Immigration Reform

Happy Birthday USA! 

It seems appropriate to discuss Immigration Reform on the 238th Birthday of the United States of America. The following essay was written in 2006, and is presented here unaltered. 

Cliff Potts - July 3, 2014 

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Historical Perspective

During World War II, the Roosevelt Administration was faced with the problem of Japanese operatives passing information from our west cost to the Japanese military. In spite of assurances by Hoover that the FBI could track down and eliminate the threat to U.S. security, the Roosevelt Administration decided to relocate the entire Japanese population that resided on American soil. While this action did stop the flow of information from our west cost to Japan, it was later regretted by the children and grandchildren of the GI generation. It was a decision that also cost our government an enormous amount of money in reimbursements. We are again faced with a similar issue.

We have in the U.S. some 11,000,000 undocumented guests from our southern border. This is greater than the entire population of Chicago, Illinois and the state of Wisconsin combined. Many of these undocumented guests are Mexican.

They are not lazy. They are not criminals. They are people who are desperate to improve the lives of families they leave in Mexico. While here, they are misused. They are underpaid. They are expected to work under conditions which are dangerous and unhealthy. This is verified through reports which we have collected via Yahoo® from the AP wire services. Our guests, welcome or otherwise, are being abused.

A Little Biblical Interlude

We hear much about how we are a Bible believing nation. Since that is the case, or so we say, it would be a good idea to reflect a bit on what the Bible does say about the guest (or stranger as it is in the King James Bible) among us:

Thou shalt neither vex a stranger, nor oppress him: for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.[1]

Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger: for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.[2]

And if a stranger sojourn with thee in your land, ye shall not vex him. But the stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.[3]

If we insist on using Biblical standards for our activities, then we have to conclude that we have drifted far from what the instructions of the Old Testament tell us.

We are angry that 19 Arab terrorists from Saudi Arabia abused our hospitality on September 11, 2001. Now we are venting that anger on the Mexican laborer who cannot find decent work in Mexico. He or she leaves the family behind, puts up with obnoxious conditions here, and tries to eek out a living that will give the family comfort at home. Our southern neighbors were not the ones who attacked us. From a biblical perspective, we are in the wrong, and from a point of primal justice, we are in the wrong. It is a violation of thousands of years of civilization to vent our anger on hapless people who are in no position to defend themselves.

Mexico in Brief

There is a strong indication from many in the Hispanic community in Texas that the massive influx of undocumented guests has brought with it an element of blatant lawlessness. We have also seen this in southern California, and many of the border communities in New Mexico and Arizona. This lawlessness cannot be tolerated. In the void of response from the Federal Government, citizens have taken up the patrolling of known entry routes. The Bush Administration recently closed this void. However, that has brought verbal reprisals from Mexico’s President Fox. There was a threat of legal action. While Mr. Fox was visiting the U.S, he said that the Mexican guests have earned their right to be here. That is a bold statement. It is coming from a man whose government has failed its own people.

What we seem to forget is that Mexico has many of the same natural resources of California, yet the Mexican people have to risk their lives coming to the U.S. to find the prosperity that is in California. This is a blatant failure by the Mexican Government. While we can appreciate our Hispanic guests, sympathize with them, and decide to treat them in a Christian (humane) manner, we must not excuse the failing of the Mexican government. NAFTA not withstanding, the Mexican government is not helping its own people.

The situation that exists today is that of a poor neighbor sending his children to the neighbor’s house, and then demanding that the neighbor feed, clothe, and house them. While this can be done in a spirit of charity, it is blatant irresponsibility on the part of the father who has tossed his own children aside. That is exactly what is going on with Mexico and the Mexican government.

We can put up a fence. We can put up a reinforced cinder block wall that is thousands of miles long, extending from the Gulf of Mexico to the Pacific Ocean. We can, and should, create a Guest Worker program. We can, and should, enforce the laws concerning the hiring of undocumented guests. However, we need to put substantial pressure on the Mexican government and demand that they become responsible for the problems which they have inflicted upon their own citizens. Nothing else we can do will alleviate the problem of our undocumented guests.

Mexico is an underdeveloped nation. The only reason for this is its own corrupt government. They can resent our pressure as much as they wish, but they have to address the situation that they have created. No one wants to leave their family behind to work in a strange land. Illegal immigrants are here because they cannot find viable employment in their own country. That is not our doing. That is the irresponsibility of the Mexican government.

This past year I was talking to a man on the internet, via the old IRC text chat, whose wife worked in Laredo, TX. The situation across the border had become so intense that he, a veteran of Vietnam and the Gulf War, would not go into town without being armed.

El Paso, TX has for years dealt unsuccessfully with a chronic crime problem. Mexican criminals (and these are not guests) come across the border, break into houses, steal what they can, and vanish back into Mexico. The Mexican authorities are unable, or unwilling, to adequately address the issue on their end.

This past year, there was an unconfirmed report that the U.S. State Department was issuing warnings to U.S. citizens traveling in Mexico. They were told to stay in the “tourist areas.” There are reports of U.S. citizens being attacked in rural regions of Mexico. Again, this is unconfirmed, but fits the scenario that we are seeing in a nation sinking into lawlessness. On June 8, 2006, a report came across the AP newswire of a severed head washing up with the trash on an Acapulco beach. The report went on to say it was “just a reminder of the seamier side of the resort community.”

Citizens of Mexico who have means have immigrated to the U.S. legally to escape being targeted by gangs who prey upon the Mexican middle class. One official quit her job in Mexico and moved to the U.S. after having been kidnapped and held for ransom.

There has been a story passing across the wires of a serial murderer at large in Mexico who has been preying on young women for over 10 years. The Mexican authorities are ignoring the situation.

In 2001/2002 there were reports coming out of Denver from one of Colorado’s representatives; it said our INS agents have come under gun fire at the border by Mexican Federal troops. This story received very little attention at that time, and has since been cast into someone’s news archives. California had such a major problem with stolen cars ending up in Mexico that in the late 80s they sent a task force to discuss solutions with the Tijuana Police. One of the officers, or so the story goes, did manage to recover his own stolen vehicle. A Tijuana Police Officer was driving it.

Mexico has serious problems. The 11,000,000 Mexican guests who help us maintain this nation are the lucky ones. They are temporarily out of that mess in Mexico. Yes, we need to document them. We need to make sure that the criminals are kept out. We need to secure our borders. We are a sovereign nation and expect to be respected as one. This, however, requires that Mexico step up to the plate and addresses its own issues and stop blaming the U.S. for its evils.

The Great Wall

Many years ago, I listened to a Nova presentation on PBS concerning the Great Wall of China. While the program was full of data about the wall, there was one outstanding point that has stayed with me to this day. It is worth noting here that the existence of the Great Wall is not a monument to the defensive genius of the Chinese people, but an historic artifact of the inability to settle issues with decorum and diplomacy. The Chinese of antiquity could not engage their neighbors with reasonable diplomatic solutions. They chose instead to wall themselves off. This is what we are deciding to do in the U.S. today. I would hope in the years since the building of the massive Chinese wall that we have learned a thing or two about living with our neighbors. Our Mexican guests are not exactly the Mongol horde descending upon us to destroy our civilization.

It is also interesting to note that General Patton said that fixed fortifications are monuments to man’s stupidity. The fence is a fixed fortification. Think about that for a little while. General Patton was not exactly a liberal.

A few years ago I had the opportunity to study radio broadcasting from a man who had pioneered The Mighty 690 in Tijuana, Mexico. He told me a story that I have little reason to doubt. Across the border of Southern California and Mexico, there is a chain link fence with the obligatory razor wire. It extends into the Pacific Ocean. From a casual observation, it looks like a formidable barrier.

If one waits on the beach for low tide, however, one can walk across the beach, around the fence and into, or out of, the U.S. On the U.S. side is a National Park, and on the Mexican side is an unguarded beach. People, both Mexican and U.S. citizens, take this bi-daily stroll so that they will not be bothered at the authorized checkpoints.

In 2003, the U.S. invaded Iraq. By 2004, we were getting reports that the troop strength was inadequate for the job, and that our National Guard and reserves were overwhelmed by the task of managing the violence in Iraq. This week of June 9, 2006, AP reported that the Governor of California had dispatched National Guard troops to the Mexican border, and Mr. Bush has ordered the deployment of the New Mexican National Guard to the border. The Governor of Texas has taken a more high-tech approach and is using web cams to monitor the Texas/Mexico border. While all three responses are better than a monument to human stupidity, they still do not address the basic issue we are facing. Our troops are already stretched to the limit in Afghanistan and Iraq, yet we are still not addressing the irresponsibility of the Mexican government.

We intervened in Iraq for imprudent reasons. At the same time, we deliberately ignore the issues just across our border because the situation serves the needs of the few. The United States of America is not the cure for all the world’s ills, but we need to find a viable solution for the Mexico situation. A fence is not going to be enough. Having said that, let us consider the Great Wall of the United States. While the ideal may be a diplomatic solution, the pragmatic solution is to control the flow of traffic between the two nations.

To Build a Wall

A chain link fence is not sufficient for the task. With all due respect to our southern neighbors, one can easily perceive that the fence will simply become a source for raw material for some of the near-by Mexican communities. We currently have a problem with thieves coming across the border and stealing what they can from the U.S. towns. That fence will simply be another opportunity for the petty bandits. The fence and post will come in handy for any poor farmer looking to put up a new chicken coop. As such, if we resolve that a fixed fortification is preferred, then we are going to have to build something a little more substantial.

This leads us to a poured concrete wall some 12 feet high, or steel reinforced cinder block, again some 12 feet high. This is where things get interesting. We will have to survey exactly where our boundary is with Mexico, so that we do not intrude on their territory. We will, more than likely, have to submit the border finding to the Mexican government so that the border is mutually agreed upon. We will have to do an environmental impact study for the whole length of the border where the wall is to be built. We will have to determine if there is any private property owned by citizens either of the U.S. or of Mexico, and we will have to purchase the land on which the wall is to be constructed. Even under eminent domain, the land will have to be purchased at fair market value. That can get a little expensive.

Give the process about 24 months to clear all hurtles, regulations, and necessary permits. At that point, construction can begin. Who is going to build the wall? Do we give it to the Army Corps of Engineers? Remember, they admitted that the levees in New Orleans were substandard. Perhaps they have learned to do the job better now? Do we contract it to Halliburton? They have a history of excessive charging and cost overruns. It would be interesting to see how they explain cost overruns on concrete and cement blocks. One can envision a single agency acting as a general contractor that subcontracts the actual construction to local firms in the communities where the wall will be built. However, it would be ironic if these firms use the labor of our undocumented guests in the construction of this wall to stem the flow of humanity from Mexico.

Once the wall is constructed, taking into account the natural barriers that have to be overcome, it will have to be manned.

Just because the wall exists does not mean it will be invulnerable. Due to the Texas heat, we will need to construct security shacks, with power, water, and other necessary facilities, every mile along the entire length of the wall. This will insure that there is manpower to intervene when the wall is breached by still-desperate Mexican citizens.

Presuming all of this goes forward, and the wall is built and manned, in about 20 to 30 years, based on history, it will be abandoned, and eventually torn down because it is, as Patton said, a monument to human folly.

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[1] Exodus 22:21 KJV

[2] Exodus 23:9 KJV

[3] Leviticus 19:33-34 KJV