the idea behind separating kids from their parents at the border - which i support, when ordered by the judicial system, which is the initial context we had before us - was to put them in foster care and/or get them medical treatment when they needed it.

i don't think that bringing a sick or abused or neglected kid to the border should be a way for an adult to get a visa into the country, and especially not if the parent's neglect or abuse is responsible for the child being sick. but, i don't think you turn away the sick kid, either. so, you separate them - and, despite the howls of progressives and conservatives, i don't think this is or should be a controversial policy. at all.

but, if you're going to take the kids away, as i think you should, then you need to make sure they're actually getting the help you're taking them away to receive, and not put in a holding cell for future reference.

the reality is that the demagogic response pushed by actors in the democratic party establishment, including over social media, is partly to blame for the situation that exists today. and, the trump administration has actually attempted to use this confusion to their advantage.

we need to stop thinking that we're all immigration judges, or are all able to make worthwhile legal decisions about very complicated cases based on our kneejerk gut reactions, or broadly unsophisticated moral prerogatives. this is not a situation for zealots or activists to step up and get involved in, but a situation where the judiciary needs to be able to do it's work free from political interference, which is only going to make things worse.

so, i fully support the judicial precedent that orders the separation of children from their parents when they are in need of medical care, or are determined to be better off in foster care, and i am not on the side of the socially conservative and/or religiously progressive groups that want to put an end to that practice in order to foster "family togetherness". the judiciary made this decision with the best interests of the child in mind, and it should be advanced in good faith.