Immigration is a sure way to get people fired up on Facebook.
On Monday, The Times posted the Associated Press story on Gov. Bruce Rauner's decision to stop accepting Syrian refugees in Illinois.
The story attracted 167 comments and 792 "likes," far more than most of our Facebook items. Those 167 comments don't include the hundreds of replies to specific comments.
One man wrote, "Islam should be outlawed in America. It is not conducive to assimilation and poses a threat to national security."
That comment alone drew 125 replies, many of which took him to task. Thirty-three people liked his posting.
I didn't take part in this debate, but here's my response: This person needs to read the First Amendment, particularly the clause, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof..."
What's ironic is that this would-be prohibitionist of Islam "likes" the Facebook pages for the Constitution Party and the Federalist Papers, and he claims to be a conservative that opposes big government. Yet how much bigger can a government get than one that tells its citizens what it can and cannot believe?
One of the great things about the Constitution is that it protects the rights of minorities — religious, political, racial and otherwise.
Many in favor of Rauner's action went nowhere nearly as far as this man.
Many comments ran along the lines of a Streator woman's: "Illinois needs to fix its own house before opening the door to refugees. Pass a budget."
Another person said: "Refusing the refugees is exactly what ISIS wants. When you succumb to needless fear, you have let them win."
Yet another commenter noted Apple co-founder Steve Jobs was the son of a Syrian migrant. And his dad was Muslim.
No support? Hardly
The other day, a letter-to-the-editor writer said the Republican Party did not support state representative candidate Jerry Long, R-Streator, in his 2014 race against Rep. Frank Mautino, D-Spring Valley.
Really?
A quick look at online Board of Elections records indicates the state Republican Party donated $119,108 to Long's campaign in the last go-around, while the House Republican Organization threw in $1,200. And the Putnam County Republican Party gave Long $200.
In an email, Walter said he and Long belong to the same church and that Long confided in him about the 2014 campaign.
"The Republican Party did not support him all the way through," Walter wrote. "They wouldn't even run a poll test until the first week in October, when they saw that Jerry was almost tied with Frank Mautino in the poll. Without consent from Jerry, they threw out a mailer in an attempt to push Jerry over the top in the form of in-kind contributions, thus where you're getting your figure of support."
Via email, I asked Long about Walter's statement and his campaign sent back a reply: "I appreciate the support of Mr. Walter. That's an example of the type of support we are continuing to find throughout the district."
Mautino also got a lot of money from his party's organizations in 2014, totaling $54,051.
For 2016, Long is facing Jacob Bramel in the GOP primary and has the state party's backing. The winner of that contest will likely face Andrew Skoog, the only Democratic candidate in the race so far, who also appears to have party backing.
Voters should expect a pile of political money to fuel the campaigns next year.
David Giuliani is a reporter for the The Times. He may be reached at 815-431-4041 or davidg@mywebtimes.com. Follow him at @tt_dgiuliani.