The Soviet Union has been relegated to the ash heap of history, but at least part of its legacy lives on in the illegal alien advocacy movement. The illegal alien advocacy network has mastered the fine art of Soviet-style disinformation. “Disinformation” is defined as “intentionally false or inaccurate information that is spread deliberately.”
Since the passage of Alabama’s HB 56 law, which requires the state to enforce immigration laws already enacted by Congress, the advocates for illegal aliens have engaged in a relentless campaign of disinformation designed to whip up hysteria. They have done a seemingly good job of spreading the notion that under HB 56 people can be arrested and whisked away for merely appearing foreign, or speaking with a foreign accent; that people will be thrown in jail merely for giving an illegal alien a ride, or serving an illegal alien in soup kitchen; that kids will be yanked out of school by immigration authorities, or will be forced to rat on their parents.
There is not a shred of truth to any of these assertions, but that is precisely what disinformation is all about. Of course, if you really want to mount an effective disinformation campaign, a la the Soviet Union, it helps to have a propaganda organ like Pravda to disseminate the falsehoods widely.
Pravda is no more, but it seems the Huffington Post has stepped in to fill the breach. Splashed across the popular website’s October 14 edition in huge font is the headline, “FEAR IN THE STREETS” with the sub-header, “Justice Department Warned of ‘Dire’ Situation Over Hardline Immigration Law.” In truth, the Huffpo headline is only marginally more hysterical than coverage in more staid publications like The New York Times and the Washington Post.
The most interesting aspect of the latest tack opponents are taking against the Alabama law is that it is predicated on the disinformation campaign about the law, not the language or the application of the law. Their argument now is that the Department of Justice must take action based on the “fear” generated by the disinformation they created.
UPDATE: We have just learned that the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta, Ga, has just blocked implementation of two provisions of Alabama’s law.