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February 13, 2012
Binyamin Rose: Back to the Bunker: How a life-risking act by a Christian family during the Holocaust saved a family and built a thriving community a world away
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David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
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Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
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Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
June 3, 2005
/ 25 Iyar , 5765
Playing a numbers game at the border
By
Ruben Navarrette Jr.
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
ALONG THE U.S.-MEXICO BORDER As the son of a retired law enforcement officer, I grew up around cops. So when I got a call offering me a private tour and briefing of the operations of the San Diego Sector of the U.S. Border Patrol, I jumped at the chance.
I know what some of you are thinking that the Border Patrol and I aren't exactly simpaticos on the issue of illegal immigration. Well, if you think that, you're wrong.
It's true that I have railed against a lot of half-baked ideas for combating illegal immigration. And, for that, some readers have accused me of "condoning" the practice. At least I'd like to think that's why they do it and not because of, say, my Latin surname and the fact that most illegal immigrants come from Latin America.
But I've never stopped insisting that the United States has the right to protect its border. Nor have I ever lost respect for the Border Patrol agents who assume that mission.
Oops. Forget I said "mission." That's why people burn out, one agent told me. The Border Patrol includes many people who served in the military and were trained to complete their missions. But this mission can't be completed. You'll never seal the border, the agent said, because Washington wants it open.
It was a refrain I heard all day long, that our immigration policy is chaotic because the rich and powerful benefit from the chaos. The Border Patrol may be the only law enforcement agency in the country responsible for enforcing laws that many Americans don't want enforced.
At least that's how it looks from a Border Patrol helicopter 500 feet over the U.S.-Mexico border. The San Diego sector is responsible for a 66-mile stretch.
From the air, with Mexico on one side and the United States on the other, you see the strangest things. In Tijuana, there are beautiful, two-story homes with manicured lawns where the U.S. security wall doubles as the homeowner's back fence. Farther along, a group of men are camped out in the brush, waiting for nightfall and their cue to try to cross into the United States. As we approach the eastern-most point of the fence line, the area farthest away from the Border Patrol headquarters, I mentioned to the pilot that if I were coming across, this would be where I'd do it. He smiled and pointed to what awaited would-be border crossers on the U.S. side a mountain pass which, he said, takes hikers three or four days to get through if they survive the elements and the mountain lions.
OK, on second thought, maybe I'd rather cross near civilization and take my chances with the Border Patrol.
What a no-brainer it must be for Mexicans who are thinking about entering the United States. Here you have two countries with a huge economic disparity, side by side, where a job that pays $3 a day in one country will earn you $60 in another. And the only thing standing in the way is a flimsy barrier. Naturally, immigrants are going to cross.
Of course, once they do, they'll have to get past some well-trained and determined Border Patrol agents equipped with off-road vehicles, helicopters, bikes, night-vision goggles and scopes, horses, motion sensors, boats, riot guns with pepper spray pellets, canines, even a plainclothes division for working urban areas.
And yet, all these toys aren't enough to stop the flow of the have-nots desperate for what the haves have.
For one veteran agent, the best strategy is deterrence. You have to cut down on the number of people who get into the system by adding manpower and building more fences.
"It's a numbers game," he said. "And it's a game you'll never win unless you deter entry."
Another agent says that enforcement can't be targeted just at the border. The way it is now, the farther you get from the border, the weaker the punishment. You have to get much more aggressive with employers, he said. Forget fines. Close down their businesses, he said.
A supervisor agrees, but he also suggests something even more ambitious that the United States spur economic investment and job development in the 10 poorest states in Mexico, the same 10 states that send the most people north. That way people would have opportunities at home, he says, and they wouldn't come to the United States at all.
It all sounds like good common sense meaning you'll probably never hear anything like it coming out of Washington.
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