We Don't Need a Fence

I can't believe a guy of my political leanings is writing this but, I'll take my chances.

Recently there has been a movement afoot to build a fence from the Pacific Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico along the US/Mexican border. The fence movement is spurned by many groups who are tired of the millions of people streaming over the border on a daily basis.

The idea comes from an experiment taking place in San Diego where an 18 mile fence was built. The results were positive. Illegal crossings were way down. As a result the idea blossomed to take the fence across the country (see above for diagram)

To be fair the "fence people" are not suggesting we close our border to people here to work. They have a "guest worker" program that would allow individuals to be here legally and enjoy the protection of being a citizen of the US. What they are trying to solve is those who do not work or those of a criminal element (drug dealers, arms smugglers, etc) and of the terrorist element. To be sure national security is the main drum they are banging.

They are right that the fence would make it easier for our border patrol and would be cheaper in the long run than adding more and more people to monitor the border.

But building a fence is not what we do in America. Yes we have an illegal immigrant issues here in the US but the fence won't stop it. The fence will make it harder and more dangerous but it will not stop the problem.

The problem is Mexico is an abomination in developing its economy. The thriving industrial areas are being overrun by corrupt officials and the rule of law is fading. Kidnappings on expats are up to an all time high and the country lost control of the Nuevo Laredo area earlier this year to rival drugs (see link info) http://narcosphere.narconews.com/story/2005/5/10/215352/497
A fence won't stop these problems.

Hawk's View: I'd rather see the US take the "fence money" and enact both an economic and anti-corruption plan for Mexico. Let's face it, without one you can't have the other (see Russia as an example that tries to have a free market sans rule of law). Yes, it sounds pie in the sky and the fence is the quickest way to get short term gains on the "war on illegals" but short term does not solve our problem. The bottom line is America is lucky with its geography. We have no neighbors to the east or west and our northern neighbor is the world's friendliest country. Yes we have a problem with our southern neighbor but a fence will only shield us from the greater issues going on. The best way to protect us is to make our neighbor stronger.