It’s a unique opportunity. I was never able to watch Israel in action against the Palestinians first hand, and events happened so quickly In Ferguson that the tear gassing was over almost before it started. But now I have my opportunity. The chances are good that the military will continue this long enough for me to see it up close.
I’ve plotted a route from Oregon to Tijuana. 1082 miles; 17 hours, 3 minutes. Two 9 hour days or one straight run. If I take I-5 I can see the poorly maintained California forests that should have been raked. And then the excitement that comes from watching hopeful immigrants scatter in all directions. At least some of them will scatter.
“Designed to force people out from behind barricades and trenches, tear gas causes burning of the eyes and skin, tearing, and gagging. As people flee from its effects, they leave their cover and comrades behind. In addition to its physical consequences, tear gas also provokes terror.’” (1)
So most will run, but in Tijuana some - the children - couldn’t or didn’t. If a person can’t flee there is the danger of getting whacked in the head with a gas canister - a substantial blow. One news report said, “Children screamed and coughed in the mayhem of the tear gas. Fumes were carried by the wind toward people who were hundreds of feet away, not attempting to enter the U.S.” But some were admittedly trying to bypass the fences and barbed wire in an attempt to get into the US. What did they expect, anyway?
So I imagine it will be exciting if the gassing continues. The excitement will be generated by panic. Lots of people running around screaming have that effect. It will be accompanied by fear on our side of the border, because after all, these folks have been labeled terrorists, gang members and criminals. What if they actually bypass the troops? Surely they will overrun our cities, steal our jobs, and rape our women.
And excitement will be generated in us by the knowledge that corporations are profiting from this approach. “Over the past two decades, sales of tear gas, and less-lethal weapons more broadly, have grown substantially. Just as tear-gas salesmen in the 1920s monitored news headlines, today’s chemical executives receive market reports informing them, for instance, that civil unrest has become commonplace in many regions of the world, from protesters in Brazil to activists in the Middle East. Governments have responded by purchasing record amounts of non-lethal weapons.” (2)
Finally there is the recurring hope that the Wall is truly coming. We entertain our dream of it in the knowledge that Donald Trump’s erection won’t be just a barrier to keep the criminal elements out. It will provide order for a government that is sadly under-equipped to process more than ten or twelve immigrants a day, even though they have valid reasons for seeking asylum and the legal right to enter the country.
A wall will help us maintain a white population in the face of a growing citizenry of non-whites. It will reinforce our notion that we are strong, even invincible, in the face of international criticism, and that the executive branch is more powerful than the judiciary. And finally it will reassure us that we don’t have the resources to embrace 2,000, or even 20,000, refugees. I personally don’t want to be reminded that churches all over the country would welcome a family or two and help them resettle. Or that what we might spend erecting a few miles of a wall would accomplish the same thing. Or that the cost of sending thousands of troops to the border is much higher than setting up a tent city, with beds, restrooms and air conditioning to house a lesser number of refugees. I can hardly wait to get there.
(1) Feigenbaum, Anna. “100 Years of Tear Gas.” The Atlantic: August 16, 2014
(2) Ibid
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