How many Democrats want to take in refugees from the fictional land of Agrabah, the home of Aladdin?
Forty-four percent of them do to be exact, according to a poll released last week.
That number flipped the script on the media hoopla over a Public Policy Polling survey which found 30 percent of Republicans agreed with the idea of bombing Agrabah. That figure was reported as evidence that the stereotypical Republican was both dense and a war-mongerer eager to bomb any place with an Arabic-sounding name.
But the new poll on refugees shows Democrats are far more eager to take in refugees from fictional places than Republicans are interested in obliterating them, and it reveals much more about the mentality of left-wingers than the bomb questionnaire does about conservatives.
For all the talk of how America must take in Syrian migrants due to how brutal the nation’s civil war is, the fact that liberals are so willing to take in migrants from anywhere on the planet kind of undermines the stated motivation for taking in the current crop of refugees.
The Agrabah question demonstrates how the Left thinks the idea of taking in migrants regardless of consequences is inherently good and is something that should be championed intensely. No matter where the supposed refugees are coming from, liberals wants America to take them in.
Only a few days prior to the poll coming out, a minor celebrity perfectly articulated this naive feeling on an appearance of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.”
“Homeland” actor Mandy Patinkin went on an impromptu rant during his December 18 guest spot on Colbert’s failing network TV venture to rail against right-wing fear-mongering and how the United States should bomb the Middle East with opportunities instead of explosives.
“All of these wonderful Muslim men and women that have no education, no opportunity, no good schooling and so what do they do? They look for someone else who’s saying ‘will give you a better life,’” Patinkin explained as the underlying motivation for young people taking up jihad. “Why aren’t we talking that money that’s used for bombs, and making schools and hospitals and homes and opportunity?”
In that part of his rant, the actor fails to remember the large number of well-off Muslims with ample opportunities and plenty of contact with Western culture who’ve gone down the radical path. He also unwittingly forgets the billions of dollars America has spent on building up schools, hospitals and other elements of social infrastructure throughout the Islamic world.
“This fearmongering and hatred that’s going on by people running for the President of United States, is so misguided. It is important that we open up our arms and our hearts to refugees that are fleeing a horrifying situation,” Patinkin continued. “When you meet these women and children you will not be afraid!”
And then the guy who plays a spy on TV went on to say that when “humanity is exercised,” we eliminate all of the world’s problems. He even claimed it eradicated the threat of nuclear warfare and said it will also defeat Islamic terror as well.
“Use your imagination about how you can make the world a better place, and bomb all of these marginalized people with opportunity,” Patinkin declared.
The crowd roared in applause at the statements of the “Homeland” star and left-wing outlets like Salon wrote glowing reports of the appearance. What Patinkin said was not the ramblings of a hippie dippie actor but the expressions of progressive ideology. There’s little difference between his rant and President Barack Obama declaring we can defeat ISIS with “better ideas” and “empowering” the underprivileged of the Middle East. (RELATED: How Can ISIS Ever Withstand Obama’s ‘Better Ideas’?)
It’s also no different from Obama chastising Republicans for being afraid of the “orphans and widows” coming in with through the refugee resettlement program.
While it is true American foreign policy is a reason why some Muslims have found radical Islam attractive and we won’t vanquish the ideology with bombing campaigns, trying to counteract its spread with love and kindness won’t do any good either. It would be actually be a demonstration of abject weakness in the face of a zealous foe.
People are afraid of terrorism not because of fear-mongering politicians but because of how seemingly any young Muslim — regardless of income, education or ethnic background — can turn to terror and strike at the most unlikely of places. They are concerned about a broken immigration system that appears incapable of properly vetting incoming arrivals and does not work for the best interests of American citizens. And they’re worried our government looks helpless as Islamic extremism continues to grow.
But those concerns don’t count for much in the happy la-la land that is the liberal worldview. Open hearts will conquer all and the only thing we have to fear is fear itself (and the numerous other things leftists fear).
In the dangerous world we live in, toughness is a necessity and warm embraces will just lead to knives in the back. We will not protect ourselves from the long arm of jihad by welcoming in tens of thousands of improperly vetted migrants and bombing the Islamic world with opportunities.
The only place that might work is in Agrabah.