Talk about obnoxious...

[jahcs]

If you don't defend your borders, and if you don't enforce them, they dissolve and are rendered moot.  That is a sacrifice of sovereignty. 

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I would add artillery into the mix at high density avenues of approach.
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Don't waste time building a wall, Mr Maginot: walls can be outflanked both physically and politically. 

If we are to spend billions on infrastructure of FDR scale public works, there are roads and bridges all over the country in need of repair, but no need for an outflankable wall. 

Occhi
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I don't believe anyone here is suggesting that we build an "impassable" barrier and then not monitor it. Without some sort of physical barrier our military, or other agency, would just be detaining and/or shooting people out in the desert. If you make some sort of defined border, that can be easily seen by people on the ground, then you have a clear line that should not be crossed.

Personally I don't care if we space pickets every 20 meters with signs on them, build a fence, or dig a tank ditch, but there must be some sort of clear demarcation for folks on the ground. There also must be some sort of surveilance and enforcement of the border.

And the notion of artillery being used to fire on civilians is ludicrous. People go to war crimes trials and hang for that.