The Financial battle for the Wall

[Servant_of_the_One1]

Donald Trump: Mexico will pay for the Wall.

Mexico: Go to hell, we will never pay a penny for the f***wall.


Only time will tell who is gonna pay for the wall.

 

[Revoltingest]

Donald Trump: Mexico will pay for the Wall.

Mexico: Go to hell, we will never pay a penny for the f***wall.


Only time will tell who is gonna pay for the wall.

I can tell you now that taxpayers will pay for it.
The real question is whether it's worth the expense.

 

[Quintessence]

I can tell you now that taxpayers will pay for it.
The real question is whether it's worth the expense.

*blinks*

Not sure that's the real question, given the obvious answer is "no" due to negative environmental and humanitarian impacts.

 

[Quetzal]

I can tell you now that taxpayers will pay for it.
The real question is whether it's worth the expense.

*blinks*

Not sure that's the real question, given the obvious answer is "no" due to negative environmental and humanitarian impacts.

I will even take it a step further that it simply won't be effective for it's intended purpose. If you want to help the problem of illegal immigration. Fine, I am for it. But a $20bn dollar wall? For what, exactly?

 

[Augustus]

The real question is whether it's worth the expense.

I wonder how long it will be before commercial drones can carry the weight of a human over a wall...

 

[Willamena]

For what, exactly?

To satisfy a childish whim.

 

[Quintessence]

I will even take it a step further that it simply won't be effective for it's intended purpose. If you want to help the problem of illegal immigration. Fine, I am for it. But a $20bn dollar wall? For what, exactly?

It'd be wiser to just invest that money directly in Mexico to improve conditions in that country. The root issue is that the environment there is motivating people to leave it. If you correct the environment, less people want to leave. Is this not obvious to some people?

 

[ADigitalArtist]

I wonder how long it will be before commercial drones can carry the weight of a human over a wall...

We have planes for that. It's probably (by estimation) how a large chunk illegal entry happens according to INS and Pew (around 40%, with another chunk entering by boat). They enter legally on a visa and then overstay.

The mental image of someone holding some helicopter-esque hand rails on a large quad bladed drone is amusing though.

 

[Revoltingest]

I will even take it a step further that it simply won't be effective for it's intended purpose. If you want to help the problem of illegal immigration. Fine, I am for it. But a $20bn dollar wall? For what, exactly?

*blinks*

Not sure that's the real question, given the obvious answer is "no" due to negative environmental and humanitarian impacts.

It's not so obvious when there's no published plan for the "wall" yet.
I put it in quotation marks because many people assume that it means a
continuous physical wall of massive proportions. Even Trump wouldn't
mean such a slavishly narrow definition. I expect the wall to be a combination
of a regular wall (which we already have in places), sensors, analytical systems,
patrols, & other such means as would be optimum.
I offer a money back guarantee on this prediction.

Problems will be.....
- Aerial countermeasures, eg, drones, ultralights
- Tunnels
- Volume of attacks
- Ramping up the border patrol labor force
- Wildlife habitat fragmentation

Drug legalization strikes me as a good option to defeat smuggling.

 

[Revoltingest]

I wonder how long it will be before commercial drones can carry the weight of a human over a wall...

This is already easily doable with ultralight aircraft, aka "flying lawnmowers".
And it will become more practical with drones.

 

[Willamena]

It's not so obvious when there's no published plan for the "wall" yet.
I put it in quotation marks because many people assume that it means a
continuous physical wall of massive proportions. Even Trump wouldn't
mean such a slavishly narrow definition. I expect the wall to be a combination
of a regular wall (which we already have in places), sensors, analytical systems,
patrols, & other such means as would be optimum.
I offer a money back guarantee on this prediction.

Problems will be.....
- Aerial countermeasures, eg, drones, ultralights
- Tunnels
- Volume of attacks
- Ramping up the border patrol labor force
- Wildlife habitat fragmentation

Drug legalization strikes me as a good option to defeat smuggling.

The yearly maintenance on infrastructure alone will be atrocious, especially if it involves electronics that will need periodic updating.

 

[Revoltingest]

The yearly maintenance on infrastructure alone will be atrocious, especially if it involves electronics that will need periodic updating.

Oh, it will definitely be spendy.
It already is.
But will the increased expense be worth it?
I don't know.

As I said before, it strikes me as a somewhat wrong approach.
A large portion of our problem is drug traffic.
Legalize that which is smuggled, & the profit incentive is removed.
Of course this raises the issue of how to address problems associated with drug use.
This is one area where your favorite (I hope) Libertarian & liberals agree....provide
treatment for addicts. I say this is cost effective enuf to justify taxpayer financing.

 

[Augustus]

The mental image of someone holding some helicopter-esque hand rails on a large quad bladed drone is amusing though.

I'd attach it to some kind of lawn chair I think. Actually, that sounds like a pretty cool invention anyway.

Or with 4 of them you could make an actual flying carpet. 'Illegal Muslim invaders' on flying carpets would make for ideal right wing hysteria fodder

 

[Jeremiahcp]

It's not so obvious when there's no published plan for the "wall" yet.
I put it in quotation marks because many people assume that it means a
continuous physical wall of massive proportions. Even Trump wouldn't
mean such a slavishly narrow definition. I expect the wall to be a combination
of a regular wall (which we already have in places), sensors, analytical systems,
patrols, & other such means as would be optimum.
I offer a money back guarantee on this prediction.

Problems will be.....
- Aerial countermeasures, eg, drones, ultralights
- Tunnels
- Volume of attacks
- Ramping up the border patrol labor force
- Wildlife habitat fragmentation

Drug legalization strikes me as a good option to defeat smuggling.

"Even Trump wouldn't mean such a slavishly narrow definition."

Are you sure about that? This is Trump we are talking about.

 

[Revoltingest]

"Even Trump wouldn't mean such a slavishly narrow definition."

Are you sure about that? This is Trump we are talking about.

It's fine to dislike him.
But it's silly to underestimate him.
And I did offer a money back guarantee.

 

[Jeremiahcp]

It's fine to dislike him.
But it's silly to underestimate him.
And I did offer a money back guarantee.

I'll stop "underestimating" him when he gives me a good reason to do so. As it is now, I need convincing that man is not an idiot.

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

It'd be wiser to just invest that money directly in Mexico to improve conditions in that country. The root issue is that the environment there is motivating people to leave it. If you correct the environment, less people want to leave. Is this not obvious to some people?

Instead, they're going leave Mexico alone and drive up demand for undocumented workers by starting a multi-billion-dollar project right on the border.

Even if every federal contractor is carefully screened to make sure *they* aren't hiring any undocumented workers, a project this big will create industry-wide labour demands. Workers who take jobs with federal contractors will be leaving other companies who aren't as picky about who they hire who will suddenly find themselves with lots of job vacancies.

 

[Kuzcotopia]

I think if 40% of Americans got it in their heads that they needed a 100 ft tall pile of dog crap, for no rational reason, there'd be politicians falling over themselves to pander to it.

These guys will get elected by wearing "pooping dog" pins and leading chants of "Stack that crap! Stack that crap!"

The difference between those pandering politicians and President Trump is that Trump's actually sending out a battalion of government pooper scoopers to make it happen.

And the cats will pay for it.

 

[YmirGF]

I wonder how long it will be before commercial drones can carry the weight of a human over a wall...

Likewise, one wonders how long it will take for computer driven laser cannons to knock them out of the sky. Who knows, it might be quite pretty to watch from a safe distance after sundown.

 

[LuisDantas]

I will even take it a step further that it simply won't be effective for it's intended purpose. If you want to help the problem of illegal immigration. Fine, I am for it. But a $20bn dollar wall? For what, exactly?

To feed the national pride of Mexicans?

"Look, son! Those yankees fear our persistence so much that they had to sell their kidneys in order to afford an attempt at keeping us out! They will never forget the Alamo!"