U.S. Border Patrol chief: 'Virtual wall' to detect more

Houston Chronicle/AP ^ | April 26, 2007 | JULIE WATSON

[SwinneySwitch]

MEXICO CITY — A high-tech "virtual wall" will detect more than 95 percent of illegal crossings at the busiest jumping-off point along the U.S.-Mexico border, the U.S. Border Patrol chief said today.

In a videoconference with reporters in Mexico, David Aguilar predicted the so-called "virtual wall" of lights, ground sensors and cameras — reinforced by more agents — will essentially halt illegal crossings along the Arizona border, the busiest section for clandestine entries.

Officials expect to complete 28 miles of the high-tech system in Arizona by June, and by next year it should run into New Mexico and parts of Texas.

Eventually, the integrated system will cover sections along the entire border, from San Diego to Brownsville, Texas.

"We will be able to identify, detect and classify more than 95 percent of illegal entries with the virtual wall," Aguilar said.

Detentions along the U.S.-Mexico border already have dropped by 30 percent from October 2006 to this week, compared to the same period last year, Aguilar said — a reduction officials attribute to fewer attempted crossings. In 2006, 1.1 million migrants were detained.

He attributed the fall to President Bush's deployment of 6,000 National Guard troops to the border, the addition of more than 700 Border Patrol agents this fiscal year and new strategies.

Along a 210-mile stretch in west Texas, detentions have dropped 65 percent since the start of a federal project called Operation Streamline, which jails and prosecutes any illegal immigrant caught crossing there.

Aguilar said far fewer immigrants have been seen at traditional staging points in Mexico and that agents have not seen a shift to new crossing areas along the border.

Congress has approved 700 miles of fence for the border and has allowed officials to decide whether to build metal fences or virtual walls.

Aguilar expects most of the distance will be covered by the virtual barrier, with metal walls kept to a minimum.

The U.S. government is adding 70 miles of metal walls this year and 225 miles next year. The barriers are being built primarily in Arizona, which has seen the largest flow of illegal migrants since a U.S. crackdown in Texas and California more than a decade ago funneled people into its remote desert.

Mexican President Felipe Calderon has likened the barriers to the Berlin Wall.

[SwinneySwitch]

Bravo Sierra!

[Titus Quinctius Cincinnatus]

What good does it to do to detect them, if you're not actually doing anything to stop them?

[South40]

What good does it to do to detect them, if you're not actually doing anything to stop them?

Or grant them amnesty once they've gotten here.

[Baladas]

Wow, that must be one powerful wall, that’s a pretty good detection rate. Still, it’s useless if a US Border Patrol agent just detains an illegal then releases him/her.

And Calderon’s wrong, there were land mines and armed guards in towers at the Berlin Wall, not the same thing at all, amigo.

[Uncle Hal]

My thoughts exactly. We may be able to detect them but can we stop them? Do we have the necessary manpower and the will to stop them?

[varon]

"We will be able to identify, detect and classify more than 95 percent of illegal entries with the virtual wall," Aguilar said.

What I read into the above statement is that when certain illegals, such as civilians on foot, are detected and classified as such, they will be treated differently (given a pass) than when vehicles (drug smugglers) are detected and classified as such, an attempt will be made to apprehend.

What a crock of bovine scatter!!!

[EagleUSA]

This is the biggest crock of crap, created by weak, pandering politicians. Why not fix the REAL PROBLEM? The malfeasant in Washington have simply abandoned America in favor of parlor games which keep the borders open, and keep pandering and feeding illegal criminal Mexicans.

I think it is time to take a performance survey on all of Washington and send the results to the White House and the Congress — alot of good it will do, but it will make me feel a bit better....God, what a disaster.

[SwinneySwitch]

Virtual ping!

If you want on, or off this S. Texas/Mexico ping list, please FReepMail me.

[puppypusher]

Yea!We’ll detect more criminal alians and just let them infiltrate through the other 49 states.

[mutley]

Felipe Calderon has likened the barriers to the Berlin Wall.

Don't fall for the "one historical wall defines all walls" crap. There is nothing wrong with a Berlin type wall, if it's there for the right reasons. This wall is to prevent the side-stepping of the immigration process. Americans welcome immigrants, if they follow the law to get here.

[Joe 6-pack]

They ought to put a virtual fence around the White House, and virtual metal detectors in the Capitol building.

[kabar]

"We will be able to identify, detect and classify more than 95 percent of illegal entries with the virtual wall,"

Maybe we should install virtual walls inside the US so we can figure out how many are already here. Is it 12 million or 20 million?

You can't make this stuff up.

[muawiyah]

No doubt they are still keeping the "death ray" secret, but it's there.

Or, at least the Mexicans ought to believe it's there 'cause they're the ones who have to decide whether it's gonna' be a safe crossing or a puff of smoke in their future.

[kabar]

The Berlin Wall kept people in, not out.

[Shermy]

“What a crock of bovine scatter!!!”

Exactly.

The money saw the idea for the “wall”, and jumped in.

Boeing, etc. with expensive techy solutions 20 times more expensive than a fence, but they pay more bribes than fence builders can.

Pay offs for the Bush Admin, and it serves the Bush Admin’s favorite agenda -

NOT enforcing the law.

Crossers? Ignore them. Turn off the machine. Say “we lack funding to continue to operate”

Bush Admin’s deceit here is tremendous. Okay, might use the expensive doo dad in some remote place, but on the main grounds of traversal?
Deceit after deceit.

[JoanneSD]

The fence worked great here in San diego.. sure stopped most of the illegals coming across...

[JoanneSD]

The fence worked great here in San diego.. sure stopped most of the illegals coming across...

[LibKill]

They can hook up all the electronics they want.

AFTER they build a big, honkin' PHYSICAL fence.

I would prefer 30 feet of sheer concrete topped with razor wire.

[R_Kangel]

So.

We are going to spend a gagillion dollars to set up a virtual fence to "DETECT" illegal trespassers into this country.

We are going to do this even though you can use such low tech detection devices such as, ie: your eyeballs, to watch the illegal movement on any given day or night along border with mexico.

What are we going to do, count them mor efficiently with these ultra high tech devices so we can, meet them to give them their green cards?

All we will get is a bunch of pictures looking something like this:

[R_Kangel]

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