Hate Inc.: Why Today's Media Makes Us Despise One Another

by Matt Taibbi

Trump’s “zero tolerance” gambit stands out because part of the intent of the policy seems to have been to dial up the inhumane aspects of enforcement bureaucracy to send a message. Moreover it comes from a president who’s used lines like “they’re bringing rapists” to rally anti-immigrant sentiment for political reasons. But it is true that immigrant children were routinely separated from their parents long before Trump. Moreover the entire enforcement system is, and long has been, draconian and inhumane in a way that would shock most non-immigrants. Also, it’s not as if this problem was entirely created by American border officials. The numbers are lower today, but we’ve had years where nearly seventy thousand unaccompanied children tried to cross the southern border. Is there a good way to handle that? Administrations of both parties have had differing levels of failure dealing with this, but it’s almost never looked good.