With the opposition groups speaking out against the war in Iraq and Afghanistan due to the casualty rate being unacceptable, it is interesting to put it into perspective. http://wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=53103 I came across this website showing the casualties faced in the United States in 2006 alone by illegal immigrants due to lack of border security in which the stats are quite alarming. I did do some other searches to see if the stats are credable and came up with very similar results. I thought it was interesting that more people are killed trying to live a normal peaceful life in the US, than soldiers who are getting shot at in hostile environments.
Casualties put into perspective
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Staff Weenie
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Be very, very, careful in using any stats attributed to race (as most illegal aliens in the US are currently Hispanic, these articles can be deemed as based upon race)!
I would speculate that those who gather/write articles based upon any one racial or ethnic group, may have an axe to grind. See the following link from Snopes.com, a hoax debunking website related to this theme: http://www.snopes.com/politics/immigration/taxes.asp
Due to the inability to easily verify accuracy, the internet can be a dangerous tool. Racist organizations have been known to create 'official' looking websites, with quotes from 'official sources' to pander their lies.
Always remember - there's lies, damn lies, and statistics........
I would speculate that those who gather/write articles based upon any one racial or ethnic group, may have an axe to grind. See the following link from Snopes.com, a hoax debunking website related to this theme: http://www.snopes.com/politics/immigration/taxes.asp
Due to the inability to easily verify accuracy, the internet can be a dangerous tool. Racist organizations have been known to create 'official' looking websites, with quotes from 'official sources' to pander their lies.
Always remember - there's lies, damn lies, and statistics........
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axeman said:
While I suspect you were trying your hand at humour (hang on to that day job), you actually demonstrated how rational-sounding statistics can be misleading. In this case, because not everyone resident in Canada is a Canadian citizen, your 75% = 3/4 is actually wrong.
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Reminds me of the hue and cry that went up when someone noticed that 50% of highschool graduates had a reading ability that was below average... :
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Well, not to hijack the thread, but I can verify much of what is said about illegal immigration in the US. I am living less than 3 hours from the border, and I am living it. On the flip side of what you said, be careful to dismiss something as racist, just because it appears that way, to you...
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I have no doubt that illegal immigrants in the southern US may be causing havoc in certain areas. They exist in many ways 'beyond the law'. Point taken.
But...what isn't said, is a comparison of how many crimes are committed by non-immigrants in the same time period, across the rest of the US. That's the whole point of the Snopes.com page - you can make anything, or any group bad, by focussing the microscope on them, while excluding the others.
It may well be that illegals commit 14 murders per day. It may also be true that citizens and legal residents commit murders at a rate exactly proportionate to their percentage of the population, or greater. The article doesn't draw any comparisons that would allow you to note whether illegals are indeed a huge crime threat, or simply on par with the rest of the US.
Why then, did the author omit any comparative data? It hints at an agenda.
But...what isn't said, is a comparison of how many crimes are committed by non-immigrants in the same time period, across the rest of the US. That's the whole point of the Snopes.com page - you can make anything, or any group bad, by focussing the microscope on them, while excluding the others.
It may well be that illegals commit 14 murders per day. It may also be true that citizens and legal residents commit murders at a rate exactly proportionate to their percentage of the population, or greater. The article doesn't draw any comparisons that would allow you to note whether illegals are indeed a huge crime threat, or simply on par with the rest of the US.
Why then, did the author omit any comparative data? It hints at an agenda.
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Sigh.. first off, they are wreaking havoc in the entire country. It is beyond havoc in the southwest.
Second - if you follow the link in my first post (the 2nd in the thread) it cites death statistics relating to traffic accidents. ALL traffic accidents, regardless of what race, creed or religion is involved. Your citing "potential race-slanted statistics" was taking away from the main point of the thread:
That there have been x amount of deaths, during the war in Iraq. There have been x amount of deaths in the US, caused by y (something other than the war in Iraq). The press, apparently - spends far more air time and column inches on the former.
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Yes, and heart disease, influenza, and smoking related diseases each kill more Americans than illegal aliens, or the Iraq war.
But, they're old news, maybe too politically sensitive (illegals), or.....my big theory......a significant portion of the US press is 'liberal leaning' and either hates the Republicans, esp Bush, or they are going with something that sells papers, or get viewers.
We've already been desensitized to the big medical killers - or more people would take heed. Illegals are here to stay (good analogy - ancient Rome - the landowners and aristocracy looked down on 'slaves' but were utterly dependant on them).
If the media jumped up and down about heart disease ans smoking, only a few would watch, or buy the paper. But, those young soldiers killed in Iraq are there following their orders, and serving out of an honest sense of duty. Regardless of anybody's political feelings about Bush (here or in the US), they aren't dying from their own failings or actions - they are in essence 'innocents' - and that sells papers!
I don't ascribe any great anti-war sentiments to the papers - in the end, they want money, and they will 'make the news' to get that money.
The American, Canadian, and other allied soldiers dying overseas, or coming home to a life of disability are a gravy train for the media - until the public tires of it.
Please don't get me wrong here, or misconstrue my cynicism - I have the utmost respect for our troops - I hate seeing them used as pawns. But, I also stick to my original reply - when viewing any source, you must be careful about the authors underlying intentions, and the possible effects upon their objectivity, and the way they present data - one of the first lessons they taught us in Grad School - check the sources!
But, they're old news, maybe too politically sensitive (illegals), or.....my big theory......a significant portion of the US press is 'liberal leaning' and either hates the Republicans, esp Bush, or they are going with something that sells papers, or get viewers.
We've already been desensitized to the big medical killers - or more people would take heed. Illegals are here to stay (good analogy - ancient Rome - the landowners and aristocracy looked down on 'slaves' but were utterly dependant on them).
If the media jumped up and down about heart disease ans smoking, only a few would watch, or buy the paper. But, those young soldiers killed in Iraq are there following their orders, and serving out of an honest sense of duty. Regardless of anybody's political feelings about Bush (here or in the US), they aren't dying from their own failings or actions - they are in essence 'innocents' - and that sells papers!
I don't ascribe any great anti-war sentiments to the papers - in the end, they want money, and they will 'make the news' to get that money.
The American, Canadian, and other allied soldiers dying overseas, or coming home to a life of disability are a gravy train for the media - until the public tires of it.
Please don't get me wrong here, or misconstrue my cynicism - I have the utmost respect for our troops - I hate seeing them used as pawns. But, I also stick to my original reply - when viewing any source, you must be careful about the authors underlying intentions, and the possible effects upon their objectivity, and the way they present data - one of the first lessons they taught us in Grad School - check the sources!
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