In recent reports, it seems Europe has found itself in the throes of a new wave of terror plots linked to ISIS. The alarm bells are ringing louder than the Big Ben as young individuals are being radicalized online without even needing to leave their couch. This alarming trend has been highlighted by a recent terror attack at a pride parade in Berlin, carried out by a 21-year-old suspect who fancied himself an international recruit. This young man apparently had taken a little “vacation” to Lebanon with aspirations no more illustrious than joining ISIS. Ah, modern travel—explore the world, or join a terror group. The choice has never been easier.

This situation forces Europe to confront the reality that their supposedly progressive immigration policies might just have backfired spectacularly. Let’s face it, nothing screams foresight like opening your country’s doors wide open and asking, “do we really need a vetting process?” Of course, we’re not branding every immigrant as bad news. But when you invite folks without fact-checking their backgrounds and then proceed to lose track of them faster than the German team at the World Cup, problems are bound to arise.

Here in the United States, this should serve as a glaring warning sign. Perhaps it’s time to give credit where it’s due to the unsung heroes who work tirelessly to keep potential threats out. After all, how often do we hear about potential terror plots that have been nipped in the bud in this neck of the woods? A big thank-you card is long overdue. But before we pat ourselves on the back too much, it’s worth pointing out the avoidable blunders we’ve made with recent immigration policies. Remember our Afghan friends whom we invited over? Yeah, let’s make sure we don’t lose track of them in the crowd.

In a not-so-distant past during the 2015-2016 campaign, a certain someone who found himself in the Oval Office ridiculed the previous administration’s handling of ISIS, referring to them as the junior varsity squad of terrorism. Fast forward a few years, and it wouldn’t hurt to revisit how swiftly that “JV” team claimed large swathes of the Middle East. Luckily, those territorial fantasies were crushed in record time. And just when we thought we could put those troubled times behind us, whispers of a potential ISIS resurgence have come back to haunt us.

It’s not just a matter of chasing shadows overseas; it’s about making sure those shadows don’t cast themselves across American soil. Radical Islamic terrorism, regardless of its current franchise name—ISIS, Iran, et al., is still the same old play with a different title. Therefore, it’s crucial to keep our borders tight and our vetting tighter. Call it a lesson in not succumbing to misguided altruism where welcoming the unmonitored masses does more harm than good. Let’s leave Europe to learn from their mistakes while we focus on not repeating them. Because in this global classroom of security, it pays to study hard and stay alert.