Hollywood celebrities seem to have become convinced that they are capable of providing better commentary on world events than people who actually have relevant expertise. This would be amusing if political leaders took advice from pop idols with a grain of salt. Unfortunately, politicians love the easy press that comes when superstars speak out on a particular political agenda. Meanwhile those of us who care about the safety and security of the nation look on in horror at pseudo-spectacles, like comedian Stephen Colbert’s testimony to congress on the need for immigration reform.
The latest Hollywood lunacy-cum-commentary comes from pop music icon Katy Perry. On the continuum of hypersexualized nonsense that passes for entertainment these days, Ms. Perry falls somewhere between Lady Gaga and Miley Cyrus. She also holds the dubious distinction of being the world’s most followed person on Twitter. How that qualifies her as an expert on geopolitics isn’t clear.
Nevertheless, in a recent appearance on the Elvis Duran and the Morning Show, Ms. Perry held forth on the Manchester terrorist bombing. Her prescription for eradicating jihadist extremism: “No barriers, no borders, we all just need to co-exist.” Of course, that is utterly absurd. The Manchester bombing resulted from Britain’s embrace of lax immigration controls and poor vetting. Open borders, and a lack of barriers, caused this problem. Therefore, it should be self-evident that they cannot be the solution. In effect, Ms. Perry is arguing that the best cure for a case of poisoning is to administer even more of the toxin.
The Manchester bomber, Salman Abedi, was a natural born citizen of the U.K. However, prior to being admitted to the U.K. as a refugee, his Libyan father Hashim Abedi had been a member of a jihadist group with links to ISIS and Al Qaeda. That information was rapidly obtained by investigative authorities in the days following the attack. If it could be uncovered so quickly in the wake of tragedy, there is absolutely no reason why it couldn’t have been uncovered as part of a thorough vetting process prior to admitting the Abedi family to Great Britain. Contrary to Ms. Perry’s advice, appropriate barriers, designed to keep terrorists out of the refugee process, might have saved the lives of 22 innocent Britons.
Of course, Ms. Perry’s less than insightful commentary is just one more example of Hollywood hypocrisy. She comments disdainfully on the negative effects of borders and barriers that protect the cultural, economic, and national security interests of average Britons and average Americans. However, she does seem committed to maintaining one border, the one that protects her from the real world. Ms. Perry lives in a $19 million mansion, in a gated community, located in a secluded section of the Hollywood hills. Co-existence is easy when you live in a fantasy land.