The issue about the invasion by illegal aliens onto Texas soil is confused with many sub-plots, philosophical observations, general confusion, and purposeful misunderstanding. It seems that every person has a slightly different belief or feeling about what should be done and why, about the hordes of mainly parasitic people coming across at this time.
My prejudices and experiences, my understandings and knowledge of the issues lead me to certain positions that I feel to be totally accurate and supported by reason and fact. My experiences are anchored into considerable reading and study of Mexico and Latin America, including a degree in Sociology with an general studies emphasis on historical, social, anthropological, archaeological, geographical, political, industrial, commercial, and religious matters pertaining to especially Mexico.
My family has been active in and around Mexico since the 1880s, with my great-grandfather having been an active rancher in central Vera Cruz State, with a tropical, mountain Bali Hi - type tropical fruit and coffee operation in the mid-piedmont parts of the Sierra Madre Oriental. His operation was approximately 600 hectareas, or about 1,400 acres. He prospered there until that area was hit by three hard freezes in four years, complete with snow, sleet, and brutally freezing temperatures.
My father and mother conducted complicated and diversified agricultural activities ranging from a large citrus grove care operation, as well as cotton and vegetable farming in and around McAllen, Texas for thirty years. My father served in the mounted, 1st Cavalry Division, 12th Regiment, Headquarters Squadron at various places in the Lower Rio Grande Valley, San Antonio, and the Big Bend area of Texas.
My wife and I owned and operated a very classy excursion service, for over 20 years, carrying several thousand people on deluxe tours throughout Mexico. I have worked with some success as a "hired gun" business representative and negotiator and advisor representing businesses wishing to buy or sell in Mexico. We have a small, but very pleasant little place in Mexico that we use as a permanent residence, retirement place, Bed and Brunch place, wildlife and birdwatching paradise, and a place to feed three dogs and three cats upon their demand.
Many OROGs already know much about these things. But the new readers probably do not. Sometimes the new readers do not click onto things like the access to the Quinta Tesoro de la Sierra Madre, or read about El Gringo Viejo's vitae curricula found in the right panel. My Texian mentality comes from being here for a good while, making my grandchildren 7th generation people by my side, and 15th generation on my wife's side, Texian. My wife is a slight bit further to the right than her husband.
This summary is included so as to qualify this witness as something a bit more than an opinion factory. Blowhard, yes....but something a bit more than an opinion factory.
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Yesterday, I drove up about 225 miles from our place up against the mountains in Mexico and crossed back over into Texas and went through my recovery ceremony. To-day, my wife made certain that I would mow my mother-in-law's yard....in the morning....during my somnambulance. It did help to clear my thought processes and commitment to this effort now.
There is quite a bit of misunderstanding about what is going on concerning the Central American refugees currently inundating the Lower Rio Grande Valley's Border Patrol district. Well over 90% of all the Central Americans coming in to the United States cross here. It is more convenient as they advance to the north, through the Mexican States of Chiapas and Oaxaca, and through the Isthmus of Tehuantepec that connects the Pacific Basin to the Atlantic Basin. Some ride a somewhat daily freight train (all locomotives in that area are called "Bestias", or beasts). There are no passenger cars, so one can imagine. But, listening to Hannity or O'Reilly....or reading almost any Obsolete Press reports, Americans are led to understand that the Central Americans come up riding atop and holding on alongside freight trains, while at the same time being herded up by "coyote - cartel" people who charge 7,000 USD to conduct said Central Americans to some point in the United States. Such is not the case. Lamentably, even Rush made reference to the "illegals riding a train up from Guatemala to Texas"...but that is not what happens.
The soon-to-be illegal aliens ride the train to an area between the large and important cities of Minatitlan - Coatzacoalcos and Vera Cruz on the Mexican Gulf Coast. But fewer than 20% even do that. But by that point, 100% make their way to or near the City of Vera Cruz. They will walk, take busses, or hitch rides. Measuring their money and girding their loins, they will hope to buy a ticket on the fairly nice, second-class bus service that, with some comfort and efficiency....not much, but some....will be delivered up through Tuxpan, Tampico, San Fernando, and Reynosa. It is quite a ride. It is high adventure for a pregnant woman with two children in two seats, and perhaps 200 dollars left in her purse and having no idea what lies ahead.
It should be noted that almost 80% of the first time "adventure tourists" have never seen such luxury as they are encountering in Mexico. The highways, the busses, the food and selections, the industry and abundance all will amaze them. They will also notice that the people become more and more Caucasian as they move to the north, and fewer and fewer have the Indian features to which they are accustomed. People from Quetzaltenango, Guatemala and the surrounding area...save for very few...will have never seen any such economic activity as they are encountering in Mexico.
For the repeating illegal aliens, they are already familiar. But they must think, "If this can be in Mexico, why not in Honduras?"
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Governor Perry, although he has taken some active measures within his existing authority...and may take more...gave Hannity a good ride, and delivered a lot of information. Much of the information was accurate, but 900 horsepower gunboats running up and down the Rio Grande has no significant impact on any of the issues affecting the Rio Grande or the illegal Central American alien inundation. The twin - 50s machine runs really aren't the best way to handle the issue. People just wait until the gunboats flash past at 60 knots and then continue about their business.
It is true however that the Texas Department of Public Safety has had some positive effect in backing up local authority in the pursuit and detention of criminal and other types of illegal aliens who use the Lower Rio Grande Valley as a trampoline. There have been special helicopter and fixed-wing assets, along with increased Texas Ranger presence and special operations units of the Texas DPS.
Where Governor Perry is incorrect, terribly incorrect, is in the notion that this inundation could be turned around with the deployment of 1,000 National Guard to work "in co-ordination" with Immigration and Customs and with the Border Patrol. A mix of highly trained National Guard and Regular Army infantry units numbering perhaps 50,000 would be a minimum to have any impact on the 1,000 miles of the Rio Grande as it pertains to Texas. There are simply too many miles with sparse-to-no population. And there are urban complexities that make the presence of 1,000 NGs pretty much a useless deployment.
With reference to Obama's contention that the border has never been so secure and that there has never been any time that had more "boot on the ground" protecting the frontier is ludicrous. In the period of the disorders associated with the Mexican Revolution of 1910 - 1917, Hidalgo County of Texas (McAllen area) alone had over 100,000 Regular Army and National Guard mounted and infantry. Such a silly, ignorant, arrogant, lying jackass. Please disregard anything he says, because his motives are simply to destroy the country by large and small efforts.
Much is said about the cartels. Cartel, cartel, cartel...the invincible, all powerful cartels. Evil and vile, yes. All powerful, no. And now for some real news, the OROGs should know that one of the reasons the people from Central America are coming through Tamaulipas and to McAllen is because of the general pacification, especially of the excesses of the cartel activity in the State. Earlier this year, when the Mexican central government deployed several additional regiments of highly trained Mexican Army and Naval Infantry into the State (essentially bringing Tamaulipas into a martial law situation) there were numerous sweeps and in-force investigations. Cartel activity and even the extortion rackets and drug and alien smuggling has been severely crippled. Leaders of ever smaller cells of what are essentially gangs are less and less competent and present fewer and fewer menaces to people. That is why the Central American illegal aliens were coming across the Rio Grande with their children and searching out Border Patrol vans and patrol units and officers on patrol, so as to allow themselves to be arrested and detained. Most were coming across without the aid of any coyote....and I mean the huge majority.
The problem there is that MS-13 animals are mixed in with these people. Usually, the MS-13 member is a "re-entry" just going back to his base gang in Houston or Chicago or some appropriate place. But they are trying to avoid contact with the Mexican military and the new Federal Civil Police, because that will mean certain incarceration in Mexico now, just for having the MS-13 tattoos.
The Army liberated 160 or so people just a couple of days ago from a house in Reynosa, across from McAllen, acting on community provided information. That was interesting because it was the first time in a couple of months that such a thing had happened, and people commented about how good it was that it was becoming rare.....finally.
The Mexican military is also becoming more active, on its own, in the apprehension and deportation (under the auspices of the Secretaria de Gobernacion) of increasing numbers of illegal entrants. More on that later.
Perhaps to-morrow we shall continue with this matter. Suffice to say that there is no need for "immigration reform", especially when, like "hope and change" such un-defined terms are meaningless....phoney fodder for focus groups. Until the frontier is reasonably and solidly sealed, permitting only legal interaction, tourism, and business there should be only enforcement, deportation, and penal detention for repeat illegal entrants and illegal entrant criminals.
El Gringo Viejo
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