ONE OF the more hysterical aspects of United States President Donald Trump’s deportations is how they are portrayed. It compares them to the modern equivalent of the Holocaust or something evil, which is ridiculous because mass deportations are nothing special.
Pakistan, Turkey and the Dominican Republic, etc. have carried out mass deportations in recent years, and very few have complained about them.
America is different, though, because it is rich, powerful and, for some people, being kicked out of the US might as well feel like torture.
But is being forced to return home really terrible? What is so bad about being forced to return to the Philippines, for example? We may not be a rich country, but we are relatively stable with fairly decent demographics.
But for some people that is not good enough. If so, what was the point of independence?
What is the point of nationalism if a large chunk of our people just wants to go live in another country?
The answer is that it is “more complicated than that”. A Filipino who immigrates to the United States wants to be considered an “American” but many also want to retain their Filipino heritage, to come “home” during the holidays. The same is true for most global migrants today. Again, it’s wanting it both ways.
Most people don’t want to think about this, but that is what is happening. Several pro-Palestinian activists, for example, many of whom are expressly anti-American, are complaining about being removed from the United States. How does that work?
Why complain about being kicked out of a country you are hostile to?
But notions of hypocrisy are irrelevant. Humans generally only want to maximize what they can get, consistency or reason be damned. But this is not sustainable, and it is not sustainable because being loyal to two countries does not work.
It’s because being nationalistic for your home country while residing and being invested in a foreign country does not work.
It’s because those countries receiving the migrants are beginning to notice and they are getting angry, and something has to break.
The past few decades were a time of imbalances, and now, it’s time to balance all accounts./PN
