3rd Day "Deer Hunting"

I was able to go out deer hunting for a little while this afternoon and thought I would report on how it was. The reading was great. 🙂 Today I started N.T. Wright’s “Evil & the Justice of God” and, at least, the first third of it is very good. The deer hunting? Well, I at least saw a deer in the field I was hunting today. Unfortunately it was 150ish yards away and either I spooked it when I was trying to look at it through my scope or something else did, because it ever so gingerly jumped back into the woods. It didn’t bolt away, so I waited hoping it would come back. Unfortunately it didn’t come back out for the remaining 10 minutes of shooting time.

Like I have written previously, I’m a terrible deer hunter, but I am an excellent deer hunting reader. Still the reading was really good. 🙂

1st Two Days of Deer Hunting

Short post here because I haven’t had a shot at a deer yet this season. I went yesterday morning for 5 hours, yesterday afternoon for an hour and a half, and then two hours this afternoon. The first question that is usually asked is “have you had any luck?” Well luck is the tough part of that question. As I wrote earlier I haven’t had a shot at a deer yet, but I did get close enough to hit four deer with a rock if I had wanted too. Yesterday afternoon when I was driving back to the Glaze abode (where I am mostly hunting this year). When I hit their driveway there were 3 does and a nice 6-8 point buck standing there right in between me and the house, which meant I couldn’t shoot even if I had been ready. ARGH! They eventually ran around the house and Eric saw them but he didn’t have a shot either. Not sure if that is really lucky or not. I assume seeing deer really close and not being able to shoot isn’t lucky, at least for me, maybe it is for the deer. Personally I don’t really care about the deer being lucky.

Anyhow on the good side I did finish my first deer hunting read today. I like to read while I am deer hunting. It is part of the fun. According to Eric this makes me a terrible deer hunter. I, on the other hand, like to think that it makes me an excellent deer hunting reader. Anyhow the first book was Neil Gaiman’s “The Ocean at the End of the Lane.” It was excellent.

My Deer Hunting Ammo & the "Danger" of Refugees

The cost of the ammo I will be using for deer hunting doubled this year. Why? Well because of bald eagles.

I love bald eagles. I find them fascinating. It is one of the many things I love about living in Wisconsin. I see bald eagles everywhere. In fact my favorite fishing spot and duck hunting spot is real close to a bald eagle nest and therefore I regularly see eagles and eaglets flying around while I fish and hunt. This is why Pam’s Christmas gift to me last year was a trip to the Raptor Education Group, Inc‘s (REGI for short) eagle release this past year.

An eaglet being released by a REGI volunteer. Fly eaglet, fly.

REGI is a great group that rehabilitates eagles, other raptors, and various other birds with the hope of releasing them back to the wild. Many of the eagles that REGI rehabilitates are suffering from lead poisoning. How are the eagles poisoned by the lead? Well it isn’t because eagles often mistake lead for food. Nope it is because they scavenge the gut piles left from field dressing deer that have been shot with lead bullets. One of the things I like about eagles is that aren’t all that noble. Nope they are opportunist. Free deer guts are a tasty meal for them, so they clean up what we deer hunters leave behind. Unfortunately because most hunters use lead ammo this often gives eagles lead poisoning. The second I learned this I realized that if I loved eagles then I was going to have to start hunting with more expensive non-lead ammo. If I love eagles then I need to do everything I can to change my behavior not to hurt them, even when it costs more than I would like to pay. So this year my ammo for deer hunting cost me double what it normally would.

This is how we come to dealing with refugees. If we believe Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6) then we don’t have an option of not helping the refugees just because we might think (wrongly in my opinion, but that is a discussion for another time) it could be dangerous. The cost to us doesn’t matter. Danger isn’t a valid excuse for a Christian to not obey Christ and Jesus tells us to help those who are hungry, thirsty, and in need of places to stay (Matthew 25:31-46 calls us “sheep” if we do and “goats” if we don’t). Now I don’t think the Syrian refugees poise any danger BUT even if they do if you are believer in Jesus Christ then you are called to help them. We can debate about how best to help them but we can’t say “We have to worry about our safety so we can’t help them.” If you believe in Jesus as Savior then that belief should change your behavior. If it doesn’t then we need to consider whether we really believe in Jesus or not. Truly loving Jesus leads us to value the “things” He does and the “things” He values are people, very often people in need.

I’m not sure why he is trying to put the guy on the donkey like this.

One of the best known stories of the New Testament fits here. The story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37) is a story that is known and loved concerning helping others. What is often forgotten is that the Samaritan put himself at risk by his actions. He has a member of a class that was biased against within 1st Century Judaism. He actions not only cost him the money he paid to the inn keeper but they also put him into the situation where he could have suffered violence as a result of his assistance.  It was the equivalent of a black man stopping and helping a white woman in a racially divided area during the Jim Crow era. It might be the right thing to do but that right thing might put you in harm’s way. Jesus told this story as an example and no part of that example includes the message “if it is dangerous don’t do this”.

Why? Because if you love someone, that loves changes your actions and you.

Scott's Post on Immigration

 

There are friends you make that stay with you for life. Scott Hicks is such a friend. We became friends in college, he was one of my roommates my Senior year, and he was kind of an usher at Pam and my wedding (I say kind of because he became violently sick at the wedding). He is also an immigration lawyer and a pastor. As a lawyer he has a great analytical mind. As a pastor he has a heart of compassion. It is a great combination for an immigration lawyer and especially for speaking reason into some of the madness going on concerning whether or not Syrian refugees should be allowed in the US.

Yesterday he wrote a brilliant Facebook post concerning the vetting process for refugees. Several of us friends have been chatting on Facebook the past two days (while FB has its negatives chats such as the one we have had are one of best things about FB) as his post has been swapped around (213,489 shares at the moment) and he has started to get some opportunities to speak truth and compassion as a result. Today a few weird things started happening with his post on Facebook. While we all generally think it is Facebook just coping with the mad rush for his post – Facebook doesn’t usually expect a guy 394 FB friends to have something shared this often – we also suspect someone may have been upset by what he said and flagged it as inappropriate. As a result we discussed that his post should be saved somewhere else. I asked about sharing it on my blog. Thankfully Scott said “yes”.

Here are my friend’s profound words.

Most of my friends know I practice Immigration law. As such, I have worked with the refugee community for over two decades. This post is long, but if you want actual information about the process, keep reading.

I can not tell you how frustrating it is to see the misinformation and outright lies that are being perpetuated about the refugee process and the Syrian refugees. So, here is a bit of information from the real world of someone who actually works and deals with this issue.

The refugee screening process is multi-layered and is very difficult to get through. Most people languish in temporary camps for months to years while their story is evaluated and checked.

First, you do not get to choose what country you might be resettled into. If you already have family (legal) in a country, that makes it more likely that you will go there to be with family, but other than that it is random. So, you can not simply walk into a refugee camp, show a document, and say, I want to go to America. Instead, the UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner on Refugees) works with the local authorities to try to take care of basic needs. Once the person/family is registered to receive basic necessities, they can be processed for resettlement. Many people are not interested in resettlement as they hope to return to their country and are hoping that the turmoil they fled will be resolved soon. In fact, most refugees in refugee events never resettle to a third country. Those that do want to resettle have to go through an extensive process.

Resettlement in the U.S. is a long process and takes many steps. The Refugee Admissions Program is jointly administered by the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) in the Department of State, the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) in the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and offices within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) within DHS conducts refugee interviews and determines individual eligibility for refugee status in the United States.

We evaluate refugees on a tiered system with three levels of priority.

First Priority are people who have suffered compelling persecution or for whom no other durable solution exists. These individuals are referred to the United States by UNHCR, or they are identified by the U.S. embassy or a non-governmental organization (NGO).

Second priority are groups of “special concern” to the United States. The Department of State determines these groups, with input from USCIS, UNHCR, and designated NGOs. At present, we prioritize certain persons from the former Soviet Union, Cuba, Democratic Republic of Congo, Iraq, Iran, Burma, and Bhutan.

Third priority are relatives of refugees (parents, spouses, and unmarried children under 21) who are already settled in the United States may be admitted as refugees. The U.S.-based relative must file an Affidavit of Relationship (AOR) and must be processed by DHS.

Before being allowed to come to the United States, each refugee must undergo an extensive interviewing, screening, and security clearance process conducted by Regional Refugee Coordinators and overseas Resettlement Support Centers (RSCs). Individuals generally must not already be firmly resettled (a legal term of art that would be a separate article). Just because one falls into the three priorities above does not guarantee admission to the United States.

The Immigration laws require that the individuals prove that they have a “well-founded fear,” (another legal term which would be a book.) This fear must be proved regardless of the person’s country, circumstance, or classification in a priority category. There are multiple interviews and people are challenged on discrepancies. I had a client who was not telling the truth on her age and the agency challenged her on it. Refugees are not simply admitted because they have a well founded fear. They still must show that they are not subject to exclusion under Section 212(a) of the INA. These grounds include serious health matters, moral or criminal matters, as well as security issues. In addition, they can be excluded for such things as polygamy, misrepresentation of facts on visa applications, smuggling, or previous deportations. Under some circumstances, the person may be eligible to have the ground waived.

At this point, a refugee can be conditionally accepted for resettlement. Then, the RSC sends a request for assurance of placement to the United States, and the Refugee Processing Center (RPC) works with private voluntary agencies (VOLAG) to determine where the refugee will live. If the refugee does have family in the U.S., efforts will be made to resettle close to that family.

Every person accepted as a refugee for planned admission to the United States is conditional upon passing a medical examination and passing all security checks. Frankly, there is more screening of refugees than ever happens to get on an airplane. Of course, yes, no system can be 100% foolproof. But if that is your standard, then you better shut down the entire airline industry, close the borders, and stop all international commerce and shipping. Every one of those has been the source of entry of people and are much easier ways to gain access to the U.S. Only upon passing all of these checks (which involve basically every agency of the government involved in terrorist identification) can the person actually be approved to travel.

Before departing, refugees sign a promissory note to repay the United States for their travel costs. This travel loan is an interest-free loan that refugees begin to pay back six months after arriving in the country.

Once the VOLAG is notified of the travel plans, it must arrange for the reception of refugees at the airport and transportation to their housing at their final destination.
This process from start to finish averages 18 to 24 months, but I have seen it take years.

The reality is that about half of the refugees are children, another quarter are elderly. Almost all of the adults are either moms or couples coming with children. Each year the President, in consultation with Congress, determines the numerical ceiling for refugee admissions. For Fiscal Year (FY) 2016, the proposed ceiling is 85,000. We have been averaging about 70,000 a year for the last number of years. (Source: Refugee Processing Center)

Over one-third of all refugee arrivals (35.1 percent, or 24,579) in FY 2015 came from the Near East/South Asia—a region that includes Iraq, Iran, Bhutan, and Afghanistan.
Another third of all refugee arrivals (32.1 percent, or 22,472) in FY 2015 came from Africa.
Over a quarter of all refugee arrivals (26.4 percent, or 18,469) in FY 2015 came from East Asia — a region that includes China, Vietnam, and Indonesia. (Source: Refugee Processing Center)

Finally, the process in Europe is different. I would be much more concerned that terrorists are infiltrating the European system because they are not nearly so extensive and thorough in their process.

I Love My Mom

I have a few thoughts running around my head concerning things I want to write posts (Paris, refugees – basically if you are going to say you a Christian, then you should act like one in such situations) but right now I simply want to share a wonderful tradition my mom does.

A few years ago she decided that spending money on nicer, more expensive birthday cards, was stupid (I assume my dad’s cheapness gene eventually wore her down). Thus she began buying cheap cards. Cheap cards look, well, cheap. Yet my mom thought it was best not to pay more for birthday cards (something my whole family agrees with her concerning). Of course, once she saved the money the more expensive card would have cost she decided that who ever the birthday person was should have it and a tradition was born. When my mom sends a birthday card to a family member it has that person’s birthday present in it, or attached to it, and additionally a crisp $5 bill to pass the savings on to the birthday person. It makes me smile every time I open up a birthday card. Actually, it makes my whole family smile when they open up cards from my mom. Pam was standing beside me when I opened my card yesterday and smilingly said “and there it is” when I open the card and a $5 bill fell out.

We are a family of traditions and I am so thankful for this tradition. Thanks mom.