2015-09-03 – So Donald Trump wants to build a wall on our southern border to keep out the immigrants. And Scott Walker wants to build a wall on our norther border for the same reason (though Canada thinks that the traffic runs the other way).

“Something there is that doesn’t love a wall . . .”

There’s been a lot of debate about the effectiveness of walls in keeping out migrants. And it’s pretty persuasive. So it’s got me thinking: if a wall isn’t going to do the job . . .

What about a moat?

Don’t laugh. Egypt and Panama and Nicaragua have all been busy digging big ditches in recent years. The United States was building these things in the 1800s. Ever hear of the Erie Canal? Chicago reversed the direction of the Chicago River. What once flowed into Lake Michigan now flows away from it and eventually drains into the Mississippi River. The Mississippi itself is heavily engineered. And one of the main reasons for the Lewis and Clark expedition of 1804-06 was to explore the feasibility of an all-water route from the Atlantic to the Pacific. It was an idea ahead of its time.

We could fill them with crocodiles, in the south, and polar bears in the north. No one would cross the waters of our north and south border moats!

Just ask Europe. Europe is surrounded on three sides by water.

Okay. Don’t ask Europe. I’m sorry I even mentioned it. Yeah. I know that boatloads of migrants are crossing the Mediterranean to reach European shores. Yeah. I know that many of the boats are decrepit and leaky and have a good chance of capsizing or otherwise sinking. Yeah. I know that some of them have sunk and many have died. But Europe is a different story. Migrants to Europe are fleeing horrendous conditions in Africa and the Middle East.

What could immigrants from Mexico and Central America be fleeing? What could Canadians be fleeing? It’s all a matter of motivation. Who would be motivated enough to cross our border moats?

And if Trump and Walker are still interested in building walls, we’re going to be needing walls on the east and west coasts to keep out the waters of the oceans that are rising due to global warming.

#immigration #climatechange