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leonbus23

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Everything posted by leonbus23

  1. Or how about the climate scientists or experienced football professionals
  2. I realized you asked this a month ago, but I just noticed the thread. First of all, I live about 15 minutes from Tijuana and do work with three groups (Border Angels, SOLACE, and Desert Eagles), which provide various types of support for migrant workers. I have traveled a lot along the California and Arizona border to collect data (formally and informally) about this situation. If you are interested in knowing about migration, travel to Ajo or Arivaca, Arizona and talk to the Border Patrol and long time residents. Finally, just to interject a quick opinion, the coverage of this issue from both liberal and conservative media is inaccurate, propagandist, and sensationalized, to say the least. To answer your question: 1. The groups of migrants who travel together NEVER exceeds 50-75 people. 2. These small groups are generally disorganized. So, the media image of an organized group of migrants carrying a flag, etc. is complete and total misinformation. 3. This has been happening for decades. This is nothing new or unprecedented. 4. Simply put, migrants from Central America and Mexico have been regularly migrating to the US since the early 20th century, but more specifically since, neoliberal economics became powerful in the 1980s. 5. There are two ways to enter the US from Latin America. 1) Through the desert. 2) By getting asylum. The five other legal ways, besides asylum, are simply impossible for 99.9% of migrants. So, asylum is the ONLY LEGAL WAY. 6. Those who decide to go to a border crossing seek asylum. With that background, to answer finally answer your question: Migrants generally save up money, usually about $2000-3000 and follow established routes led by coyotes (human smugglers or traffickers). Most of the money is paid to the coyotes, who guide the migrants to established "safe houses" for food, etc. and mainly to the train route through Mexico, to the border and through the desert. So, the food and water is paid for by the migrants. There are also church groups and other charity groups that provide food and beds to migrants along the path. Those who go through the desert much be far more secretive and rely on the coyotes (who are generally awful people that exploit the migrants). Whereas the groups seeking asylum can be more overt about movement, since they attempt to cross legally. It is a long and treacherous journey, particularly for those who plan to cross the desert. What the media misses or distorts: 1. The media never discusses who benefits most from migrant labor. Corporations in meat, agriculture and construction profit tremendously because of undocumented labor. Tyson chicken even closed its plants on the day that undocumented workers organized to stay home from work. Obviously, this major savings in labor benefits ordinary consumers. But these giant multinationals benefit the most. 2. US neocolonialism and military involvement in Central America. This is one of the direct reasons why migrants leave Central America. The US has basically taken their resources over the past two centuries and transformed their economies, and cultures from subsistence farming to single crop farming and from mainly rural dwellers to city factory workers. Every attempt to nationalize or transform their economies to benefit the nation and its people have met US military or economic interference. Thus, Guatemala, Salvador, Nicaragua, and Honduras, (not to mention Panama), have no real autonomy over their own economy. The US starved these nations and now the only real option is to head North. 3. The guns and drugs. The US supplies the guns to the drug cartels and gangs in Central America and Mexico. We manufacture about 13,000,000 guns a year and 3/4 of the guns used in the drug wars are US weapons. We are the consumers of the drugs manufactured in these nations. Since the US starved out this population and made opportunities for legal and safe labor almost impossible, people survive through the black market economy. Hence, people seek asylum and work in the US because the US is responsible for the guns and drugs. 4. Since 9/11, the US created stricter enforcement of entering the country legally and illegally. It may surprise many that deportations increased tremendously during the Obama administration and the presence of border patrol increased tremendously during the Obama admin. It seems that the Liberal media wants to keep this quiet to safeguard Obama's reputation and the Conservative media keeps this quiet to attach Obama to "open boarders". Also, since 2005, more Mexicans leave the US then enter. Anyway, I thought I would provide this information to you. I urge people who want to actually know about this issue to come to the border region and talk to the people and the Border Patrol. http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/08/31/u-s-immigrant-deportations-declined-in-2014-but-remain-near-record-high/ https://www.migrationpolicy.org/research/deportation-dilemma-reconciling-tough-humane-enforcement http://www.pewhispanic.org/2015/11/19/more-mexicans-leaving-than-coming-to-the-u-s/
  3. It was an obvious TD. That's my point. Jags have to challenge. Steelers wouldn't have had to. Nice try though.
  4. I've been watching this game. Every single call is going against the Jags. This game is a joke. It will be a miracle if the Jags can beat the Steelers and the league.
  5. Maybe Beane because of his blunder with Mahomes.
  6. As long as mass media operates as a pay per click and our country has reactionaries who scapegoat immigrants and carry torches, this phase will not pass. In simple terms, race is still an issue and money is made by exploiting it.
  7. From Two Corinthians: 16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
  8. There might be a bit of bias. But this is for obvious reasons. The great majority of people in this country, and logically, football fans are Christian. Also, Christianity is based a lot on being a good person, e.g. Sermon on the mount, Golden rule, etc. Therefore, if one claims to be of firm Christian faith, we generally view these people as being good guys, since we are also Christian (we project). Lets complicate this a bit. Does race play a role? Some of the worst or "bad guy" characters in the NFL (Owens, Ray Lewis, Cam Newton, Marshawn Lynch) also claim strong Christian faith, but are never perceived as "good guys". Personally, I think it is a combination of faith, race, and general congenial demeanor. There is a romanticized collective vision of the "good guy" that has never been historically associated with anything bad or evil. It's an archetype. White, Christian, Protestant, honest, loyal, hard-working, family oriented, articulate, neighborly, duty, etc. Peterman and McDermott both epitomize this archetype. It reminds me of an old Onion article: Pro Athlete Lauded For Being Decent Human Being See the connection to race in this satirical article?
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