Can the Nations of Europe Resolve a Humanitarian Crisis?

By April of last year, 56 migrants died trying to reach Europe from the Middle East North Africa. This year, the number's already 1750 — and humanitarian agencies warn it could rise to 30,000 as people flee from chaos and war in their home countries. In Brussels yesterday, a summit meeting of the European Union held an emergency "summit" and agreed to increase spending to cope with the crisis. But its new plan is already being called inadequate — more a police action than an ambulance service. Do prosperous Western countries have a moral obligation to accept refugees despite the politics of immigration?