A Still Small Voice of Sanity (Two of 'Em, Actually) Amidst the Deafening "Let's Rescue Syrian Refugees" Clamour

It comes from two sources. First, a Jewish one. Donald Carr, whose wife, Judy Feld Carr took it upon herself to rescue the Jews of Syria (a remarkable story of cunning and courage you can read about here), has some words of caution for all those "tikkun olam-y" Jews who are hot to bring Syrians here a.s.a.p. Carr writes this in the Canadian Jewish News:

In Canada, the urge to be hosts to “Syrian refugees” is now not only acceptable, but, to many, an imperative. Among these activated groups are synagogues and rabbis who have joined in the chorus to raise funds for, and to sponsor the resettlement of, “Syrian refugees” here. Several have, amazingly and quite inappropriately, likened the current situation to that of the Shoah, when so many countries – including Canada – shunned our hapless people. 

In their plea for funds and sponsorship, little attention has been paid to who these “Syrian refugees” include, or to distinguishing the true refugees from those who are part of the infiltration into the masses by members of ISIS, Syria’s secret police, Assad’s army, or their thousands of willing co-operators. No concern is being shown for their inevitable demand that the host countries adopt sharia law. Nobody is asking why recent news clips show primarily able-bodied and healthy-looking young men and few women, elderly or infirm people.    

In a recent meeting, the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) wisely proposed to the king of Jordan that attempts be made in Canada to provide aid and funding to assist in looking after true refugees from Syria in his country, rather than support their wholesale acceptance in Canada or elsewhere.  

Recklessly rushing to avoid a misplaced sense of guilt – a familiar Jewish trait – that we will be accused of doing what was done to refugees from the Shoah, as well as not seeking the facts or being oblivious to them, is plainly wrong.  

Relief and haven should be tendered to those who are truly refugees...

Wise words, but for Jews singing "Kumbaya" as they rush to rescue displaced Syrians, Carr's caveat is likely to fall on deaf ears.

The second caution comes from jihad-expert Robert Spencer. He's upset with Catholic bishops, who are in the grip of their own version of "tikkun olam":

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops is calling for the U.S. to take in 100,000 Syrian refugees this year alone. 

The Conference shows no sign of knowing or caring that the Islamic State said last February that it would soon flood Europe with as many as 500,000 refugees. Or that an Islamic State operative recently boasted that, among the flood of refugees, 4,000 Islamic State jihadis had entered Europe. Or that the Lebanese education minister said there were 20,000 jihadis among the refugees in camps in his country. 

Or that 80% of the migrants who claim to be fleeing the war in Syria aren’t actually from Syria at all, or that German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said the Islamic State is sneaking into the country with the refugees and is active in the refugee camps. Why would these “refugees” think they had to present themselves to Europe, which has welcomed the refugees, with false pretenses unless they had nefarious intentions? 

Meanwhile, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops is, as Ann Corcoran of Refugee Resettlement Watch points out, “NOT advocating to save the persecuted Christians of Syria through this program.” Instead, bishops such as Robert McManus, Kevin Farrell, Jaime Soto, and others are moving to silence those who speak about the Muslim persecution of Christians, and about the Islamic doctrines mandating warfare against and subjugation of Christians. 

After years of tolerating open dissent from core Church teachings, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops moves like a Stalinist regime to silence and ostracize those who dare whisper a hint of dissent from their new and ironclad dogma that Islam is a religion of peace...

The only possible takeaway from all this cluelessness: "tikkun olam," both the Jewish and the Christian versions, makes you stupid.

Really, really stupid.