So much hyperbole has been written about the violence of the Mexican drug wars spilling over the border, that I'm finding it hard to reconcile this ginned up media hype and the reality of living in a border region of the US.  There is elevated violence across the border to the south, but to say it is 'spilling' onto US soil appears, from my perspective, to be melodramatic fodder, designed to entertain those of us from northern climes, who dream of a more exotic America to the south.  Alternatively, it might be construed as a marketing pitch from manufacturers of security, surveillance, military and law enforcement gadgetry and services.  For those of us who live here along the border, things seem to be not so different than any other city, and in many cases, it's much better.  Josh Marshall recently linked to this compelling article in Austin's Texas Observer which is well worth the read in order to gain some perspective on this issue.  

While we were susceptible to the fears being hawked like poppies on veterans day in post 9/11 America, there was a massive shift taking place in security infrastructure on all our borders, but more especially on our border with Mexico.  There are problems with illegal immigration, most of which are not being dealt with effectively or economically through US immigration and border policy.   What is US imigration/border policy...  Stem the influx of illegal aliens entering the States and stealing low paid American jobs... check.   Curtail the flow of illegal drugs across a porous border with Mexico... check.  Remove a possible channel of ingress for terrorists, crawling through miles of arroyos in order to penetrate the heartland of our nation... check.  {{{{rewind}}}}    Are we successful in any of these policy goals, and to the extent that we are, can our policy be refined?  There is no economically feasible way forward in stemming the flow of narcotics into the US via our current policies.  The economics of the drug business, requires an escalation on the part of the traffikers for each escalation on our part in securing our borders.  It's a numbers game we are destined to lose.  I'm sure the government would like to tell us about the successes intercepting terrorists in the Sonoran and Chihuahuan Deserts if only it wouldn't compromise national security.  In the end, the terrorists are more refined in their approach and with better financial and intelligence resources than the poor Mexicanos wading the river in search or a minimum wage job.  Ironically, the contracting US economy probably does as much or more in stemming the tide of illegal immigrants into the country as the availability of jobs shrinks, as do our policies.  In addition, there is reason to believe that clamping down on illegal immigration from Mexico to the US will result in a net drain on the US economy, and that our money is better spent on other venues than building fences, and patrolling borders.

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