What is the real security threat?

There are multiple states - I believe 31 at the last count - that have decided to not accept Syrian refugees because of the terrorist attacks in France. Most of these states have Republican governors; which comes to no one's surprise with the rhetoric coming out the Republican Presidential candidates.



Yet, none of these same governors are recognizing how short sided this proclamation really is. All but one of the French terrorists were either French or Belgium nationals. Yes, they were of Syrian decent, but they were not all from Syria. This is a notion that is sometimes hard for Americans to understand; national origin in many countries is much different than skin color and ethnicity, and basically refers to the citizenship of each person. It also means that most of the terrorists didn't need passports to get into Paris - they already lived in the European Union. Yes, there was one confirmed terrorist who embedded himself into a group of Syrian refugees.

According to a CNN report,

"One of the men who attached Paris held an emergency passport or similar document, according to an unnamed French senator who was briefed by the French Ministry of the Interior. The senator told CNN the bomber falsely declared himself to be a Syrian named Ahmad al Muhammad, born on September 10, 1990, and was allowed to enter Greece on October 3. From there he moved to Macedonia, then Serbia and Croatia, where he registered in the Opatovac refugee camp, the lawmaker said. Eventually, he made his way to Paris, where he was one of three men who blew themselves up at the Stade de France."

Does this one terrorist prove that all Syrian refugees are terrorists? Does it prove that the refugees are more susceptible to being terrorists?  The answer is an emphatic NO.

Let's dig into this a bit deeper. The refugee crisis in Europe is something that has been building for some time. The borders between European countries are rather lax and often very porous. An ISIS operative embedding themselves into a refugee group would be able to move fairly freely throughout Europe. The movement would be relatively quick; making it from one country to the next within several days to a couple of weeks. The terrorist referenced in the above commentary was able to make it from Greece to Paris, France in little less than 4 weeks. Not bad for someone who is planning a large scale offensive and doesn't want to be noticed.

Now, let's look at the situation with Syrian refugees entering the United States. Refugees being vetted for entry would be housed in a separate refugee area selected by the United Nations. Those in this area would go through a very strict vetting period being interviewed by several U.S. governmental and security organizations, fingerprinting, background checks, etc. The entire process takes about 18 months to complete and could take up to 24 months. The refugees the U.S. would receive in 2016, are those that have been waiting since early 2015. 

Is it realistic to think that a terrorist suspect is going to live in a refugee camp, where he or she will be watched and scrutinized, for 18 - 24 months?

There are easier ways to get into the U.S. than using the refugee status. One of those ways is the Free Waiver Program.  

Under the program - which covers 38 countries, 30 of which are in Europe, including France, Belgium and Germany - citizens of waiver countries can enter the U.S. with minimal screening. That make it much harder to identify and weed out European nationals seeking to enter the U.S. after traveling to ISIS training camps in other nations and then returning to Europe.  

The only requirements of European Nationals traveling in the Free Waiver Program are to have a valid passport, register electronically before traveling to the U.S., and limit their stays to 90 days. We now know, that most of the French Terrorists were living in Belgium - one of the countries in the Free Waiver Program - and traveled to France relatively recently.  There is very little vetting of these travelers because there is a lack of shared databases and information between the countries.

Yet, the U.S. government is not making any changes to the program in the near future. Instead of closing a loophole and very real security risk, we would rather continue to persecute people who have already endured enough pain and heartache to last a lifetime.

Once again, we have used stereotypes and fears to rule our government and not smart and viable decisions.

The greatest lunch spot!

It's been a few months since we moved to California. The trek across the nation from Wisconsin has definitely been an adventure. We've settled down in a city on the Central Coast; basically the coastal areas comprised of Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. There have been a lot of things to get used to. I mean California is very different from Wisconsin.

First, housing is expensive! Luckily we are in a metropolitan area that isn't considered luxurious - I couldn't imagine what we'd be paying in rent if we were a little south or north of where we are.

Second, the food is definitely not midwestern. There isn't a Culver's in sight. Friday night fish fry - they have no clue. The phrase "cheese curds" are received with a very confused look. However, the Mexican and Asian food here is off the charts!

Third, the life style is a bit laid back. For some, that may be a good thing; for someone with no patience - not so much. This is especially true at my workplace - meetings start at :05 of the hour, not :00 - even if that was the schedule time.

But, then I have days like today. It is November 17th. Typically, a cold day at the start of a long winter in Wisconsin. Going outside requires a coat, maybe a hat and gloves, and probably warming the car for a little bit. Here on the Central Coast it means going to work with a bit of a chill in the air - sweater weather - and having temps rise to the high 60's throughout the day.

Lunch is one of my favorite times of the work day. This was my lunch spot for today.  It was beautiful! Some of the trees are turning colors, the sun is shining bright, the birds are out, the grass is green and there is no hint of snow.

This is the Central Coast.  This is why people, us included, are willing to put up with some not-so-great stuff. On days like today - it is worth it.

Diversity is our responsibility

You may have seen this picture in your Facebook feed.

It is in response to the world's outpouring of support for France after the terrorist attack last Friday. It is meant to be an honest question - Why was there such a huge social media response of the French attacks and very little, if anything, mentioned after the Kenyan attack?

We know from looking at other news sources that the event was covered through many news outlets online and on television.  We also know the U.S. government had been watching the increase of terrorism throughout Kenya and for that reason, in May, the U.S. pledged $100 million in counter terrorism assistance to Kenya.  Of this $100 million,  $95 million will be used to help fund the Kenyan army.

Yet, most people had no idea about the Kenyan attacks nor the increased financial aid given to Kenya. Why?

Some may say that it is because there is no financial gain to help Kenya. Although Kenya relies on American trade to support much of its growing economy, America does not rely on Kenya. Others may say that the corrupt government of Kenya brings attacks into its country and therefore sympathy is lacking. Still others will say that it is racism; it is easier for a majority-White country to empathize with another majority-White country than it is to empathize with a majority-Black country. I think there is truth in all of those opinions.

Yet, they do not adequately sum up the great disparity in the social media support of France when compared to the support of Kenya. The U.S. government does not, in my opinion, regulate social media; in fact, quite the opposite. One can find posts from the government on all social network sites, but they are not the posts that become viral.

My opinion in this whole matter is: it is our own fault. We decide what we are going to share, post, reply to, and ignore on social media. We decide what we are going to pay attention to in the news headlines. Therefore, it is up to us to become more dynamic and involved in world events. It is our responsibility to make a story go viral. But, before we can do that we must be connected. We need to connect to places people across the pond, to places and people that are completely different from us, to places and people that need our social network support just as much as anyone.

Do you want to support Kenya as much as France? Do you believe that Beirut should have had more support on social media? Did you post anything about either terrorist occurrence? Did you ask your friends and relatives to change their profile picture to the national flags?

The answer is probably, "No".  That is the reason that Kenya did not get more attention. We did not take the personal responsibility to share, post, prod others to follow, and otherwise publicize the bombings in Kenya.



Sources:
http://www.securityassistance.org/latin-america-and-caribbean/fact_sheet/us-counterterrorism-aid-kenya

John Lewis Christmas Advert 2013 - The Bear & The Hare

This clip was used in our church service today as a way to remind us that not everyone has the same wonderful, memory filled Christmas that many of us have.  At our church, today was the Sunday that we signed up for community service projects to help make someone's life better.



The thought is that you don't wait until Christmas. That each day starts new and so should the idea that making a person's life better should start new each day also.

Watch and enjoy.

Praying for Paris

Working for a French owned company made the terrorist attacks even more real. We saw the French flag flying at half staff on Friday even before we knew about the attack. Then we heard it from our co-workers. Disbelief was our only reaction.

Prayers going out to all my co-workers.

Start Over?

Have you ever felt like you've wanted to start over? Not really lose yourself, but just get a free do-over? I don't mean going back in time either, because that would mean reliving all the hellish lessons you've already been through.

I mean, right now. In this present time and space - just give me a free do-over?

Allow me to be the person I really want to be. The person that has no past to hold her back and no future to live up to. Just start from today. Right now. Right here.

If you have, can you share your experience?