Day: September 19, 2008

Food Stamp fraud brought to you by a certain unnamed immigrant group

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

Debbie Schlussel has the scoop!   Earlier today I saw a news clip about a huge food stamp fraud bust in the Detroit, MI area, and since I knew Debbie was an expert on these busts, I asked if she had learned who the perps were.  Sure enough, she got the story:

Yesterday, Michigan State Police and federal Department of Agriculture agents raided several gas stations, party stores, and homes–20 locations in all–and arrested 20 people for Bridge Card (food stamp) fraud.

All of those arrested were Shi’ite Arab Muslims, but of course neither that and nor the arrestees’ names were mentioned in any media coverage. Gee, I wonder why.

Read the rest of Debbie’s post here.

Food stamp fraud has been one of my interests ever since it happened near where we live.  One of my favorite posts is this one.  All of my posts on the topic are here.

Actually I should explain to new readers how this fraud works.   When I first heard about the scam I was amazed to learn it was so widespread and connected to a certain immigrant group.    Usually it works like this:  customer goes into mom and pop store with food stamps to sell.  The clerk gives the poor needy person who is not looking for food, but for cash, 50 cents on the dollar for the stamps.   Store then turns the stamps in to the government for the full dollar.  The full dollar was provided by you—the US taxpayer.   And, guess where the money goes?   To the poor and needy folks of Hezbollah.   Neat huh!   Now don’t you feel better to know you are giving zakat.

New reports: 150 Somalis are gone–quit or fired in Nebraska

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

Here is a short report forwarded from Blulitespecial that quotes a Somali community organizer as saying that 150 Somalis are now unemployed and hanging around Grand Island with nothing to do.  (Actually he didn’t say that last part, that was me.)

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – A Somali-American leader says 150 Muslims have lost their jobs at a Grand Island, Neb., meatpacking plant that has been embroiled in a prayer dispute.

Mohamed Rage (RAYZH) with the Omaha Somali-American Community Organization says 80 workers were thrown out after an altercation late Thursday. He says when they tried to return for their shift Friday, they were fired, along with 70 others.

If you go to the Somali Community  organization’s site you will see this guy’s name really is ‘Rage’, gosh how appropriate.   Does anyone else see a trend with that “c” word?   There seems to be a Somali Community center in every hot spot.    By the way, the link is for the website page which mentions how many babies the Somalis are going for—7 or 8 makes for a super mom (note to Sierra Club).

New readers see our category here for meatpacker news from Greeley and Grand Island.

50-80 Somali workers quit at Swift plant last night

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

Update:  The number has risen to 150 quit or fired.   I know, it’s getting a little dizzying.

Here is more information on what the ruckus was about last night at Swift’s Grand Island, NE meatpacking plant.  A bunch of Somalis got boisterous and quit.  (No, not boisterous like the Greek Somalis!)   Hat tip:  Blulitespecial.

About 50 to 80 Muslims quit at the JBS Swift & Co. meatpacking plant Thursday night.

Dan Hoppes, president of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local No. 22, said the matter stems from the recent debate over break time for the purpose of prayer during the holy month of Ramadan.

“There were some Muslim people who wanted to get the rest of the people to back them to moving their (dinner) break to an earlier time, and when that did not happen, the rest of the people went back to work and those people protesting got loud and boisterous. It wasn’t a physical altercation at all,” Hoppes said.

But there was fear that it might get physical, so the police were called into the Swift plant about 9 p.m.

“By the time the police got there, it was settled down, and several of them went ahead and quit or left the plant,” Hoppes said. “They were told either go back to work or leave.

Great, now poor Grand Island will have 50-80 unemployed Somalis hanging around town.

Hottest boys in town—the Bhutanese?

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

Here is a story from the Times of India that will make you laugh (well sort of).   We are going to resettle about 60,000 Bhutanese (many are of Nepali origin) who had been expelled nearly two decades ago from Bhutan and have been living in camps in Nepal ever since.    So last year the US swooped in and said we’ll take a bunch over the next five years.  That isn’t the funny part.

This is the funny part (not really):  Always in search of an angle to get into America, Nepali girls seem to have hit on just the ticket—marry a refugee.

KATHMANDU: Young Bhutanese refugees have now suddenly become the most sought after for marriage among the eastern Nepalese girls, thanks to a resettlement offer by the US and European countries.

Nepali girls are vying to marry such boys as it would provide golden opportunity to go abroad. This phenomenon is amply visible in Jhapa and Morang districts of Nepal where Bhutanese refugees are settled for the last 17 years.

From January to August some 113 Nepalese girls have tied nuptials with the Bhutanese refugee boys. Earlier, the Bhutanese refugees were seen as source of trouble to them but now they are seen as cause of good fortune.

Type ‘Bhutanese refugees’ into our search function and learn more.  We have written extensively on this resettlement plan.

What the heck, it could be worse!

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

O.K. lets just count our lucky stars.   At least we aren’t in Greece.   In Greeley, CO and Grand Island, NE all we have so far is a culture clash over break times at slaughter houses and the only thing slaughtered to date are the cattle (when the workers are actually working and not protesting).    And, what the heck the worst we have heard so far are claims that Somalis were kicked while praying right in the middle of the processing line, and breasts were fondled while prostrating women were removed from the locker room. 

But, as I said, it could be worse.  We could be in Athens, Greece where slaughtering has reached a new level according to this report:

It was a bloody afternoon as machetes, axes and cutlasses swung from every corner leaving pieces of flesh and puddles of blood on the streets of Omonia in Athens Greece. The Sudanese and Somalians shocked the greek community to their very bones as they killed each other with reckless crudity. It was a scene that could have easily beffited the 3rd Century when barbarism was at its peak.

It wasn’t the 3rd Century, it was last week, and it goes on:

The Somalians and Sudanese in Greece are notorious for their drug dealings and Omonia is where they base. Both communities have shared the territory peacefully and dealt their custom mutually until last week.

Trouble began when more and more drug addicts began to take their customs to the Somalian side of the dangerous Omonia area to the probable envy of the Sudanese dealers. As the trend continued, the Sudanese asked the Somalians to leave Omonia. Their odacious demand must have offended the Somalis so much that they returned the request with action.

That Afternoon, as business went on, the Somalians appeared in the Sudanese occupied area of Omonia in a cohort, armed with machetes, axes, clubs and cutlasses. Their Sudanese counterparts soon armed themselves in defence and the bloody and barbaric altercation ensued. They cut, axed and chopped themselves to shreds.

Then the author goes on to say, what a bummer, these actions “nourish racism.”   I should have known, it’s always about racism.

The Greeks were left to curse the hearts and reasoning of Africans as the fighting gave them more grounds to build on their racism, prejudices and xenophobia.