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Culture War Roundup for the week of September 12, 2022

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A great man once said feeble minds discuss people, mediocre minds discuss events, and great men discuss feeble and mediocre minds. As befits my station (see: flair), I will endeavor to do the first two.

Yesterday, Ron Desantis proudly shipped 50 illegal immigrants to Martha’s Vineyard. See Breitbart and Fox News’ takes as well. The individuals were supposedly offered a plane ticket to Massachusetts, without being told they were being sent to a small, isolated island unprepared to receive them as part of a political stunt. Amusingly, not sharing a border with Mexico, Desantis actually had to source his illegal immigrants from Texas. I suppose rustling up 50 of the 772,000 homegrown illegal Florida Mans was too difficult, or may have upset some core constituency, who knows. The only shelter in Martha’s Vineyard has room for 10 and is obviously not equipped in the way that Boston, New York or DC would be and the plane ticket to those places would have been much cheaper.

Also of note: see the Fox News article for the Florida legislature’s $12 million ‘immigrant relocation program’ Own The Libs/Desantis for President fun.

I can stomach a border wall and even see the necessity, despite disagreeing with what it represents. I can sympathize with people living near the border and dealing with crime and drug cartels. But manipulating impoverished people seeking a better future and treating them as nothing more than chattel to score political points and ‘own the libs’ absolutely turns my stomach. Which, judging by the Breitbart comments and replies I expect here, laughing at my pearl clutching is absolutely the point. You want me to be mad, you want me get up on my soapbox and bleat some self-righteous Soyjak lines about muh poor illegals so you can get mad right back and it feels good.

So I guess I won’t do that, although I never know what to say instead. I’m sorry that you hate Obama and Clinton (see: Breitbart article) so much that the thought of them having to deal with poor third worlders is amusing. I’m sorry that you’re so angry about illegal immigration and the libs that we’ve come here. Please, let’s all try to treat our countrymen better and do what we can to dial down the hate.

So, less than 48 hours later, and the illegal immigrants have already been deported from Martha's Vineyard. The MA governor has activated the national guard, and sent 125 Guardsmen to escort the 50 immigrants in a purportedly voluntary relocation to somewhere out of sight of the rich progressives.

The level of hypocrisy on this one is just amazing. No one invited anyone into their home. They couldn't even stand the sight of brown people unburdened by lawncare equipment till the weekend. It reminds me of when Mac went pro-life to pick up chicks.

Also, the $12 Million seems to be for the entire relocation program. Given how shameless and stark the results are, this may end up being the best use of money in politics in years.

It’s my understanding that they moved them to a place they could be housed, because MV is just a little island and doesn’t have facilities to host a bunch of families who have no shelter.

They seemed to react kindly to the people, I didn’t really see anything of this “couldnt stand to see brown people” stuff.

The few reports I heard people brought them food, clothes, set up medical treatment areas, and brought a soccer ball and set up game tables, to hang out and pass the time, etc.

It’s my understanding that they moved them to a place they could be housed, because MV is just a little island and doesn’t have facilities to host a bunch of families who have no shelter.

They have thousands of newly empty summer homes and hotels.com is eager to help me compare the 1026 different hotel options. MV has a population of almost 90k. The idea that they can't settle 50 people is absurd.

They seemed to react kindly to the people, I didn’t really see anything of this “couldnt stand to see brown people” stuff.

They had them escorted off the island by the military within 36 hours. It's easy to put on a smile for a couple hours for a photo shoot. Why not welcome them to settle there and enhance the vibrancy of the community?

The immigrants appear to have been told that they were going to boston.

Immigrants typically like to go to big cities where the economy runs a bit hotter than towns of 100k people.

Maybe you should find a few of the immigrants who wanted to stay in MV before deploring how they weren't allowed to stay there.

You’re probably right, I’m giving the rich folks at MV too much credit