It looks like US lawmakers are going to spend billions to build a 700 mile fence along our border with Mexico. The whole idea just seems stupid in so many ways, not least of which is the fact that our border with mexico is 2100 miles long. That's right, this is so obviously a political gimmick that they're only going to fence 1/3 of the border. They want to appear to be doing something to stem the tide of illegal immigrants flowing North, but they absolutely do not want to be successful in doing so. Anyone who pays any attention at all to our agriculture industry can see that the whole system relies on cheap immigrant labor. The loss of that labor would be an economic disaster. Produce farmers would have to start paying American wages to American workers to harvest crops. Prices would skyrocket. Our legislators know that even though a lot of Americans are raising hell right now about securing our borders, it is nothing compared to what would happen if every grocery bill in the country tripled overnight. There would be blood shed.

I'm not a big fan of borders to begin with. As a physical manifestation of racial or cultural or religious differences between societies, they seem to be an arbitrary (usually temporary) solution to those differences. To me, borders embody a basic flaw of the human animal. We can't get along with each other. As a species, our intelligence is only excelled by our aggression. The combination leaves us fiercely determined and oh so proud. It is in our nature to always want more, to constantly strive for a better life--especially if your current life really sucks. That's why border security is ultimately a fantasy. To someone engaged in a lifelong struggle against poverty and hunger, a shiny new fence really isn't much of an obstacle.