Analogy: a) resemblance in some particular between things otherwise unlike : similarity; b) comparison based on such resemblance.
I find it important to start with the Merriam-Webster definition of what an analogy is to begin this article, which as one may expect, is regarding a controversial tweet made by Trump's son earlier last week.
An analogy is inherently meant to compare two similar but unlike things, often to make a more complex situation easier. It's kind of like when you're mom puts sugar in the cough syrup to make it go down easier. So, while Donald Jr.'s comment may be an oversimplification, that's what it's meant to be. Do I think it's a tad insensitive, of course? But do I think it was meant to be a cruel attack likening all refugees to candy? Absolutely not.
The refugee crisis is one of the most complex issues surround the political election in November. The average American has no idea of the complexities surround the political asylum process, the tradition America has with political asylum seekers, and (probably) exactly how each candidate's suggested changes would impact the overall number of refugees entering into the country.
But you know what everyone understands? Eating candy. And that's, I believe, where this tweet originated. It came from a desire to simply and make more understandable the reason for such strict vetting as proposed by the Trump campaign. They believe that a spoiled apple ruins the bushel, or in this instance, three Skittles ruin the bowl.
Attacking Donald Jr. for this tweet by insisting that he is comparing human lives to candy and how disgusting and terrible that is only reinforces Trump's original platform that America has been taken so far into the realm of 'political correctness' that politicians cannot be trusted to run this country. Ignoring the fact that clearly this rings somewhat true amongst a majority of voters as millennials voted in large amounts for Bernie Sanders, the anti-establishment candidate for the Democrats, and clearly Trump has won the nomination for the Republicans on this same note, is as dangerous as these Skittles claim to be.
If you don't agree with this analogy, come up with a new one. The refugee crisis is more like having one bad apple in a truck of apples - it doesn't necessarily ruin the ones around them, and the chance of you reaching in and picking one out is a thousand to one. Attack the reasons why the analogy itself is wrong. Skittles are all the same so it's hard to identity the problem, whereas the actual asylum process is designed (and long enough) to weed out potential problems. A bowl is too small a container to adequately reflect how often a person is likely to encounter a problem (the effect I was trying to have with my own analogy).
But to call Donald Trump Jr. disgusting for likening people to candy is just wrong and I think has been one of the weaker points for the Democrats in this election. How far are we willing to let political correctness go? Some may disgaree, but I do not think this tweet was written with such horrible and cruel intentions. I think it was meant to simply a situation, something that I'm sure would be helpful to all voters, and should be treated as such.
