EckerNet.Com

Two weeks ago, I scoffed at the DHS\’s much tooted proclamation that they plan to waive environmental rules in order to finish the border fence. I scoffed at it, because they\’re idea of a fence differs greatly from what a rational human being would expect a border fence to be.

Most people would consider a fence protecting an international border to be a rather impressive structure. Instead, the DHS is mostly building a FINO (fence in name only) much less imposing (and effective) then my chain link fence which won\’t even keep the damn neighbor\’s kids out of my yard.

In addition to the fact that it\’s a wasted effort, it also serves as \”proof\” that a border fence isn\’t going to work and that it\’s stupid to cater to a xenophobic public who demands a border fence. Build a shitty fence, you get shitty results. And then here we are two weeks later and just like clockwork, we get a story that the \”fence\” isn\’t working.

Illegal immigrants armed with torches, hacksaws, ladders and even bungee cords are making it around a section of the border fence hailed as the most efficient way to stop them.

In the 10 months since the section was put up, the only method federal agents haven\’t seen is a tunnel – \”Yet,\” said Victor Guzman, the supervisory Border Patrol agent responsible for the stretch of close-together 15-foot cement-filled steel poles planted three feet into the ground.

Two problems with this \”reporting\”.

First, let\’s start with the easiest. The fence has NEVER been meant to STOP illegal aliens. The fence acts as a force multiplier. It makes every agent more effective. Rather than needing an agent watching every single foot of the border constantly, the fence slows down border crossers giving agents time to move to intercept.

In fact, the article itself demonstrates that when it describes one way in which illegal aliens are \”defeating\” the fence :

Officials monitoring cameras in the area have seen at least one group using a massive ladder to scale the south side of the fence. The group tried to drop into the U.S. with bungee cords before agents caught them.

The fence didn\’t stop them correct. It doesn\’t need to. It slowed them down enough that agents were able to intercept them once they crossed. Without that fence those same aliens could very well have sprinted into the US and disappeared into the landscape like they have in the past. Sounds like the fence did it\’s job.

Secondly, take a look at the article\’s description of part of the fence…\”close-together 15-foot cement-filled steel poles plants three feet into the ground\”. That\’s not a fence they are describing. That\’s a vehicle barrier. It wasn\’t meant to stop people, it was meant to stop vehicles. I\’m sure it\’s very effective at that. You can\’t build a giant screen door and then wonder why it doesn\’t function as a water dam. If people can just step through the fence, it\’s not even going to act as a force multiplier. It\’s going to act as…..well, a bunch of poles in the ground.

However, on parts of the border where the DHS has constructed a proper fence, it has been remarkably effective. It not only acts as a force multiplier, but it has also stopped all but the most dedicated border crossers.

To [US border patrol agent Michael Bernacke\'s] right stands a steel wall, 20 feet high and reinforced by cement-filled steel piping. To his left another tall fence of steel mesh. Ten yards beyond, a shorter cyclone fence is topped with jagged concertina wire. Visible to the north, through the gauze of fencing are the homes and businesses of this growing Southwest suburbia of 22,000 people.

\”This wall works,\” says Mr. Bernacke. \”A lot of people have the misconception that it is a waste of time and money, but the numbers of apprehensions show that it works.\”

The triple-and double-layered fence here in Yuma is the kind of barrier that US lawmakers – and most Americans – imagined when the Secure Fence Act was enacted in 2006.

So surprisingly enough, if you build a fence according to the proper specs, it works.

All the more reason why we need to remain vigilant about the border fence and the activities of the Department of Homeland Security. DHS\’s Head Asshat Michael Chertoff has proven he is not to be trusted when it comes to enforcing our border, and his boss President Bush is about as unreliable. Our future president, no matter who wins, is likely to be just an unreliable.

At this point, while time is on our side, mismanaged projects like the border fence can give ammunition to our opponents who will twist and obfuscate reality into propaganda for their side. The pressure needs to remain on DHS and the entire federal government.