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Hey Dan, you realize the point for this was attention right? That was admitted. What I'm wondering is, what is YOUR point?
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) - The chief organizer of the Minuteman Project, which attracted hundreds of volunteers to watch for illegal immigrants and smugglers along the Mexican border, said Monday he's leaving his post early.
Jim Gilchrist said the watch project has been a success and will continue through the end of the month as planned, but under a different name.
"The operation is continuing, but it's not under the Minuteman Project," Gilchrist said. "There's nothing for us to do here. We're bored to death. But people are staying here."
....
Border Patrol spokesman Andy Adame expressed surprise at Monday's announcement. "Gilchrist said it (the project) was going to run for a month. He takes off halfway through and declares victory? Sounds kind of strange," Adame said.
Jim Gilchrist got the attention he was looking for. The one time Air Force Officer was not meant for the grunt work of actually having to walk around with a lot of gear looking for illegals.
He had his 2-weeks vacation in Arizona but now that temperatures on the desert are beginning to rise and the media is hot on the trail of Michael Jackson, The Vatican, Tom DeLay, and no longer hauling their satellite vans to the Arizona Border, Jim don't wanna play no more.
Now he can write on his resume that he organized, and trained his littlie militia to protect the United States of America's Borders from terrorist invasions and go on speaking engagements for $5000 a pop.
, W will probably make him the next terrorist czar because of his two week vacation the boarder.
Hey Dan, you realize the point for this was attention right? That was admitted. What I'm wondering is, what is YOUR point?
So what are you saying Dan? You spend 2 weeks there and then you might have grounds to speak on the subject.
Oh , I was thinking exactly like Manny!
i heard on the radio the name was going to change to the civilian homeland security yadda yadda yadda and they were going to start targeting businesses that were hiring illegals.....
Well if the point isn't obvious enough to you maybe you should look in yourself for the answer. These guys said they were gonna stay there for a month and two weeks later their leader is calling it quits cause he's board. Nice way to bring attention to a problem which isn't such a bad problem after all.
The ease of crossing the border is not a problem? I don't know what your defention of security is, but mine certainly involves secure (notice the simmilarity between the words secure and security?) borders.
The main objective has been accomplished, and while I would have prefered they follow through on what they said, the majority of the group is staying.
The fact is they succeed in drawing national attention to something that is definetly a problem.
To bad W and The Republican legislature don't agree. Mexicans who cross the boarder work harder and pay more in SS and Federal Income taxes than the services they use.The fact is they succeed in drawing national attention to something that is definetly a problem.
We inspect 5% of cargo containers coming into U.S. ports. Which do you think is most likely, a terra st' bringing in WDM on a ship hidden in a cargo container, or across the boarder on a burro'?The ease of crossing the border is not a problem? I don't know what your defention of security is, but mine certainly involves secure (notice the simmilarity between the words secure and security?) borders.
Across the border on a burro.
And, trust me, the United States Government is inspecting more than 5% of cargo containers coming into U.S. ports...I don't care what the papers or the U.S. Government says. If they try to sneak a nuke into the country in a cargo container on a ship...it'll be detected. Chemical weapons may be a little more difficult to spot...
You know it's not an infinite border with an infinite number of places to cross, right? It wouldn't take that many people to patrol the lengths of border where crossings are possible and most likely.
Yeah, I do realize that. I also realize much of the terrain on the American side of the Rio Grande is unforgiving with landowners that are even more unforgiving. You just can't wade across the border and hope to end up with a gas-powered weed eater and a day labor job overnight. There are a lot of bones bleaching in places law enforcement have never been. Why? Because it's stupid to cross there...and many don't make it.
Plus, if you do establish a crossing point that is remote, it takes about two days to discover it and shut it down. No, the majority of illegal immigration takes place within a few miles of border crossings or in place near civilization and improved roads. Such as where IH-10 and IH-8 come to within a couple of miles of the border.
I've still yet to see a good answer to the question of why these people don't just cross legally.
Yet, people do.
But, why is it hard?
Too bad nobody in Washington agrees regardless of their party affiliation.
Why am I even bothering with you?
I think both could easily be used to transport materials and terrorists into this country.
But what it boils down to, is one is an issue that the Democrats and you can turn around and use to their advantadge, while the other is an issue that holds both parties at fault. You'd rather bury your head in the sand.
Something being hard is not an excuse to allow illegal (and more importantly, undo ented and untracked) immigration.
Who cares what they would rather do? Border security and immigration policy should not be about the convience of the immigrant, but what suits the country's needs.
Dan you act like you know what you are taking about. It is IMPOSSIBLE to inspect every container that comes into this country. Do you have any idea how many containers come into the US every day? The manpower and facilities to make such checking possible would be ridiculous in cost and size. You act as though we had always checked these containers and then Bush put a stop to it just now. Why not ask, "How come Bush doesn't have an FBI agent on every corner of every street in the US? He must not care!". That is exactly what you are saying when you question shipping container inspection.
That's 21,369 containers a day. Now tell me how easy it is to search through that many containers in a day?What’s the volume of traffic at U.S. ports?
Some 7,500 ships with foreign flags make 51,000 calls on U.S. ports each year. They carry the bulk of the approximately 890 million tons of goods that come into the country, including 7.8 million containers, 175 billion gallons of oil and other fuels, and hundreds of thousands of cruise-ship passengers and crew members. The volume of traffic gives terrorists opportunities to smuggle themselves or their weapons into the United States with little risk of detection; in May 2002, there were reports about 25 Islamist extremists who may have entered the United States by hiding in shipping containers.
I'm glad this ruckus is over.
Arnold got it right...
Arnold: 'Close the Borders'
Tuesday, April 19, 2005
SAN FRANCISCO — Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (search) said Tuesday the nation's policy on preventing illegal immigration is too lax, telling a group of newspaper publishers the United States needs to "close the borders."
"Close the borders in California and all across Mexico and in the United States," Schwarzenegger said at the annual meeting of the Newspaper Association of America (search). "Because I think it is just unfair to have all those people coming across, have the borders open the way it is, and have this kind of lax situation."
Schwarzenegger's remarks were later clarified by his spokeswoman, who said the governor supports greater security along the nation's borders but was not calling for their complete closure.
"The governor has talked before about the need to ensure that immigrants are put on a path toward fully participating in California's economy," spokeswoman Margita Thompson said. "But he feels they need to enter the country the right way, and must not undermine important security issues. He feels that the border needs to be secure."
During his speech, Schwarzenegger also suggested exploring several policy proposals aimed at addressing illegal immigration, including President Bush's proposed guest worker program and federal legislation to pave the way for undo ented workers in the United States to attain legal status.
...and then wussed out.
Schwarzenegger Apologizes For Border Remark
Governor Says Remarks Were 'A Total Screw-Up'
POSTED: 12:46 pm PDT April 20, 2005
UPDATED: 2:28 pm PDT April 20, 2005
SACRAMENTO -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger moved quickly Wednesday to apologize for suggesting that California's border with Mexico should be closed in an effort to solve the nation's illegal immigration problem.
Schwarzenegger said he misspoke in comments to newspaper editors and publishers Tuesday, intending to say the border should be secured. The governor blamed the error on his sometimes flawed use of English -- his second language.
"Yesterday was a total screw-up in the words I used," the governor said at a press conference. "Because instead of closing, I meant securing. I think maybe my English, I need to go back to school and study a little bit."
The contrition seemed to quell the issue at the Capitol. Hispanic lawmakers -- many of whom are also rival Democrats -- said they accepted his apology.
"I don't think the governor identifies himself with that kind of rhetoric," said Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, D-Los Angeles. "I don't know why he said it but I'm very pleased he has totally removed himself from those folks who espouse that kind of hatred."
Nunez's office, however, pointed out that Schwarzenegger said something very similar in a 2003 interview with Fox TV host Bill O'Reilly.
Margita Thompson, Schwarzenegger's spokeswoman, said it was unfortunate Nunez was promoting a "story that has no merit."
She pointed out that Nunez told a reporter only Tuesday that he too may have misspoken about holding up negotiations this summer on the state budget because of a disagreement with the governor on workers' compensation reform.
On Tuesday, before the annual meeting of the Newspaper Association of America in San Francisco, Schwarzenegger said it was "unfair to have all those people coming across, have the borders open the way it is, and have this kind of lax situation."
The Republican governor backed away from those statements Wednesday, saying that while securing the border is an important issue -- he does not want to close it.
"We have a terrific relationship with Mexico," Schwarzenegger said. "I filmed four movies in Mexico, I love to go on vacation to Mexico. We have a great trade agreement with Mexico."
A recent government(?) report showed that illegal workers in the U.S., on average pay, more into Federal taxes and the SS system than the services which they use. Of course, most never become eligible for SS in the first place.You talking legal or illegal immigrants? Last I chcked, illegal immigrants don't pay into SS or pay taxes. They're the problem, not legal immigrants.
Everyday that the WH fails to protect the country is another day that we risk being attacked with a hidden WMD. We have the money, expertise and the technology now to inspect 80-90% of these containers coming into the country, but I think the WH guestimates that in reality the likely-hood of this type of attack happening anytime soon is very remote at best. Remember, in the 80's and early 90's we relied on high-tech surveillence to stop nuclear proliferation in the ME, and look how well that has worked for us. Clearly, if there is a plan, the reliance here is on human intelligence. Working with the Mossad and other world intelligence agencies, the germans, french, Italians, and Spanish..etc...etc...to stop threats like this from ever materializing in the first place.That's 21,369 containers a day. Now tell me how easy it is to search through that many containers in a day?
As far as how this relates to the boarder, I think that some people need to realize that just because they look the same, not all brown skinned people are the same. Middle Eastern men, presumably Islamists -bent on attacking the U.S., would have a hard time fitting into either Central or South American culture. They would stick out like a sore thumb, and given our assets in the region, the CIA would be on them like white on rice.
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