Border Tales

Border Security on the Mexican border does not receive the attention it should.  It must be considered a national security issue.  American Thinker interviewed border ranchers and law enforcement to understand their views regarding threats and solutions to America's security problem.

Many of the ranchers interviewed feel betrayed and abandoned.  They cite instances of illegals using their homes and territory.  Kelly Glenn-Kimbro, an Arizona rancher, told the story of a Mexican woman who had a baby in their ranch pasture and walked up to the house asking for help.  Dr. Gary Thrasher relayed the story that one day after coming home he went upstairs to find illegals who had gone through the doggy door.  As he was confronting them he heard his downstairs shower being used by two Mexican women.  There is the horror story of Robert Krentz who was murdered by an illegal shortly after his expressed his concern over his safety at a border security meeting.  A rancher from a family who were afraid to give their name concurred and told how they were threatened after putting up infra-red cameras, finding a picture of a masked man placing his gun in front of the camera.

They are telling their stories because of the belief that most Americans have no idea what is really happening at the border.  One solution would be having the Border Patrol and the ranchers work as a cohesive unit.  Instead of being told not to detain or hold the illegals, they want to be able to capture them once they trespass on their ranch until the Border Patrol can arrive.  It can take Border Patrol agents up to an hour depending on their location.  One rancher summarized everyone's feelings that "as American citizens we should have the right of self defense."

Other solutions include having more "boots on the ground," which should include the redeployment of the National Guard, more operating bases directly on the border, and a change of the mentality from a law enforcement philosophy to a military one.  According to the ranchers, the border should be viewed as an enemy line which at this time is not being protected.  Another rancher, John Ladd, would like to see the reinstatement of portable towers directly on the border.  He explained that they were removed because the Mexicans started shooting at them and they were not bulletproof.

All the ranchers interviewed agree that the number of illegals crossing the border has diminished, but view this as a misleading statistic.  They feel Border Patrol is trying to protect the border but is handicapped by the bureaucracy who want to show that the border is exponentially more secure.  For example, an area is secured, allowing the ranchers to see improvement, and then the manpower is pulled out for another area.  Anna, whose ranch is just a few miles from the border stated "of course things get better, people are there, but as the manpower leaves, the security actually gets worse over time." 

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