There were chants, among others, of “No hate, no fear, refugees are welcome here.”

A catchy, almost poetic phrase, don’t you think?

Sparked by President Trump’s Executive Order on immigration, and still disappointed by the election results and that “their” candidate lost, protests erupted throughout the country. I have to ask, why is it that liberals (essentially Democrats) and socialists seem to think it is OK to disrupt the daily lives of law-abiding citizens (i.e. blocking travelers at airports, blocking vehicular traffic in cities, etc.)

I’ve heard this referred to, again by people participating in these protests, as a sign of democracy in work. I suggest that this is not how democracy works and, in the past decade, government and law enforcement have allowed these socialist, Third World-style of riots to become more common, without any recourse to those that participate. People say that this is free speech, however, when in the name of free speech you adversely physically impact the life of another, it is unlawful.

Now, I’ll touch on the issue of immigration. Holding people with a visa or resident card within the Immigration area of an airport is not suddenly a new occurrence as a result of President Trump. In 1999, while returning to the States from Russia, my wife (also with a valid visa and newly acquired resident documentation from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow) was separated from me at the entry point and taken for more than two hours into a separate room, much to my anger and extremely loud disapproval. So, to those who are protesting and to the government officials looking for political points, I say, “Chill out!”

The overall procedure of processing visas and immigration status into the United States needs to be thoroughly reviewed and I see no problem with holding back for a while as the proper authorities look into this. Although I have to agree that the typical knee-jerk style of President Trump in the manner of instigating his Executive Order did create a short-term inconvenience on a very insignificant number of individuals attempting to enter the U.S., as I’ve mentioned, it is not as if this occurrence hasn’t happened before.

I have no hate of citizens of other countries and I have no fear, but on the other hand I also feel strongly that the United States is not a free sanctuary for the world’s problem areas. I believe giving refugees a higher preference for immigration over individuals from other countries is, in actuality, a form of discrimination. President Obama had previously and arbitrarily doubled the number of Syrian refugees allowed to enter into our country to a staggering 100,000 per year. President Trump basically has prudently reduced this back to 50,000 while, again, directing a review the overall process.

The other night I saw on the news a man, I believe from Syria, tearfully saying that he is here in the U.S. with legal status and for six years has been trying to get his family into this country. What? You left your family back in a war-torn country to flee for safety in the U.S. and then expect us to do something about it? I would never, ever under any circumstance leave my family as this man apparently did. I’d rather die fighting.

Fight for your rights. That’s what the founders of this great nation did.

Paul Tweiten

Poulsbo