by Robert M. Traxler

Let’s discuss the history of large border walls. The Great Wall of China is still standing in some places, Hadrian ’s Wall in Britannia (England) and Antonia’s wall in northern Germany, rebuilt in some places as tourist attractions, which attest to the building of large, long walls throughout world history. In more contemporary times the Berlin wall was unique as it was built to keep folks in not out.

Can a wall be built between the United States and Mexico? Of course it can. About 30,000 Roman Legionnaires build a wall across Britannia with primitive hand tools in just a few years, so it can be done today.

Before we start construction, let’s analyze the purpose of the wall and the expected result of its construction. Two old adages, good fences make good neighbors and locks only keep honest people honest are indeed true; a wall will deter some from attempting to cross our border illegally. As a deterrent to drug smuggling it will not work, not as long as many billions are spent by Americans every year on illegal drugs.

The profit margin in drug smuggling is just too enormous to be stopped by a wall. Drug dealers will go over, under or through a wall if need be; if the wall becomes too formidable they will find even more innovative ways to move drugs over the vast American shoreline or use the air space.

Another old adage is that a barrier not covered by fire (direct or indirect weapons fire) is no barrier at all. The most effective walls made in world history only worked when the Romans and the Chinese stationed troops at regular intervals to attack and kill intruders who breached the wall.

A very cost effective way to close the border would be to deploy land mines. It would work, be cheap and easy to do, but we lack the national will to mine the border. No one in elected office would even ever entertain the possibility.

The truth is we lack the national will to protect our borders in any way. We will not punish in any manner people apprehended crossing illegally. If caught, the border crossers are fed, given water and in most cases released to try again and again until finally successful. If caught after crossing the border, the worst that happens is they are flown back home for a vacation, travel paid by Uncle Sam then they cross illegally again. And we wonder why we have 20 million illegals? Oops my bad, undocumented aliens.

Trump’s wall could indeed be paid for by the Mexican government or the illegals themselves. Mexico’s economy is totally dependent on the tens of billions of dollars earned by illegals and sent back to Mexico. Cut the easy ways to transfer money to Mexico, and the Mexican economy would suffer horribly. Taxing the wire or bank transfers of money to Mexico 5% would generate billions for the wall over a few years.

A wall would never work because we as a nation are not serious about stopping drugs or illegals. We are on our third generation of Americans who accept illegal drug use as normal, and rapidly become a right for every American to get high, as long as we stay within the politically correct rules of illegal drug use. Not driving high, or aiding children to get high, selling dealer amounts of drugs or no; there are no other rules for illegal drug use. A few days ago our President even call for the decriminalization of selling “small amounts of illegal drugs.”

We are also on our third generation of Americans who accept illegal immigration as normal, even noble. Tax exempt charities assist illegals to function openly in our country and aid them in receiving federal benefits paid by the taxpayers. Many states subsidize the illegals’ college educations; American students are paying higher tuition to offset the cost of aiding illegals.

President Trump can build the wall and get the Mexicans to pay for it, but it will be useless as long as we as a nation see no harm in illegal drugs and illegal immigration. Mr. Trump is a populist, not a doctrinaire Republican or Democrat; this election will determine the road we will travel as a nation for years to come. To stop drugs and illegals he would need to make both unacceptable, even less than noble to the American people; good luck with that.