody who is more articulate than Trump is going to need to make the anti-duct tape argument in specific connection with "a great border wall."

Note that under Trump Administration policies, women who are undocumented aliens in the U.S., and who come into contact with law enforcement because they are victims in human trafficking rings, are eligible for deportation.

Drago said...

LLR Chuck has decided its not enough to become ADMITTED and PROUD lefty liar Mathew Yglesias' Biggest Booster on AlthouseBlog, Chuck has decided to drop all pretense and let his Lefty Love hang out.

No one is remotely fooled by tall tales of lifelong conservative-y Conservativism.

For all practical purposes, LLR Chuck is a combination of Adam Schiff and Rosie O'Donnell...and it was never a long walk to get there.

narciso said...

you thought their stance on Brexit was bad, hold my ale:

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/03/01/army-veterans-facing-murder-charges-bloody-sunday-within-two/

Drago said...

LLR Chuck is also four-square behind the Open Borders Brigade.

Like his far left allies, he accepts the rapes of these girls, boys and women as a necessary and acceptable price on the way to his higher objective: Avoidance at all costs of any potential republican victory "disasters".

He literally called republican victories a "disaster".

LOL

"True Conservative"

Unknown said...

Shorter Chuck: Ain't no amount of raped and murdered women will make me waver from endless open borders!

Tell me Chuck, how much is a ticket to ride on Bill Kristol's Love Boat? I'm sure you know.

I'm surprised Inga is not here to complain that we are focusing on the wrong women... the only woman who matters is Heather Heyer.

--Vance

Browndog said...

Jesus.

Clicked on this, and the first comment I read is good 'ol Chuckster at 5:59.

Ho-Li-Fuk.

Get me out of here....

Unknown said...

I also eagerly await the NYT's next breathtaking story: "Scientists confirm that the Sky is indeed Blue as Trump claims! Pelosi had no comment!"

--Vance

Drago said...

Browndog: "Clicked on this, and the first comment I read is good 'ol Chuckster at 5:59.

Ho-Li-Fuk."

There are those that claim lefty financial interests are accelerating and expanding the use of "concern trolls" on blogsites where conservatives are allowed to participate. I am starting to have some suspicions....

Charlie Currie said...

If you don't want to get rape-raped and/or torture-tortured on your way to America, where everything's free, then stay home. That's my best advice.

Luckily, no one seems to be getting waterboarded at the border, or there would be hell to pay. John McCain may even rise from his grave to put a stop to it.

Karen of Texas said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Karen of Texas said...

"...more articulate than Trump is going to need to make the anti-duct tape argument in specific connection with "a great border wall."

It's pretty clear that a wall is a disincentive to attempt to cross. You don't attempt, you don't get duct taped. And raped. People make that connection with what Trump did articulate. Unless they have issues. Like TDS. Or something.

Fritz said...

Can we get this right? It’s duck tape.

The first name for Duct Tape was DUCK. During World War II the U.S. Military needed a waterproof tape to keep the moisture out of ammunition cases. So, they enlisted the Johnson and Johnson Permacel Division to manufacture the tape. ... Today, Duck® brand Tape is manufactured by ShurTech.

bagoh20 said...

The women are being abused becuase they try to come here.
They try to come here becuase they expect to get in.
They expect to get in becuase they can and everybody knows it.
They can becuase there is no wall.

See how a wall is central to the issue. No, it not sophisticated, just like rape isn't, but that doesn't mean it's not important. Sheese! What a closed mind.

The women who most get abused like this are the ones specifically using the lack of a wall to get in. It's the ones out in the wilderness alone with coyotes bringing them through areas without a wall or fence. Is this really hard to understand? Damn, TDS creates a thick scab.

Birkel said...

Smear merchant
Objectively pro-rape
Racist

Yep, Chuck is a Democrat.

Rusty said...

Please don't squeeze the douchebag. It leaves a mess.

cf said...

allow me to fill in a bit on the location they name.

Carrizo Springs, Texas is a town from my early childhood. the thought how things are now there, 45 miles. . .75? from the border at Eagle Pass, whooooeee. gotta be tough there now. for one thing, since clinton, maquiladoras miles away on the mexico side have created air quality as bad as LA.

growing up in eagle pass was great. it was Drastically texas prairie, lonely amazing country to have to experience directly, great place to be a kid. but the region has degraded from when I went to high school there. our football team leader of the 60s ended up mayor in the 90s, which is awesome, but was caught in a drive-by shootout(wounded?)as local leaders were leaving a meeting across the river in Piedras Negras, Mexico.( the attack was at the fabulous club there that has been a fixture for years. i must admit when I heard of the event, I was just glad to hear the "The Moderno" was still there! man the music was FANTASTIC, and the food.)

In Eagle Pass, cada uno platicaron en los dos, espanol y ingles, no le hace quien.

radiant good on mexico and america and our peoples. so glad if we could get this Right, and Mexico etc could thrive by more americanism back with them. i am raising my hopes Trump and the new Turks in mexico can do this.

to the golden age, Salud!

alanc709 said...

If a woman was duct-taped and assaulted in Chihuahua or Matamoros, that says nothing about a need for any wall.

If a woman is duct-taped while being human trafficked after entering the U.S. legally on a visa, or illegally through a port of entry, that says nothing about the need for any wall.

If a woman is duct-taped in the back of a truck that enters at Nuevo Laredo, that says nothing about the need for any wall.

What a truly moronic statement. They weren't in Matamoros, or Chihuahua, or Nuevo Laredo or Juarez to see the sights. They were being transported by coyotes to cross the border into the US illegally. The reason they did so was their assurance that crossing was not significantly difficult to dissuade them. You need to remove your head from your ass occasionally, to ensure your brain gets sufficient oxygen. Your mendacity is truly astounding, Chuck.

alanc709 said...

Only stupider comment would be, to tell the women to learn to code.

Chuck said...

Unknown said...
Shorter Chuck: Ain't no amount of raped and murdered women will make me waver from endless open borders!
...


No, that isn't a "shorter" me. That's a ridiculous, cartoonish, recklessly inaccurate fantasy of "me."

I warned you before to stop doing that. Stop trying to paraphrase me as part of your arguing. You blow it every time. I keep telling you to stop it, and you keep doing it.

I used to tell you that if you want to understand my position(s) on anything, you could ask me. But I've given up on that, because you clearly don't care. So now I say to you again, just stop addressing my comments at all because you always make such a mess.

I do not favor "open borders."
I oppose all forms of amnesty.
I have almost no interest in any DACA deal.
I would like to see an end to chain migration.
I would like to see an end to birthright citizenship for any child born to parents in the U.S. illegally.
Even among Republicans, I'd be an immigration hawk.

But I just don't care about Trump's "great border wall." Which was never a thing, even for immigration hawks like Jeff Sessions, pre-Trump. Only in Trump CampaignWorld, did a "wall" become this big thing. It's bullshit. It's a stump speech item for Trump's poor, scared, ignorant and in some cases bigoted fans. We're talking about 55 miles of fence and wall right now, and maybe a couple hundred miles more. Hundreds of miles of our southern border are never going to be walled, under any circumstances. Just how stupid is TrumpWorld on this?

alanc709 said...

I've been to Israel. Walls work. End of story.

Drago said...

LLR Chuck: "I used to tell you that if you want to understand my position(s) on anything, you could ask me."

Objectively Pro-left/Pro-democrat admitted Smear Merchants who enthusiasticly link to admitted lefty liars at lefty publications should never be assumed to be doing anything other than what they are clearly doing: lying to advance the democrat agenda.

Period.

Birkel said...

Warned somebody?
Ain't that precious.

Birkel said...

Some people oppose all the means that would actually accomplish the ends they claim (READ: lie about) to support.
Pretty amazing to witness.

All those immigration hawks managed fuck-all for measurable success toward their stated goals.
Their bought and paid for asses mouthed the words.
But once you notice the strings the puppets are never as entertaining.

Meanwhile, Mexico is stopping people on the South side of the US border.

Karen of Texas said...

One doesn't have to use Duck Brand duct tape, therefore, the generic usage - duct tape - can refer to any duct tape not branded Duck by J&J.

"Duct tape, also referred to as duck tape, is cloth- or scrim-backed pressure-sensitive tape, often coated with polyethylene. There are a variety of constructions using different backings and adhesives, and the term 'duct tape' is often used to refer to all sorts of different cloth tapes of differing purposes."

Duct tape is a correct usage. Unless of course one were using Duck tape. Or Gorilla tape.

Molly said...

I think a lot of commenters here aren't getting the point, and are finding an inconsistency where none really exists: Rape, or other mistreatment of women is a horrific crime when it happens to a woman who is comfortably ensconced in the US; but for a woman who is fleeing poverty, or other forms of mistreatment in her home country, rape or mistreatment isn't really that bad, because it's not much worse than the rape or mistreatment or poverty from which they are fleeing. And besides, those women are brown (or black) skinned. And besides, Orange Man Bad trumps everything.

Birkel said...

Molly Swiftian, one presumes.

;-)

effinayright said...

The only object in the Universe denser than a black dwarf is Chuck, who does not understand that if there's an effective physical barrier to entering the US , many fewer women would travel north to try and cross it.

They would know their chances would be greatly diminished.

So they wouldn't make the trip.

Thus many fewer would be preyed upon by coyotes.

Oh Meade, where is thy sting?



Kirk Parker said...

wholelotta,

You appear to be giving Chuck the benefit of the doubt I calling him dense.

I would not do so.

walter said...

Out: "If it saves one life"
In: "Hey..just how many lives are we talking about?"

Blogger Ann Althouse said...
How does the NYT know how frequently something like this happens? The people who do it are trying to avoid detection.
--
The same magical metrics by way we determine how many err.."undocumented" immigrants are here "living in the shadows".

Steven said...

Generosity to people who have made it illegally to the US because of what they went through to get here simply encourages more illegal traffic. To stop people from subjecting themselves to coyotes, you need to make it clear that using coyotes is futile. And that means deporting anyone who uses them, however badly they were treated by the people who brought them here.

A physical barrier may or may not be an effective strategy, but the only genuinely humane policies are either robust and unremitting enforcement against all illegal entry, or a completely open border.

And since the American people are not going to allow the latter, as they would not tolerate as many migrants as would come if it was as safe and easy as crossing a state line, it is inhumane to engage in anything less than truly robust, unremitting enforcement, deporting each and every illegal entrant regardless of sob story.

Hey Skipper said...
This comment has been removed by the author.