The Border Fence between the United States and Mexico is coming along. In reading this latest report in CNN, I wondered about a couple things, not for the first time. Wouldn't it be more in the spirit of cooperation and brotherhood to knock down walls. The Berlin wall coming down was the greatest symbol of this. Constructing barriers in Palestine or on the Mexican border seems we're heading in the wrong direction.
Or is it a simple case of what Mark Twain said, "Good fences make good neighbors."
The other thing I wondered about is the cost. Is it really possible that a fence, even a really good one, can cost so many millions? Then I had that forehead slapping moment when I read who's in charge of this thing.
Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff told a House committee last month that the government was "on track" to hit that mark, though it had built only 182 miles of pedestrian fence and 153 miles of vehicle barriers as of July 11.
At a cost of about $16 million a mile, the fence will be far more expensive than fences the U.S. government is building elsewhere along the nation's 1,952-mile border with Mexico. U.S. Customs and Border Protection said the average cost along the entire border is $2 million to $3 million a mile.
What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.
sixteen million dollars a mile?! most state departments of transportation can build expressways cheaper than that.
ReplyDeleteand expressways usually have at least some hope of accomplishing their stated purpose, unlike this fence. we need a guest worker program, not a boondoggle.