Ft. Morgan, CO article discusses the challenges of refugee overload

07/01/2013 ~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

No jobs! Disrespect for rental property! Don’t speak English! Need more child care! Not enough housing for refugees!

Back in 2008 we wrote about “welcoming” Ft. Morgan, CO home of agribusiness giant Cargill. By the way, do you think Senator Jeff Sessions was referring to Cargill when he said the meat packers were driving the S.744 train and the Gang of Eight (cheap immigrant labor!), here?

If so, since there are so many unemployed refugees, why do we need more immigrant labor?

Cargill Meat Solutions in Ft. Morgan, CO. I’m now wondering if the meat packer giant, probably the largest employer there, controls the newspaper.

A few years ago, Somali refugees which had caused problems in Greeley and were fired by JBS Swift after a row over prayer times during work began flowing to a thrilled-to-have-them Ft. Morgan (or at least the Ft. Morgan Times was thrilled).

Here is one of many many posts on Somalis shopping for the most accommodating meat packers. We have a whole category on Greeley, JBS Swift and Somalis, here.

In 2008, the Ft. Morgan Times actually editorialized saying that Refugee Resettlement Watch (not by name, but who else would it be), was a blog teaching people how to chase refugees away, and represented the “dark ugly underside” of America. Click here for my take on their broadside.

Here is what the editor said about us!

Of course, if it were up to some people, Somali refugees would not have a chance to resettle anywhere in the U.S. There is even a Web site devoted to teaching Americans how to chase refugees of various sorts out of town.

This is a kind of insanity, since everyone except Native Americans are immigrants. Unfortunately, it shows the dark, ugly underside of our great country.

Just now, in trying to figure out how to post this latest news from the Ft. Morgan Times, I realize we have dozens of posts on the problems Ft. Morgan has had with its refugee overload going back five years (click here for the whole listing). There were tensions in the community, in 2010 they brought in Justice Department community facilitators, the Chief of Police went to Denmark to learn how to deal with Somali Muslim refugees, there was even a Somali honor killing. I had never heard of the federal facilitators before Ft. Morgan, had you? Here is what the article in the Ft. Morgan Times said then:

Essentially, it is a mediation agency which helps deal with cases involving changing community demographics, hate crimes, demonstrations and emotionally charged issues…

Fast forward to last week:

Based on this story in the Ft. Morgan Times, it sure sounds like, ho-hum, the town is still having problems with its Cargill-generated immigrant overload. (Hat tip: Joanne). But, Cargill doesn’t have enough jobs for all the immigrants so that is the rub (why then do we need more immigrant laborers as per S.744?).

A quarterly meeting was hosted by the following:

Joe Wismann-Horther of Colorado Refugee Services, OneMorgan County Executive Director Brenda Zion and Ryan Gray of Lutheran Family Services Rocky Mountains hosted the quarterly refugee services meeting Tuesday.

The news report is written like it’s just someone’s lengthy notes of the meeting. Here are some of the points that interested me:

* Refugees don’t speak English so go unemployed and they take lousy care of rental property.

Among issues mentioned were the need for properties to be taken better care of, day care for refugees, support for business development and employment.

Outside of jobs at Cargill Meat Solutions, there are few local jobs for refugees who do not speak English very well.

One idea is to look at how to develop job skills and how to work with Fort Morgan’s Workforce Center, said Joe Wismann-Horther of Colorado Refugee Services.

Local agencies and businesses could discuss how to develop employment options for refugees who do not work at Cargill.

Cargill only has a limited number of jobs, said Shirley Penn, coordinator for Cargill’s and Morgan Community College’s Workplace Education program.

[….]

It is difficult for refugees to take classes in business when they do not have high-level English skills, said OneMorgan County Executive Director Brenda Zion.

[….]

Some refugees do not understand what is expected with properties they rent, such as weed control, said Fort Morgan Police Chief Keith Kuretich.

* Colorado Refugee Services rep says more refugees are coming because after ten years they can bring family. What the heck? They can bring family anytime, they need not wait ten years. What he is obliquely referring to here is that Somalis were banned from 2008 until recently to bring their “family” members because the State Department uncovered massive fraud in 2008. Gee, about 30,000 were not family members! They had lied. Either the reporter didn’t know enough to clarify what was said by Wismann-Horther, or it was purposefully left out of the story.

The city may see a new development for refugees soon, as they are in the U.S. for 10 years and can start bringing relatives from their native countries, he said.

The U.S. refugee program is overseeing that possibility by requiring DNA testing to make sure people really are relatives, Wismann-Horther said. [At this point wouldn’t you think someone would ask/report to the public what that is all about!—ed]

* We only allow refugees from certain countries for a limited time—say what! There is no rule about this, I personally think that contractors are out scouting for new ethnic groups because they tire of the ones they have been resettling after a time.

And, Wismann-Horther is wrong about Somalis, we are bringing a very large number this year. We are on target to rival the top years (during the Bush Administration) with possibly 9,000-10,000 if the present trend continues.

He said that immigration from places like Bhutan and Burma are falling off now, as have immigrants from Somalia. The U.S. refugee program only allows people from countries for a limited amount of time.

Wismann-Horther told the gathering to get ready for the Congolese as the “next stream.” We know—50,000! Are you ready for your share, Colorado?

* Surprise! Not enough housing for all the refugees.

A huge issue is the “zero vacancy rate” in Fort Morgan, she [Board of Realtors Director] said. New people come to the city and cannot find anywhere to live.

Wismann-Horther at that point goes on about possibly building new housing (for jobless immigrants who are having problems keeping their present properties maintained?)

The article goes on and on, you can read it all here.

Signing off from the dark ugly underside of America!

“They have lit a fuse!” Pamela Geller, Robert Spencer banned from entering the UK

06/27/2013 ~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

Every freedom-loving American take heed—do not allow the erosion of our free speech rights as we watch the UK continue into the darkness.

Free speech crusaders Pamela Geller of Atlas Shrugs and Robert Spencer of Jihad Watch have been banned from entering the UK, Geller reported yesterday, here. And Spencer today at Frontpage magazine.

Geller:

I have been banned in Britain. My crime? My principled dedication to freedom. I am a human rights activist dedicated to freedom of speech, freedom of conscience and individual rights for all before the law. I fiercely oppose violence and the persecution and oppression of minorities under supremacist law. I deplore violence and work for the preservation of freedom of speech to avoid violent conflict.

I have never been convicted of any crime. I have never been arrested. I became a writer and activist in the wake of 911.

For this I am banned. I shed no tears. I am banned from Mecca, too.

The Home Secretary said that my being in the UK was “not conducive to the public good.” Banning those who speak in defense of freedom is “not conducive to the public good.” It is painfully apparent that the action of the British authorities will have the opposite effect of what they had intended. They have lit a fuse. And instead of allowing a respectful laying of flowers in memory of Lee Rigby on Armed Forces day, they have given rise and sanction to poison like this (below).

Read on!

Spencer says, “British government is behaving like a de facto Islamic state,” here.

Today, see Geller on the worldwide media storm that the British government has created! She was right, they lit a fuse!

Sign the petition here.

Maryland readers may remember that Islamic supremacists attempted (and failed) to silence Pamela Geller and other speakers at the MD CAN conference in January of this year. Their actions only helped create more interest and more registrations.

Readers: I haven’t said it so much lately, but its important that you take some personal action in defense of free speech. Figure out what suits your personality, but create a facebook page, tweet, or best of all write a blog of your own. The more people who exercise their free speech rights in America the better. It will make it harder for the fascists to shut us all down.

Hey, and if you are thinking about blogging, pick a subject and focus on it day-in and day-out so that you provide a service by becoming a surrogate investigative reporter as the mainstream media continues down the path of promoting their own politically correct agendas.

RRW blocked on some phones—adult content? Or,censorship straight up?

06/27/2013 ~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

Is anyone else having difficulty accessing Refugee Resettlement Watch? A few years ago someone reported to me that RRW was blocked by some government agency computers. I don’t know if that is true. But, in light of what we know now about the IRS, blocking certain sites critical of government wouldn’t surprise me. Here is a case of apparent blockage by a private firm—WebGuard working for T-mobile.

Our content is apparently not suitable for tender youthful ears, even those of young adults!

But, I must say, we are honored to be in the company of Frontpage Magazine (where I learned this incredible news! just now).

From LaurenceJarvikOnline (emphasis mine):

Dear Webguard:

I have just gotten off the phone with Lucas W. (he would not disclose his last name), T-Mobile ID # 1241773, floor manager for customer service, and cancelled my WebGuard service.

The reason is that both RefugeeResettlementWatch and FrontPageMag were blocked as inappropriate content by Webguard at all levels: Child, Teen, and Young Adult.

However, both sites are simply news and commentary sites critical of the Obama administration. They are not porn sites. There is no issue of child protection involved.

Lucas told me the process by which sites are chosen to be blocked is known only to WebGuard, and that I would have to ask you for the explanation. He said he could not forward a complaint from T-mobile to Webguard, even though T-Mobile had a contract with WebGuard.

So please be advised that I found the categorizations and blockage as age inappropriate to be damaging, defamatory, false and fraudulent regarding the websites…and bad for business for T-Mobile–because on its face the blockage appears to be based on political correctness rather than child protection, and leads to the loss of customers.

For example, I cancelled WebGuard because of this problem, and told T-Mobile they should look for another provider of web-filtering services.

Therefore, I respectfully ask that you tell me why these sites were blocked, provide me a list of criteria used by WebGuard to block sites, and explain the methodology for site evaluation, including steps taken by WebGuard to insure against political censorship.

Thank you.

Sincerely,
Laurence A. Jarvik, Ph.D.

Looking forward to their response!

“Radical” Buddhists stand up to “radical” Rohingya Muslims in Burma

06/24/2013 ~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

The Washington Post calls the Buddhists trying to keep Islamic supremacism from washing over Burma “radicals.” But, of course the Rohingya Muslims are “long-suffering” and play no role (according to the media meme) in the bouts of violence springing up in Burma/Myanmar.

Westerners need to take a free-speech lesson from the monks!

Thanks to The Muslim Issue for directing us to the latest whitewash of the controversy spreading throughout Southeast Asia as Rohingya Muslims from Burma arrive by the boatload and expect asylum especially in places like Australia.

Having followed the issue for almost 6 years (148 previous posts here at RRW), I find this one-sided reporting maddening. The latest flare-up of violence began last year when a Buddhist girl was raped and murdered by Muslim men, yet that is long-forgotten in the latest telling.

From the Washington Post (is this a news story, or an opinion piece—it is hard to tell!):

Members of Burma’s Buddhist majority, including some of its much-respected monks, are increasingly persecuting the country’s long-suffering Muslim minority and adopting an ideology that encourages religious violence. It seems a far way from the Buddhism typically associated with stoic monks and the Lama – who has condemned the violence – and more akin to the sectarian extremism prevalent in troubled corners of the Middle East. The violence has already left nearly 250 Burmese Muslim civilians dead, forced 150,000 from their homes and is getting worse. [It is infuriating because scores of Buddhist villagers were killed and made homeless by Muslims as well. Where is the balanced reporting?—ed]

“You can be full of kindness and love, but you cannot sleep next to a mad dog,” Ashin Wirathu, a spiritual leader of the movement and very popular figure in Burma, said of the country’s Muslims, whom he called “the enemy.” He told the New York Times, “I am proud to be called a radical Buddhist.”

[….]

Already, the movement has expanded beyond this one self-styled radical Buddhist monk. It’s now expanding across Burma (also known as Myanmar) according to the Times article. The anti-Muslim sentiment has spread with alarming speed over just the last year, as Burma – which is finally opening up after years of military dictatorship – loosened its strict speech laws. It has prompted boycotts and sermons that can sound an awful lot like calls for violence against Muslims. Monasteries associated with the movement have enrolled 60,000 Burmese children into Sunday school programs.

The article goes on to criticize Aung San Suu Kyi who has largely remained silent on the Muslim Issue.

Just a reminder to American readers, the US Conference of Catholic Bishops testified at the State Department last month that they wanted more Burmese Muslims resettled in America!

Two Tea Party events in DC tomorrow; 70 brave Republicans to speak against amnesty

06/18/2013 ~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

From the editor: I have so much I could post here at RRW today, but circumstances out of my control are getting in the way. This is what I posted just a few minutes ago at Potomac Tea Party Report about events in DC tomorrow which might be of some interest to readers here as well.

Glenn Beck

Glenn Beck announced yesterday that he too will be in Washington, DC tomorrow for the rally to bring the Nation’s attention to the IRS targeting scandal, and at the same time the Brave 70 will hold an all day event in opposition to the Gang of Eight plus Grover bill working its way through the Senate.

The Seventy members of the House will be challenging Speaker John Boehner and his inner circle (including Paul Ryan) on the so-called “comprehensive” immigration reform bill that Boehner would like to see pass the House in some form so he can go to conference committee and ‘compromise’ with what is expected to be an egregious Senate version of the bill (S.744).

If you missed it, Rush Limbaugh was great yesterday on his radio show saying that this push for amnesty isn’t driven by humanitarianism (and Hispanics won’t be voting Republican), it is being pushed on both sides of the aisle by moneyed interests who simply want the cheap labor supply, and if people like Rubio (Rush implied) want a future in national politics he has to tow the line or he won’t get the big campaign donations. Limbaugh says they are all crony capitalists now—the big money doesn’t care who (or which party) is in the White House just so they get to put their hands into the government till.

Leading the 70 Member revolt are Reps. Steve King, Michele Bachmann and Louie Gohmert.

Here is Beck on his show yesterday (hat tip: Cathy):

This Wednesday, June 19, in Washington D.C. there will be an open forum that will feature “border security, anti-amnesty members of Congress.” The debate is slated for 9AM to 12PM and then again from 2PM to 5PM. In between, members of Congress will join with an already-planned Tea Party rally against the Internal Revenue Service’s targeting of conservative organizations. Glenn will be joining the event and speaking at noon.

“There are 70 Republicans now in congress that we sent there,” Glenn said. “They’re standing up this week and they’re about to be slaughtered.”

“I think there will be five people in Washington this week on Wednesday because it’s, you know, it’s a Wednesday. It’s in the middle of the week. Who does this? It’s costing me a fortune to be able to get the TV and everybody up there to be able to ‑‑ to be able to just cover it, let alone speak up there. I’m flying a few of my pastors and my priests and my rabbi friends up with me for an announcement with the Black‑Robe Regiment. That’s not something I want to do. Last thing I want to do is get back on an airplane and travel up to Washington D.C. and stand there and be a part of that.”

“There are many things I don’t believe in anymore, and Washington is one of them. And I despise that city now. Because it has just become a symbol of corruption to me, a symbol of grotesque growth, where the rest of us are suffering in the rest of the country,” he said.

Here is the location of the Audit the IRS rally. The Lincoln-Douglas style debate on immigration will be in front of the US Capital (presumably where the rally will also take place, but I don’t know that for sure).

For people in Western Maryland, the Hagerstown Tea Party still has seats available on its bus (as of this writing!).

For everything we have said here at RRW about S.744, the “mother of all legislative train wrecks”, go here.