The Quote Below: More Misinformation from the Media
“People will continue fleeing northward from inhospitable regions. Climate migration is already happening from regions like Guatemala, where food no longer grows. And it’s estimated that 143 million people will soon become climate migrants.
“That is a great number of people, and it is already being used as an excuse by some on the right for a fascist mentality. . . . Among the Far Right, some exhort lifeboat ethics, a theory that postulates [that too many people will sink us]. . . .
“Except that’s not true. The United States is not a flimsy lifeboat. It is a landmass almost comically massive. In nine states—Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Wyoming—cows outnumber people. If every member of the United States lived in an area with the population density of Brooklyn, New York, all 327 million of us could fit into New Hampshire. (As someone who lives in Brooklyn by choice, I can promise you, it’s quite pleasant.) With some changes in the layout of our cities and our expectations about suburbia as a default living situation, even assuming certain U.S. regions become entirely inhospitable, we could accommodate not only the refugees likely coming to us from Latin America, but those around the world.” – The Eco-Fascists Are Coming, Jennifer Wright, Harper’s Bazaar, Jennifer Wright, 12/10/19 [Link]
Fact Check on Quote Above: The author Jennifer Wright suggests that climate change is a proven fact, when in fact it isn’t. Guatemala suffered a drought this year which harmed food production, but one year is no proof of a trend. Last year agricultural production increased four percent from the previous year. Saying food no longer grows in the country is absurd.
If climate change is real, that would not necessarily justify mass migration. If it is happening, it’s happening everywhere—including America. In that situation, how could America be refuge and a haven? Furthermore, climate change advocates maintain that America puts out excessive carbon emissions. Masses of new arrivals will make the situation worse.
So-called “progressives” hold the notion that there are no limits in nature or human nature which can restrain the earthly utopias they envision. Thus we can have massive migrations to the United States with no problem, and the result will be perfect love and harmony. Any disagreement comes from “fascists” and other “deplorables” whose views aren’t worthy of respect.
Reality, however, is not kind to people who try to ignore it. Calling reality “fascist” will not make it go away. The following are some realities that Wright and her fellow progressives might consider.
The notion that we could heavily populate the nine states she mentions goes against basic geographic and ecological facts. A terrain common to most of them is arid plains. Lacking adequate supplies of water, they cannot sustain large populations. Also, some of them have rugged mountain ranges where intensive settlement isn’t feasible.
These states also have some good agricultural lands, which is a good reason why they shouldn’t be paved over and developed. As long as they remain undeveloped they can continue to provide a large share of our food. Places like Brooklyn could not exist without places where cows may outnumber people. Food doesn’t grow in grocery stores, as some urbanites seem to think.
The notion that massive numbers of people from vastly different backgrounds could settle together and live in perfect harmony defies any sensible reading of history. Already our immigration-induced diversity is straining our civic ties to the limit. Huge numbers of people from dysfunctional societies will bring their dysfunctional values with them and remake our country in their image. In that case, we would have nothing to offer additional migrants.
Of course some will say, despite all evidence, that America is an exceptional nation that can assimilate everyone from everywhere. They might reflect that assimilation even now is failing, thanks in large part to the work of progressives who denounce assimilation as “racist” and of course fascist too.
Even if mass migration could be harmonious, Wright might consider that many Americans would still oppose it because they don’t share her affinity for congested living. Wide-open spaces are very much a part of our American heritage, one well worth defending. Thomas Jefferson warned that tightly-packed urban areas would promote mass conformity and stifle the spirit of liberty. The passage of time has vindicated his view, with traditional America much stronger in the hinterland than in the progressive big cities. If all of America turns into Brooklyn, it will no longer be America.