Does a human life mean anything? I ask because behind the rhetoric of Farage, Jenrick and co. we see no acceptance that there is a responsibility (ensconced in International Law and acknowledged by the UK) that a person fleeing persecution in their own country should be offered a safe haven and sanctuary in another country. Personally I think this is one of the aspects that make me proud to be be British (even if ashamed of the knuckle draggers). But the question remains – should we offer sanctuary to these poor souls, or cast them aside to be tortured or left to rot? Farage states that he would organise 5 planes a day to send asylum seekers elsewhere – he does not specify, nor cares, where.
So the question remains – I would love to stop the small boats endangering peoples lives, and also accept that many have no legitimate claim for asylum. What the government needs to do, and should have done immediately on getting power, was to set up paths for legitimate asylum seekers to be accepted into the UK – empowered immediately to work and set up be independent and potentially a benefit to our society. How many people are fleeing from situations that were generated, or inflamed by UK governments interference in the past? (Libya, Iraq, Somalia, Iran, for starters!).
So back to the question – should we give a shit or just turn our back on fellow human beings? Or should we stop pandering to the obnoxious wankers promoted by the media to feed their bank balances abroad, and sort out a sensible solution?