Border Patrol Turns To Explosives To Build Wall In Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument

Why can't the story like this be written without politcal bias.  As soon as I read the authors term "Trumps wall" I knew that I would need to read closer to scrape out facts rather than conjecture.

So, are you somehow operating under the assumption that any other administration, regardless of political affiliation, would be redirecting this much of America's resources to build this kind of wall using these kinds of construction methods in these kinds of protected areas?  I'm old enough to have clear memories of the Eisenhower, Nixon, Reagan, and George H. W. and George W. administrations and I didn't see much to agree with in any of them.  But, I can strongly attest that none of them, not one, would have spent this much to build this kind of wall this way thorough these protected areas.  No, this wall is not a republican thing.  It's certainly not a democrat thing.  No, this is "Trump's border wall" and any bias you perceive is not a political bias; it's a bias against corruption, narcissistic personality disorder, and the cowardice of sycophants.  

You put up anything that doesn't allow for water flow from north to south and that solid wall will only be a dam. 

So, you admit that, although other politicians may have supported the idea of better border security and even supported a fence in some places, it was only Trump who made a border wall "happen" in its current form?  Well, I guess that means it really is "Trump's border wall" and this issue is settled.  Sorry, Egre, ecbuck has spoken  ...again.  Thanks, Buck. 

Go Trumps wall!!!  Quit bellyaching people!  It's America's wall as well,  for our security.  Let it go and enjoy yourselves for a change.

Building the wall is destroying the integrity of Organic Pipe National Monument. This administration has a total disregard for protecting ispiritsl and burial sites, sacred lands whether it be in Arizona, Utah with bears Ears National Monument or the Arctic National wildlife Refuge. It is clear with Trump administration, there are no laws to imoede his destructive agenda. Future generations will ask of us " How could you let this happen?"

Rick B., you ask "Why do they continually ignore the archeological sites?"  Well,"they" don't just "ignore" them; "they" actually do their best to see that those sites get "plowed under" and forgotten.  It's called cultural nullification and it's a standard tactic of every narcissistic, racist, jingoist, domineering, paranoid, cultist gang in history.  I could write a book on it.

In November of 1938, in a fit of irrational narcissistic racial, cultural, political, and quasi-religious rage known as Kristallnacht, the rightwing in Germany destroyed synagogues, homes, schools, and businesses, burning books and murdering along the way.  Jews were their target on that occasion; but, other cultures deemed undesirable to the rightwing also suffered collateral damage.  What started as cultural intimidation and nullification on Kristallnacht became genocide at Dachau and Auschwitz.

Decades later, when the Taliban brought their own sick fanaticism to Afghanistan, they destroyed anything that did not conform to their perverse views.  They burned nonconforming texts and historical records, defaced artworks, and demolished cultural artifacts, including the 1,700 year old Buddhist shrine and giant statuary at Bamiyan.  When ISIS rose to power in Iraq, they took the same path, erasing all traces of philosophies or cultures that differed from their own.  They burned libraries and demolished countless churches, monasteries, and shrines, including the mosques and shrines of Muslim sects that did not conform to ISIS beliefs.  ISIS fanatics destroyed historical sites, along with ancient sites, including Nimrud, Palmyra, and Hatra, even pointlessly destroying priceless artifacts in museums.

Efforts to erase cultural evidence of other races, religions, ethnicities, or political persuasions are not uncommon.  Left to fester in the darkness of ignorance, narcissism routinely leads to the rise of rightwing cults that cannot tolerate deviations from what they see as their own singular perfection.  When rightwing thinking takes hold, cultural nullification soon follows.  Even America has not been immune to such abominations.

Native Americans have long faced cultural erasure efforts.  The history of the so-called “Five Civilized Tribes” is a graphic example of efforts to erase tribal traditions, languages, and identities in the east.  The so-called “Five Civilized Tribes” made heroic efforts to accept and even mimick the broader American culture of the time.  They retreated to a core fraction of their original territories; organized themselves for tribal governance along the lines of the federal government of that time; adopted the clothing, customs, language, and laws of colonial and post-colonial America; created an advanced and enlightened society celebrated as a model of progress by our Founding Fathers; and won unwavering support from John Quincy Adams in the process.  Yet, these peoples were still evicted from their already vastly diminished remaining homeland by Andrew Jackson as soon as Jackson realized that inflicting even further cultural insult on the “Five Civilized Tribes” was his ticket to whipping up southern votes and blocking John Quincy Adams’ bid for a second term.  The ignorance and narcissism of those voters had been allowed to fester too long; they simply could not tolerate deviations from what they saw as their own singular perfection; and nothing the “Five Civilized Tribes” could do was ever going to be enough to blunt Andrew Jackson’s rallying cries for cultural erasure.

We’ve had our own thinly disguised eugenics advocacies in the American West, with similar suppression and erasure efforts being aimed at numerous cultures and groups, including, but not limited to, Hispanics, Asians, and, of course, Native Americans.  Animosity over public lands has often been associated with efforts to erase cultural evidence of races, religions, ethnicities, and political persuasions that deviate from what homegrown rightwing groups see as their own singular perfection.  A contention reinforced by the fact that public lands animosity has so often intensified in response to any attempt to enforce federal civil rights laws.

Let’s recall, for example, the occupation of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon.  In 2016, members of a variety of rightwing cults attacked and forcibly occupied the refuge for roughly six weeks.  The attack and occupation were allegedly in protest of federal public lands policies, environmental protection policies, and the incarceration of a pair of fellow extremists who had set fire to large areas on the refuge.  And, allegedly, the intent of that arson was to increase grazing on the refuge; but, there was and still is suspicion that it was also intended to incinerate evidence of market scale poaching on the refuge.  Either way, other details of what happened there are specifically relevant to this discussion.  At over 180,000 acres, the refuge is not small and, although Native American cultural sites on the refuge go back an estimated 10,000 years, significant sites really take up only a tiny fraction of the total area of the refuge.  Yet, during their illegal occupation, these rightwing cultists illegally commandeered a government backhoe and just happened, by alleged coincidence, to cut their latrine trench right through one of those significant sites.  But, that was no coincidence; it was a deliberate act of intentional cultural erasure and nullification.

The irrationally intense outcry over and opposition to Bears Ears National Monument is just another illustration of the perennial clash between the rightwing on one side and cultural or environmental initiatives advocated by races or cultures that deviate from what the rightwing sees as its own singular perfection on the other.  As soon as the hollering died down about monument designation being rescinded and protections lifted, the local rightwing was pushing for new roads and sneaking in to use ancient pictographs for target practice.  Again, that wasn’t just recreation.  Those were acts of cultural erasure and nullification.

Now we're witnessing what's happening along the border in Arizona.  Let's call it what it is.

I thought I had made the full nature of cultural nullification clear; but, in rereading things, I believe I need to make sure that I have adequately communicated some key concepts.  As I have already noted, cultural nullification is, at its lowest and most basic level, simply motivated by the instinctual fear, intolerance, and animosity of narcissistic personalities toward anyone or anything they believe to be a deviation from what they see as their own singular perfection.  They see "the other" as a potential threat and fear it.  However, cultural nullification also has two, more strategic, underlying purposes.

First, cultural nullification is a tool, a mechanism, a campaign, used to demean, belittle, and discredit, if not outright villify, others, as well as their culture and contributions, as a means of diminishing or eliminating any power or influence others might wield within societies that narcissistic personalities seek to "purify" in order to control completely.  To feel completely in control of a society, the narcissistic personality needs to completely "purify" and dominate all elements of its population who might have any power or influence within that society; all "others" must be rendered essentially powerless.  To ensure such purification and domination, every aspect of that society's culture, its institutions, its collective memory, its folklore, every aspect that confers or could confer "authority" or "power" within that society must redefined and redirected to reflect the culture of the dominant group; all other cultural elements within that society must either be safely demeaned to a lower, powerless, level or just eliminated.  I believe the historic, factual, examples that I provided in my previous posting demonstrate this concept.  This is why the rightwing in Germany destroyed synagogues.  This is why the Taliban demolished the 1,700 year old Buddhist shrine at Bamiyan and why ISIS destroyed Palmyra.  This is why the rightwing cultists who invaded Malheur National Wildlife Refuge chose to dig their latrine through an ancient Native American cultural site.  In each case, the dominant culture wanted to demean and belittle "the others" and to erase memory and evidence of others in order to render powerless and discredit any influence those others or their heirs might have over society or any stake those others or their heirs might have in resources or property the dominant culture might covet.  To a great extent, the Third Reich was funded by what it stole.

Second, I need to discuss the often revealing nature of perpetrators' reponses when called on their crimes.  To a great extent, the selfish greed of the narcissistic personality drives it to live as a predator, a parasite, and on its transgressions; thus, in order to thrive, the narcissistic personality is always covering its tracks, hiding its crimes, and fabricating excuses.  One of the best tactics for fabricating excuses is for the perpetrator to demean or belittle the victim, thereby belittling and minimizing the crime.  Those little kids aren't citizens; they're penniless vagrants whose parents brought them here and abandoned them; they shouldn't be here and we don't owe them any better care than they're getting.  Often, an even better tactic for fabricating an excuse is for the perpetrator to turn the tables on the victim by outright vilifying them.  I didn't do a thing; my behavior was perfect; her own people hacked their own server just to smear me.  Sometimes the perpetrator can combine the two tactics to create a thick broth of deflection.  We're not the ones spreading disinformation; they are; our side hasn't done anything that hasn't been done by everyone else many times before (kind of true if you consider the examples from my earlier posting); he's the one wearing the tin foil hat; and he's trying to smear our side.

So, it might be useful to understand these concepts if you ever encounter them in real life.  But, I guess that's not likely; after all, nobody would be so corrupt as to engage in such behavior in this day and age.

To those who think that Democrats (and Republicans) wanted this wall and had voted for it before: check your history.  Absolutely not.  Democrats and Republicans on a bipartisan basis voted for the Secure Fence Act in 2006 in order to improve border security with sensible barriers, suitable to the context, where needed.  Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, which at that time had major problems with incursions by smugglers and traffickers (no longer, by the way) - a ranger was even murdered there in 2002 - was certainly such a place.  That's why, and also that's when, the current Normandy-style vehicle barriers were installed, in consultation with the National Park Service.

Why vehicle barriers?  Because smugglers and traffickers routinely used vehicles driven across the open desert in order to enter our country illegally.  Its not hard to see why.  South of the border is certainly not a wilderness (all the telephone poles, buildings, etc that you see in pictures here are on the Mexico side, except for the little town of Lukeville proper).  As such, there is easy access to our border from Mexico Highway 2.  But north of the border, it is almost entirely wilderness for dozens of miles.  The best way by far to keep going north, once having crossed, is by vehicle.  This desert to the north of the border is far too wild, deep and formidable to allow for practical foot crossing, especially in summer, especially if carrying heavy parcels (contraband) as well as survival gear.  Those who tried risked dying.  So this is why when the present vehicle barriers went in, the situation at Organ Pipe radically improved.  Closed parts of the park re-opened; trashed desert areas were restored; etc.  It worked.

As for the impacts from those vehicle barriers now being ripped out and replaced: They were minimal in comparison.  The vehicle barriers allow for the passage of water and wildlife, and are hardly any less scenic than any Western traditional split rail fence.  The adjacent patrol corridor, half the width of its replacement, got the job done.  And no night-time floodlighting (but with night vision equipment, who cares).  *That* is what Democrats (and Republicans) wanted, voted for, and got.  Not the travesty currently under construction to replace it.

Lastly, to those who contend this is just a minimal part of the park: not so.  See my comment on the other thread ("Organ Pipe Cactus Will Suffer Irreversible Destruction"), so as not to repeat myself here.

I need to correct one thing I wrote above.  The current vehicle barriers at Organ Pipe went in shortly before the Secure Fence Act passed in 2006, not because of it. The Secure Fence Act instead did authorize a large and impermeable double fence along 700 miles of border, including Organ Pipe.  And many Democrats did vote for that act - to their folly, in my opinion, I might add.

But such a fence at Organ Pipe was never actually funded; it seems the votes to take that final step, bipartisan or otherwise, weren't there (all of the same objections to such a fence were being raised then as are being raised now).  In any case, the current wall under construction goes well beyond what was authorized in that act; and anyway, the Secure Fence Act was amended in 2008 (again, by bipartisan vote) to stipulate that lesser types of barrier, or none at all, would be permissible along that 700 mile stretch when deemed sufficient.

ecbuck, because the Secure Fence Act was amended two years later to include: "Nothing in this paragraph shall require the Secretary of Homeland Security to install fencing, physical barriers, roads, lighting, cameras, and sensors in a particular location along an international border of the United States, if the Secretary determines that the use or placement of such resources is not the most appropriate means to achieve and maintain operational control over the international border at such location".  

So impermeable, impassable barriers - indeed barriers of any particular type - are not required along the entire 700 miles that were authorized.  It is left up to DHS strategic and tactical discretion, taking into account what is "appropriate" for the location.

The current effort, though, seeks to overrule that discretion with a presidentially-mandated impermeable wall (taller than the one envisioned in the act, too) along the entire 700 mile length, Organ Pipe included.  This, despite evidence-on-the-ground showing that the current barrier has vastly improved the situation, while having none of the scenic, ecological, archaeological or hydrological impacts that the wall would have.  The current barrier is an effective compromise between security and resource protection, within the scope of the Secure Fence Act as amended, but the wall now going up goes well beyond that.

PolitiFact has more on this: https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2011/may/16/barack-obama/obama-say...

Forgot to mention: a second way in which the Organ Pipe wall goes well beyond what was originally envisioned, is that it was originally envisioned that money for the wall would be secured, as usual, as with every other major capital outlay for major infrastructure of the federal government, through duly passed Congressional appropriations.  As we all know, that never happened, and so our President has taken a page from the dictator's playbook and simply declared a bogus "emergency" (never mind that this does not meet the definition of emergency laid out in the National Emergencies Act) and allocated the funds on his own.

I live near the border and fear only the racist loons who roam the area playing vigilante.  And yes, of course, it is Trump's wall.  There is even a plaque to that effect on the wall near Yuma.  Since he lied about Mexico paying for his wall, he is robbing congressionally authorized DoD funds to pay for it.  The wall is really just a 30-foot high monument to Trump's ego.

Mike B., you're right about all of it, except there are a lot more egos invested in this lunacy than just Trump's.  America's rightwing has bred itself a whole collection of these fanatical narcissists over the past four decades or so and Trump has spun them into a full-fledged cult.

Good points, Velouria.  Also worth noting:

- The Secure Fence Act was amended within a year to say that, despite such fencing having been authorized along that 700-mile stretch, no fencing was required where it would not be appropriate.  The same Democrats you mention supported that clarification as well, which helps to put it all in context.  Anyway, with that amendment, its far from clear that this Act legitimates what is going on at Organ Pipe Cactus, where park resource impacts (scenery, endangered species, animal migration, flood and spring hydrology) plus lack of tactical necessity (border arrests down, smuggling down, dangerous contraband down - all due to the current sufficient vehicle barrier) add up to make the wall inappropriate.

- Furthermore the Secure Fence Act did not appropriate any funds to build such fencing at Organ Pipe Cactus, not did it authorize expenditure of funds on such fencing outside of the normal appropriations process.  Trump's "national emergency" declaration, and subsequent dubious end-run around the constitutional budget process, plus the Republican-leaning Supreme Court's intervention last August to lift the preliminary injunction, are the only reasons the wall construction in this area is now happening.

I’ve been going to that area 1969 and many nights after midnight there were several illegals down in Lukeville behind the Chevron station asking for rides north. The Mexican highway is about 300 feet from the dirt roads visitors in the park travel on. The fence was only 3 strand barb wire and anyone could cross either direction. 

Its a very pretty area and that wall will save lives in both countries.

I am extremely against the use of explosives in Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument in order to further the president’s agenda of building a wall! A wall is not necessary and I am very opposed to that concept, but that is not what this comment is about. Explosives are very destructive. They would be used to blast into the hillside for the border wall to be installed. It is considered, “controlled blasting”, but I do not think that that term is rooted in truth. Blasting cannot be controlled; it is inherently more powerful than humans and, therefore, not completely predictable or controllable. It is stated that the blasting is targeted, but this is not a realistic thing to say. Blasting disrupts wildlife and vegetation nearby it. This could cause severe harm to the surrounding ecosystem.

Moreover, there are undiscovered artifacts and human remains in the area, as there has been human presence in that location dating back as early as 300-1500 AD. Blasting will destroy these archaeological treasures. This is not the only damaging process in this situation- bulldozing ravages native saguaro cacti. This area is valuable and should be preserved and cherished for generations to come without explosives and other destructive practices ruining it. The Sonoran Desert is special, “It receives more rainfall, on average, than other deserts, and is biologically rich, with more than 600 plant species and more than 50 mammalian species. Nearly 300 bird species, and 50 types of amphibian and reptilian species, also have been counted in the monument. Taken as a whole, it’s understandable why the park in 1976 was designated an International Biosphere Reserve”. Furthermore, the article also informs readers that there is, “Rich human history here, too, dating back 15,000 years. The Old Salt Trail was used by cultures down through the centuries to bring salt, seashells, and obsidian gathered from Sea of Cortez salt beds at Sonora, Mexico, northward through this landscape. The Tohono O’odham culture relied on the fruit of the saguaros and organ pipe cactus for food”. Clearly, this area needs to be cherished and protected, not blasted and destroyed; I hope that policy makers come to the same realization before it is too late. 

Maybe you call it Kris Eggle's wall?

This wall will also hinder the movement of wildlife.  Water sources are few and far between and the wall will endanger their lives.  There are many endangered species within the park.  There are toads that  hibernate until they feel thunder and come out for the rain.  Trucks and explosives will make them come out early and die.  This is devastating to the wildlife.  I am adamantly against illegal immigration (in as much as I don't want my money paying for other people), but this is not the answer.

Grateful for this wall. We may actually visit this area again. 

This place is a National Monument in an International Biosphere Reserve. Let's leave off spatting about how the impediment got there and start concentrating on getting it down, eh?