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So build a better fence! Ever heard of the Berlin Wall? OK, that was only through Berlin, but the East/West Germany border was apparently pretty successful. O
by hugh3 16y ago
So build a better fence! Ever heard of the Berlin Wall?
OK, that was only through Berlin, but the East/West Germany border was apparently pretty successful.
One thing that's way better than a fence: two fences, half a mile apart, with a minefield in between.
- ryanelkins 16y agoThe Great Wall of China would be a better example. It's even twice as long as the fence that would be needed to cover the US-Mexico border. As effective as your idea is for trying to kill or maim people who break the law in an attempt to provide better lives for themselves would be, I think it would run afoul of human rights issues.
- hugh3 16y agopeople who break the law in an attempt to provide better lives for themselves I'm not sure how the fact that they're attempting to provide a better life for themselves is supposed to be an excuse. Bank robbers are also attempting to provide a better life for themselves, too.
- rationalbeaver 16y agoThere is a difference between stealing money to fuel your greed and stealing a loaf of bread because you're starving. Or speeding for the thrill vs. speeding to get your pregnant wife to the hospital. His assertion is that illegal immigration often follows a similar pattern.
- bad_user 16y agoYeah, people should put some land-mines in front of that safe-deposit box.
- yummyfajitas 16y agoI don't see a human rights problem with a well marked minefield between two fences. Anyone who wishes to avoid being blown up can pay attention to the "Warning: land mines" sign and not climb over the fence topped with barbed wire. Similarly, the zoo isn't violating your human rights if you ignore the "warning: bears" sign, swim through the moat, and then get eaten by the bears.
- starkfist 16y agoThat's the stupidest thing I've ever seen anyone write on hacker news. Kudos.
- yummyfajitas 16y agoDo you believe the Berlin zoo is also guilty of violating human rights? http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7014745730 http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7014745730
- starkfist 16y agoThere's a minefield at the Berlin Zoo? I guess I take back my original post - it was the second stupidest thing I've ever seen posted here.
- yummyfajitas 16y agoYou can call me stupid all day, but it might be helpful if you explained why you believe one danger (land mines) is a human rights violation but another danger (bears) is not. Would it not be a human rights violation if we used bears (or other animals better suited to the southwest) as a deterrent for border crossing rather than land mines?
- starkfist 16y agoIt's friday afternoon, this is new york. I'm here to call you stupid. Don't you have some high frequency trading to do over there in Jersey City?
- jbooth 16y agoSeriously, you should do some reading on minefields. They're one of the most awful things a war can leave behind. The thought of us doing this to our own territory is ridiculous.
- 16y ago
- tomjen3 16y agoI can see that you have never been to Berlin. They have an entire museum dedicated to show the different ways people would get over, under and frequently through the wall. It will absolutely blow your mind.
- hugh3 16y agoBeen there, seen it, had my mind blown (assume much?). I'm not saying there's such a thing as an impenetrable border fence, I'm just saying that you could do a lot better than is currently being done. If there were ten thousand illegal immigrants in the US instead of ten million, it wouldn't have the deleterious effects on agricultural wages (and consequently job prospects for low-skilled US workers) that it has.
- bad_user 16y ago> If there were ten thousand illegal immigrants in the US instead of ten million, it wouldn't have the deleterious effects on agricultural wages They took your job? Seriously? :-) For the future, don't worry ... agriculture is exactly the kind of work that will be done by robots. If it is not already, that's just because your unions are out of control, which made countries like Japan take the leadership in the robotics industry.
- cynicalkane 16y agoI assume you're talking about the Checkpoint Charlie museum? They also show you how dangerous and complicated these escape plans were, and talk about how few people pulled them off.