A border discussion outside PARF?
 

Let's see how long that lasts.
https://bigthink.com/politics-current-affairs/build-the-energy-wall?rebelltitem=1#rebelltitem1

On the face of it the feasibility is something that should be seriously considered and explored.

I think once you get into the details, the problems it might help solve could be solved in better ways and the "wall" aspect of it wouldn't amount to much. Sounds like an attempt to cover up the "build the wall" cries of the right with the useless buzzwords of the left.

You'd also attract all sorts of employment to places where there is no infrastructure to house them.

I'm sure the cartels would love a border town the entire length of the border.

I think it looks good on a map but 2,000 miles of energy is way more than the world needs so you'd have miles between facilities. Not to mention transmitting electricity over great distances is not very efficient.

I think that plan would create more problems than it would solve and is pretty impractical.

For example, it talks about desalinization plants, which would require pumping water thousands of miles. Solar panels in the desert would require water to keep them clean. There would need to be cities built along the border for the worker doing the construction and running the energy farms. It is not by mistake that area of the world has such a low population density. Interesting idea, but would expect it to be less attractive as it is further explored as a possibility.

In my opinion building the wall is similar to needing more gun laws , I don't think we need a wall and I don't think we need more gun laws .......... I can hear blood boiling already :D We have plenty of immigration laws on the books that have worked fine for a very long time . What has fallen behind is the monitoring of the borders . Everyone is always complaining we need more jobs at home ( rightly so ) well hire more border control agents ! Have more check point stations and use modern technology to help with the monitoring . I have no problem with legal immigration but do have a problem with illegal migration .

I think most rational folks that can think for a minute realize a wall on the entire 2000 mile border to the south isn't going to happen anytime soon . Between imminent domain and lawsuits it will be tied up forever ! So lets get boots on the ground and start correcting the issue . How about deploying some national guard troops in addition to hiring more border patrol agents ? You could probably pay for everything by cutting DOD budget by 5 % . End of rant :D carry on . SmileWavy

Agreed!

No doubt the French heard about a lot of impediments before starting the Panama canal- which they then proved correct.
Fortunately, someone else came along and proved it could be done.
Seems like a lot of people have given up on America's ability to accomplish
Is it necessary? NO. Is it doable? Probably in some form.

Yep, just like the transcontinental railroad was finished in 1869. It was not easy, it was expensive, but it was done 150 years ago.

Whether or not it can be done is not really as important a question to me as whether or not it should be done.

Maybe we should dig a new ditch along the border instead of a wall.

Only if It's filled with man eating crocodiles and piranha.

The DEW line was built in 3 years. In ridiculously hard places to get to and for what had to be an nationally expensive final total. And once the world situation changed and the stations weren't needed - we simply moved on.

All we gotta do it build an egg-zact copy of the Maginot Line.

The illegal immigrants will try to go around it and end up in Europe or cooba somewhere!

I like the idea, but totally undoable

Hiring more border agents sounds easy but it's not. Who in their right mind wants to go down in the middle of nowhere and patrol the border? Any cops in your local department want to move to a **** hole town in the middle of nowhere and raise their family? Ride around all day in jeep looking for people?

It doesn’t seem to address the issue of seizing property from lawful owners. I don’t see how this is a solution to the “urgent crisis” at our borders.

Pay me enough and I'll do most anything.

My daughter majored in criminal and forensic stuff in college.
After she got totally disillusioned with "the agency" she looked into the border patrol.
The offers were there but she said no way hoe-zay.

The pay was OK, but the rules had them handcuffed so badly they couldn't do ANYTHING. Very frustrating.

She ended up doing much better in the private world.

But Uncle Sam doesn't pay enough.

Not so much the dough as the rules of engagement.

Eminent domain.

It is not.

Starting salary $41,187.

Without reading a single word of this thread, the answer is NO

I agree. What idiocy. Just the simple wall planned and better enforcement of the law would do wonders.

You nailed it.

This plan is far too forward thinking for our politicians right now. We used to be the leader in alternative energy. Not any more.

Do you ever stop to think why alternative energy is referred to as alternative energy?

Alternative energy is a solution that is only the optimal choice in a more limited range of scenarios.

Otherwise it would be mainstream energy.

Sure. Much like cars were an alternative to the horse.
Or, maybe the house was an alternative to the cave.

There is a butt for every seat.

Interesting article:

Ronald Adrian, Regent's Professor at Arizona State University, told Phys.org. "I view this project as a means of creating wealth by turning unused land of little value along the border into valuable land that has power, water access and ultimately agriculture, industry, jobs, workers and communities. With only a wall, you still have unused land of little value."

I have flown the border from Brown Field eart of San Diego to Yuma, then along the border to Fort Fort Huachuca at 100ft agl and below in an air conditioned H-60. Amazing terrain and scenery, completely empty in spots.

I like the idea if three things happen: 1) Get the border sealed now, no more "we'll do it later": I don't care how, btw, more boots on the ground, fences in high crossing areas, no catch and release, etc. 2) Public and private investments: If the idea has merit, public investment will come. 3) Include nuclear power in the equation.

The bare cave is generally the refuge of those unable to obtain a proper house, or those who refuse to make the work to a more comfortable life.

Although a cave can be furnished out to a house by the enterprising.

I am not sure what exactly to make of your car and horse analogy. The car often had many different forms of power, from being towed up hills by humans pulling on ropes, or through the use of animals.

The horse has a primary advantage of peak power output. It doesn't sustain as well as a human. Take for example galleys, human rowers instead of horse power.

Sometimes it's more fun to ignore facts and details :D

You are correct tho … the reason it's alternative energy is because it's more expensive and not as efficient than conventional energy.
And usually nowhere near as "clean" as people pretend it is.

IMHO we should go high tech, drones, towers with IR cameras, etc. and small camps dotting the boarder with intercept vehicles/helicopters.

Or just build casinos along the boarder ;)

Spread out some fake land mines and put up big signs in Spanish saying

"Land Mines- Proceed At Your Own Risk"


;)

How 'bout a bamboo border? We'd need someone to plan and implememt it....someone familiar with the area ;)?

So why does the border patrol boots on the ground agents ask for more wall? Clearly stats support DHS request.

Please tell us why you "feel" the walls dont help? Clearly feelings outweigh the facts from DHS and ICE in your mind.

And on that point, there is some two bit operator out west that disagrees;
https://www.**********.com/2018/01/16/xcel-energy-low-bids-for-colorado-electricity/

This is part of the problem with the wall.

Unless resources to deal with detected breaches are close by it'd be ineffective.

This makes the eminent domain issue a bigger deal because you still need to supply those camps with infrastructure for the agents to monitor / operate from and to live during their shifts.

You're going to need to build roads, deal with water / sewage, power, trash, refueling depots, maintenance sheds for vehicles, communications.

It's all doable but not as trivial as simply building a wall.

Todays conventional energy was none of that in the beginning either.

It takes adoption to improve it.

The DHS and CBP are/have issuing a number of Request for Information/Request for Proposals that reflect your post, nothing to do with a physical wall.

We are bidding on three.