Syrian Refuges should be allowed to enter the United States of America.

Opening StatementFirst of all, before we get started, I want to make it understood that security is the top priority US agencies have alongside several others when a refugee applicant is being vetted for settlement within the United States. Partially as a consequence of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, and the US intelligence and security agencies reshuffling that followed to counter future attacks, a total of twelve government agencies are now involved in the vetting process of a refugee applicant for resettlement within the United States [1]. This vetting process includes the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security and scrutinizes numerous components of the applicant's life such as work and individual history, ties to the region in which he/she resides, mental fitness, ability to work, and family [1][2]. It is considered one of the most rigorous refugee vetting processes among modern industrial nations [1][2]. For a refugee to be accepted into the United States he/she must first apply for refugee status and send an application to the United States; once the ball gets rolling, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) gets involved to see if the applicant would be a good fit for resettlement within the United States [2]. (Typically this means that the refugee should have family within the US, though not always [2].) Once the UNHCR gives the go-ahead, the application goes to the US Department of Homeland Security, who then investigate the candidate and work to verify the responses on the application [2]. Other US intelligence and security agencies are notified during the verification process.During the investigation phase, the Refugee Corps gets involved and goes to the homeland or nation of residence of the refugee candidate to thoroughly screen him or her [2]. The screening process is very long and is enacted to verify the refugee's identity, to verify the claims made by the refugee on the application and in person, to determine any possible threat to US security the candidate poses, and to uncover and determine any possible links to terrorist groups or activity the applicant may have [2]. And even if the refugee applicant passes all these tests and security checks, his or her application can still be denied by a security officer during the interview phase if the officer feels things don't quite line up [2].At the Department of Homeland Security, the refugee candidate and screening process takes a minimum of 18 months from start to finish (and can take up to three years), and at no time during the vetting process are Syrian refugees allowed to enter the US [2]. Only after final approval are Syrian refugees permitted to enter the country [2].The US already has in place a rigorous vetting process to weed out potential Syrian terrorists and violent extremists. Security must a top concern when permitting refugees or even candidate short-term or permanent resident aliens into the country. But The United States already has a secure system in place. Strengthening it even more couldn't hurt.But it shouldn't come at the price of outright denying Syrian refugees into the country. Since 2011, 12 million people have been displaced by the horrible, life-altering Civil War inside Syria [3]. A total of 4 million Syrians are estimated to have left the country and have resettled or are in the process of resettling elsewhere [2][4]. More than two million refugees have resettled in Turkey; more than a million have resettled in Lebanon; more than a half-a-million refugees now reside in Jordan; several hundreds of thousands now live in Egypt and Iraq [4]. And more than 600,000 Syrian refugees are now seeking asylum within Europe [4], with that number expected to surpass a million by the end of 2015.Because of the complicated nature of the Civil War in Syria, which includes the backwards-looking, body-decapitating activities of the international terrorist group ISIS, and because of the complex international response, the Syrian refugee crisis has no immediate end in sight. The financial and resource strain on the Middle East and on Europe is already quite large, and is expected to get bigger. The international community, led by the United States and its partners, is now gearing up for coalition airstrikes, which may exacerbate the problem. In light of all these factors and several others, the United States should welcome good Syrian refugees into the country. The vetting process is already in place. We do not need to reject all Syrians--men, women, boys, girls, old persons--only because we fear what a few bad Syrians can do.So far, the United States has resettled only 2000 Syrian refugees [2]. This is a drop in the bucket compared to what other nations have accepted. Under President Obama, the US State Department hopes to resettle at least 10,000 Syrian refugees by next fiscal year [4]. But some US elected officials--including Governors--guided by fear and a poor grip on the facts, want to put a stop to this completely--and deny entry to all Syrian refugees.The vast majority of these refugees are happy to have escaped the fighting and resettle in more promising areas, where they can rebuild their lives. The United States is a model of what it can do for displaced people and immigrants. Refugees have fled their homelands before only to become business and political leaders within the United States [1].There's no need to deny this opportunity to properly-vetted, forward-looking Syrian refugees.[1] http://www.bloomberg.com...[2] http://www.chicagopublicradio.org...[3] https://www.whitehouse.gov...[4] http://data.unhcr.org...