Regardless of your personal views on Trump's immigration plans, the wall across Mexico is going to get built.
There was a time when the idea of building a wall across the U.S.-Mexico border was considered ludicrous. It was even lampooned by the entertainment industry.
Then there was that bizarre music video by the White Stripes. You have to wait for it, but it comes at the end.
Personally, I was a fan of the White Stripes (until Meg White had a nervous breakdown and fell off the face of the earth), but I never understood how that song suddenly turned into a political speech about immigration. Hey Jack, you're really good with rock n' roll. Politics? Not so much. Stay in your lane.
Even I- a staunch, albeit non-traditional, conservative- thought that a wall was a bit too much. I mean, trying to build a wall that spans thousands of miles of terrain, some of which is completely uninhabited, seemed that a massive boondoggle.
But the fact is, I was not wholly aware of how big a problem criminal alien activity had become. Under President Obama, illegals were given a huge green light to enter this country any way they could. And I'm not just talking about DREAMers, little kids Obama wanted to protect from deportation (some of which are now grownups with less than stellar records). I'm talking about vile, horrible excuses for humanity, free to roam our country with impunity.
In July of 2015, an illegal alien allegedly broke into the home a 64-year-old Air Force veteran Marilyn Pharis while she was asleep in her bedroom.
Using a claw hammer, the illegal alien and his accomplice began savagely beating the elderly woman, according to police. Authorities say they shattered her eye sockets, strangled her, broke her neck bone, raped her, and left her for dead...
The illegal alien accused of assaulting Pharis had been arrested six times in just the 15 months leading up to her rape and murder, but he was never removed from the country...
According to a 2011 report from the Government Accountability Office, there are 70,000 sexual offenses attached to the incarcerated criminal alien population. (via Breitbart)
Seventy thousand cases of sexual assault by criminal aliens--who should have never been in this country in the first place. Criminals who in many cases had been arrested previously but were never deported, left free to commit unspeakable acts against innocent civilians.
Then there is this reality.
Authorities discovered 224 border tunnels originating in Mexico from 1990 to March 2016, including 185 that entered the United States, according to the latest U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration annual survey. Many are shallow holes, but some are elaborately constructed with hydraulic lifts, water pumps and rail cars...
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security says it spent $8.7 million to fill tunnels from 2007 to 2015. Last week, it awarded a $153,000 contract to inject concrete into the U.S. part of a completed tunnel lined with cobblestone. The tunnel was discovered in October. It ended in a San Diego warehouse 1,200 feet north of the border. (via ABC News)
It's almost laughable to think how sophisticated the drug cartels and human traffickers have become. They are building tunnels to easily smuggle drugs, weapons, and people into the U.S. That one in San Diego was cleverly hidden inside a warehouse in San Diego.
Even a wall can't stop that.
No matter how you slice it, the illegal immigration problem in America has been exploding in recent years. For every mom and pop trying to come to America for a better life, there are horrible criminals looking for new territories to exploit in the U.S.- and they have made an impact. A new report has come out that states the drug cartel trade was responsible for 52,000 drug overdose deaths in the United States in 2015. That's almost as many people who died in the Vietnam War.
President Trump's plan to build a wall might sound like overkill, but considering the toll these criminals have taken on the U.S., no option should be left on the table.
When considering all this evidence, how can the left attack Trump's plans for stricter immigration reform? Putting the wall aside for the moment, how can liberals justify these kinds of stories? Tunnels are smuggling drugs straight into American cities. Innocent mothers and wives being raped and assaulted in their beds. Tens of thousands of Americans dying because of drugs brought in by the cartels.
Liberals want us to believe that strong immigration enforcement is cruel and uncompassionate. What about showing compassion to your own citizens suffering from this massive problem?
I've speculated (as have others), that Democrats have welcomed illegal immigration because they believe the resulting populace will ultimately vote Democrat. That, because they are pandering to these people, they will, in turn, support them come election time. Bit of a stretch, I know, considering non-citizens are technically not allowed to vote, but considering some of the things President Obama said about voting, I might not be that far off.
So there is a very real possibility that Democrats want to maintain the terrible immigration situation in the U.S., simply because it will help them politically. Say what you will about entrenched Republicans, that is some seriously messed up politics.
But after a certain point, no politician can really justify the ongoing problems on our border. Radical, empty-head left-wingers aside, the more reasonable, elected officials can't ignore the death, crime, and violence that occurs as a result of drug cartels from Mexico and beyond entering the U.S. And the lion’s share of Trump's efforts thus far have been to crack down on just those groups.
So how can a liberal criticize Trump's efforts to build the wall and ignore the growing cartel problem? By complaining about the animals of course!
A study by Mexico’s top university has revealed that at least 800 species of wildlife will be adversely affected by President Trump’s planned 2,000-mile border wall with Mexico.
Research published by ecologists from the Mexican National Autonomous University has shown that an impassable physical barrier placed into ecosystems inhabited by jaguars, black bears and bighorn sheep will so disrupt patterns of migration as to cause a “natural catastrophe.” (via Fox News)
Oh God, the animals! Won't somebody think of the animals!!!?
I have a few problems with this "study." First of all, it comes from a Mexican university. Right off the bat, their motives are questionable. Of course, professors IN MEXICO would have a predisposition to look for reasons to criticize the wall. The idea of clamping down on illegal immigration has been hated by the Mexican public. Trump used strong (but accurate) words to decry the kinds of people coming into the U.S. via the border. It stands to reason that there are plenty of Mexicans refusing to look at the facts (which I discussed above) and harbor a chip on their shoulder towards the president.
So right away we are working with some flawed subjects.
Next, we have to consider just how they conducted this study and why they are stating, with such certainty, that a wall will harm the animals.
Call me crazy, but how can you study the effects of a wall, that hasn't been built yet? Real scientific studies, you know the ones with tangible results, take years to conduct. A myriad of factors and variables have to be taken into consideration before an honest scientist will make a conclusion. And even then, they leave the door open to results they might have missed.
Without one brick being laid these professors state, unequivocally, that the wall that will incidentally harm Mexico's yearly remittances from the U.S. will also harm wild animals.
I mean, if you're trying to make conservatives laugh, good job. They're not the ones to be quick to weep over the plight of nature. Not that I endorse the destruction of the environment for the sake of humanity's expansion- I for one believe that protecting nature can go hand-in-hand with developing industry. But this study's claims are sure to fall on deaf ears at the White House and the rest of the conservative-controlled government.
Obama's not president anymore, folks.
You also have to consider the fact that wild animals are really good at this thing call adapting. Should an "impenetrable" wall be erected, the animals in question can find other feeding grounds, sources of water, and every other need they rely on to survive. Plus they mention animals like the bald eagle- which can fly. What the hell is a wall going to do to them?
It's also assumed that these animals can only survive by regularly crossing the U.S.-Mexican border, as if the vast majority of them can't live happily on just one side. I doubt they all make regular treks over the border and back, like delivery trucks or something.
Let's be honest about what really jeopardizes endangered species: poachers. Many animals have been wiped off the map because of unrestrained hunting; many others are on the brink. Rarely have I ever heard of animals suffering because someone put up a wall.
Maybe all those bighorn sheep would be better off if Mexico would, you know, apprehend and punish their poachers (though it looks like they're more concerned with poaching fish- that's where the money is!).
But it's okay, these brilliant scientists have a solution to the illegal immigration problem.
“Aerial surveillance in areas known for their high density of illegal crossings can be simply achieved by placing thermal cameras on the top of high poles, and working to shorten Border Patrol response times,” he told Fox News.
Oh, cameras on poles! That'll really deter these extremely motivated criminals! "Hey guys, let's not try to enter the U.S.- because thermal cameras are going to get us!" I mean, these professors do know that criminal aliens have legs, right (and these things called vehicles with wheels)? And that they can be miles away before border agents arrive on the scene? Hence the need for a WALL?
All joking aside, there is some good news. Even before the wall is up, illegal immigration looks to be on a downward trend. That is due in part to actual deportations done in Obama's last year and the stricter standards Trump has already put into place.
So maybe it will improve so much that a wall won't even be needed. Perhaps actually enforcing the laws already on the books is enough to stem the horrendous time of criminal entry.
Perhaps not.
All I know is, lowest on the priority list are the sheep. The sheep will be fine.
