Every time I think about a 30 foot concrete wall, my memory takes me back to a personal experience in early 1984.  At the time, I was director of community development and housing for the State of Texas.  On December 18, 1983 Texas experienced a historic deep-freeze with below freezing temperatures for 12 consecutive days.  It wiped out the entire citrus crop including that in Starr County along the Rio Grande border with Mexico.  As a result, the unemployment rate in Starr County jumped to nearly 70 percent.  At the request of then Governor Mark White, I was part of a team deployed to the border to identify public works projects (e.g., replacing dead palm trees along U.S. 83 which parallels the Rio Grande) through which we could pay residents and inject funds into the local economy.

As is the custom in South Texas, you never conduct business without fellowship first.  In this case, the team was invited to dinner at the home of County Judge Blas Chapa the night before our scheduled meeting in Rio Grande City.  (In Texas, the county judge is the chief administrative officer as well as a judicial officer.)  That evening we were feted with barbecue and beer on Judge Chapa’s patio which provided a scenic view of the river and the natural habitat on the Mexican side.  Judge Chapa died in May 2010, but I can just imagine how he would have reacted to the thought of a 30 foot concrete wall obscuring the panoramic view of his estate, the river and the land beyond.  He owned the property down to the river’s edge, and I know he would have vigorously fought any taking by eminent domain for a public right-of-way for any unsightly intrusion on his estate.

Imagine the situation was reversed.  Suppose Blas Chapa was president, and made the case more illegal drugs were entering the U.S. along the Eastern seaboard than from Mexico.  The answer?  A thirty foot hardened concrete wall on the Florida coast including Palm Beach County.  Whom do you think might be the first to object.  My money is on the guy who lives in this house.

For what it’s worth.
Dr. ESP