The Bon Voyage List

Consider a citizen of a Western country who, of their own accord, seeks out and participates in tactical military training sponsored by Islamist extremist groups. Given that these groups typically list the West among their sworn enemies (and likely targets), a person thusly trained should be considered an enemy of the West. They present a danger to the citizens of any free nation.

Why would any Western country, including their own, grant entry to a sworn enemy?

It's not enough to put these people on a "No Fly List". Airplanes aren't the only place where a violent extremist can do damage and take lives. A new strategy is required to minimize this growing threat.

Perhaps Western nations should institute and coordinate a "Bye Bye List." Or in honor of the French citizens who were killed this past week, a "Bon Voyage List." Don't let trained terror operatives enter your borders. Or if they have entered already, round them up and deport them. 

If they think that the West is evil, why would they want to live here anyway? Give them what they really want. Send them to terrorism paradise. How about a one way ticket to Yemen or Somalia on a rusty boat with a contaminated water supply? I would chip in to pay for that.

Now, to be absolutely clear, I'm not advocating religious discrimination. The Islamist extremist problem has nothing to do with the billion peaceful Muslims who share our world. They are our neighbors and our colleagues and our friends. I know scores of Muslims personally, and I have done business with countless more. I trust each and every one of them with my life. They don't hate me because I'm a Christian; they respect me as a human being. 

It's only the actively radicalized extremists who are causing the problems. Unfortunately, their numbers are growing, and they live in every Western country.

Some might argue that a deportation policy opens up a slippery slope where a government could designate a citizen as a persona non grata and deport them. Publish the wrong comments or contribute to the wrong political cause, and you lose your citizenship.

Abuse is always a concern. The United States has rules regarding enemy combatants, and the limits of those rules were stretched and exaggerated in the aftermath of 9/11. Still, the President at the time didn't use those rules to make his political enemies disappear.

Any law or policy can be abused, and yet we still find laws to be useful in the establishment and maintenance of a working society. With the right legal framework in place, abuse can be minimized.

So, to those living among us who seek to do us harm, enjoy your stay while it lasts. Because I hope to be saying "bon voyage" to the whole lot of you in a very short while.

Copyright © 2015 Daniel R. South 

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