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3 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Benefit concert in Ashland Sunday boosts GMO-ban legal defense fund Long drought, big storm make for a dirty Bear Creek Ticket availability Police reports Engine fire extinguished Education Heading to Harvard Rising from the ashes Ashland High School again earns national honors Preschool's future not yet secure Ashland Middle School student spearheads Nepal relief effort Environment Long drought, big storm make for a dirty Bear Creek Jackson County declares drought disaster Ashland publisher offers prize for environmental book Ashland water bills could go up to fund watershed protection Stopping fire in its tracks Business Ashland's CD Or Not CD will carry on Ashland seminars focus on employment law Ashland joins in Craft Beer Week with toast at Standing Stone on Wednesday Cars We Remember: Noted musician unravels 55-year Nash Rambler mystery 'Fill'er up' will mean with beer, not gas Politics and elections Arthur I. Cyr: Camp David summit will not help Mideast stability City of Ashland to consider making recorder position appointive, not elective Ashland water bills could go up to fund watershed protection BREAKING: Baltimore prosecutor charges officers in Gray's death State News Oregon's snowpack at just 11 percent of average Lack of snow nixes ski portion of popular Central Oregon race Bill under debate in Oregon would limit livestock antibiotics Nation - World There's a $10 million precious stone hidden in plain sight at Grand Central Obituaries Nita Day Alan Leslie Robins Eva Robarts Kathryn "Kay" Blanche White Death Notices Shareable Check out top import and export for every U.S. state Patriots fan sets up GoFundMe page to help pay for team's Deflategate fine Sports Latest Stories O'Brien, Kim claim MWL doubles title Kelly McElroy: I hate this ‘game’ App Finder: Best cycling apps Thompson-Siporen earns three MWL titles in first day of district meet Rich Garven: Pumping out some Deflategate thoughts High school O'Brien, Kim claim MWL doubles title Thompson-Siporen earns three MWL titles in first day of district meet Ashland heads to Eugene for MWL district meet Ayers pitches Eagles past Grizzlies Raiders Maguin, Parks, Sanders highlight first day of CCC track meet Southern Oregon University O'Brien, Kim claim MWL doubles title Ashland heads to Eugene for MWL district meet Raiders Maguin, Parks, Sanders highlight first day of CCC track meet SOU lands two on all-CCC softball team See you in August Voices Latest Stories Other Views: Vaccine rate improves Herb Rothschild Jr.: An appalling budget Mark L. Hopkins: The key to education is still the teacher Our View: Focus on the basics Jeffrey Gillespie: Shame on the high seas Editorial Other Views: Vaccine rate improves Our View: Focus on the basics Our View: Elected or appointed? Our View: Change is brewing Our View: Forest work is a bargain Letters Letters to the Editor, May 14 (No heading) Letters to the editor: Tuesday, May 12 Letters to the Editor, May 8 Letters to the Editor, May 6 Guest opinions Guest Opinion: Ambrose spins a conservative fantasy Guest Opinion: Restoring the Plaza's sense of place Guest Opinion: Making conservation a game Guest Opinion: A good day to act Guest Opinion: Allegations unfair to Dr. Tomashefsky Columns Herb Rothschild Jr.: An appalling budget Jeffrey Gillespie: Shame on the high seas Arthur I. Cyr: Camp David summit will not help Mideast stability Ashland by the numbers Chris Honoré: Supreme Court grapples with tradition, suffrage Chris Honore Council Corner Editor's Notes Jeffrey Gillespie Herb Rothschild Revels Latest Stories Ashland Calendar, Thursday, May 14 4 Things To Do This Weekend Movie listings: May 15-21 Laurie Lewis, Tom Rozum at The Mountain House Steve Poltz, Grant-Lee Phillips at Old Ashland Armory Theater Ticket availability Ticket Availability Departing Ashland Independent Film Festival programmer talks about what makes a good movie Ticket availability Ticket Availability Music The Farr Side: Contest open for singer-songwriters The Farr Side: Mumford & Sons’ latest is full-on rock Interview: Country singer Suzy Bogguss enjoying life on the road The Farr Side: CMAs do it right, in many ways Interview: Offspring plays hits new and old on tour Visual Art Movies Movie review: ‘Mad Max’ is a fresh, fantastic approach to a classic idea Your A-to-Z guide to the ‘Mad Max’ franchise Movie listings: May 15-21 'Wild Tales' is twisted, dark and lovely Movie review: ‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ will leave your inner 12-year-old giggling with glee Food and Drink Taqueria Picaro takes over Tabu space Owner of Mix and Amuse to bring Flip burger joint to Ashland Cruelest Month: Poetry Blog Lifestyle Latest Stories Inner Peace: God's sigh: the breath of prayer Barbara Presnell: The life, legacy of Sam, a little white dog   Looking Up: Jupiter heading toward Venus Quills: Minimalist group celebrates having more satisfaction with less stuff Betty Montgomery: Longleaf pines making a comeback Aging Happens Inner Peace Column Inner Peace Blog Mocha Musings Rogues: Tales from the Valley Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries Photos Videos Blogs Business Business Services NEWS NOW Herb Rothschild Jr.: An appalling budget ... Ashland Calendar, Saturday, May 16 ... Benefit concert in Ashland Sunday boosts GMO-ban legal defense fund ... Herb Rothschild Jr.: An appalling budget ... Ashland Calendar, Saturday, May 16 ... Benefit concert in Ashland Sunday boosts GMO-ban legal defense fund ... COMMENTARY Jeffrey Gillespie: Shame on the high seas Comment DailyTidings.com Writer Posted May. 15, 2015 at 12:01 AM Posted May. 15, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Social News In 2012, Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her 60th anniversary on the throne with, among other things, a Jubilee flotilla down the River Thames. In all, 670 boats took part in what many people considered to be a bloated and archaic display of imperial power that did not correlate with contemporary mores. That particular display of colonialist pomposity (one of many that happen in England and the rest of Western Europe on a disturbingly regular basis) cost some $16 million. It was "privately funded" through individual donations, a distinction the palace was keen to make, as though this fact could justify so vulgar an exercise. Now, compare that crusty worldview to the reality currently on display when casting your eye southeast, toward the Mediterranean Sea. For many years, and at ever-increasing rates, tens of thousands of refugees from war-torn and impoverished nations in North Africa and the Middle East have been attempting the dangerous, near-impossible feat of crossing the ocean from Libya, Egypt, Jordan and, most recently, Syria, in search of a better life. Italy alone has suggested that nearly 25,000 people have entered the country irregularly since the beginning of this year, up from 20,000 in 2014. Those are just the lucky few who survived the trip. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees estimates that as many as 220,000 people tried to cross in 2014 and failed. Some turned back. Some were denied entry. Many simply drowned. While it might be puzzling for the American reader to grasp why anyone would make such a perilous journey, it's not hard for someone living in a war zone to make the jump. Risking your life by hopping a leaky barge to bluer waters is barely a problem when you're living with the dangers that plague contemporary Damascus and Tripoli every day. While many of the military operations in such places were underwritten by Europe, most of the southern countries in the EU such as Italy, Greece and Spain are unwilling to extend a helping hand to the refugees, arguing rather coldbloodedly that any such arrangement would only encourage another wave of alien invaders, emboldened from afar by stories of success. There are now 8 million displaced people in Syria alone, 4 million of whom have left the country. When you correlate this diaspora with the fact that several of the countries of southern Europe are hanging onto their economies by a thread (imperiled by the very real possibility of a breakaway from the Eurozone) it’s not hard to recognize the potential for one of the most dangerous and volatile situations in the history of modern geopolitics. Italian, Spanish and Greek officials have dealt with this unprecedented human tragedy by turning a blind eye to the boat people arriving on their shores, and then watching them leave through the front door for more prosperous climes to the North, such as France and Germany. A high-stakes game of pass-the-parcel, to be sure. But there's another problem that many observers are even more concerned about. There is every likelihood that a viable portion of the arriving migrants are militant jihadists, linked to the Islamic State and hiding in plain view. In our attempt to squelch ISIS in Syria, the United States and its allies have created a potential conveyor belt for the beast of terrorism to enter and strike at the belly of Old Europe. Osama bin Laden himself could not have dreamed up a more impeccable scenario for the proliferation of radical Islam. As things currently stand, there appear to be no strategic scenarios that do not lead us back into a maze of bad options. Increased instability can be expected in Europe; additional bloodshed will probably follow. The West must develop a new paradigm for peace, and eliminate old displays of empire. It's time for fresh ideas. Jeffrey Gillespie's writing has appeared in the Santa Fean and Art Collector magazines, the Portland Mercury and Willamette Week. He lives in Ashland. 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