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I got to thinking about this "Secure Fence Act" that Congress passed and President Bush signed last week, just before the election, to try to slow/stop illegal immigration from Mexico. I wondered how the fence compared to the Great Wall of China and the Berlin Wall (which Mexico's president compares to this idea). The Great Wall is 2,175 miles long; the Berlin Wall was 103 miles long. The Great Wall of China, like the proposed Mexican border fence, was designed to keep people out. The Berlin Wall was built to keep people in.

The 700 miles of fence would include:

• 361 miles from Calexico, Calif., to Douglas, Ariz.
• 176 miles from Laredo to Brownsville, Texas
• 51 miles from Del Rio to Eagle Pass, Texas
• 88 miles from El Paso, Texas, to Columbus, N.M.
• 22 miles in Tecate, Calif., near San Diego

(Here's a CNN article about the planned fencing, and here's a link to an accompanying map.) In addition to the fence, the bill also authorizes more vehicle barriers, checkpoints and lighting to help prevent people from entering our country illegally. The bill authorizes the Department of Homeland Security to increase the use of cameras, satellites and unmanned aerial vehicles to patrol the border.

But CNN explains there is a difference between "authorize" and "pay for." There are guesses that the fence might cost more than $2 billion. But based on the cost for a smaller security fence near San Diego, it could be double that. The bill basically gives permission to spend $1.2 billion if somebody can figure out where the money will come from. Even the Minutemen who press for more border security are not happy about the bill that Bush signed. CNN explains:

But missing from the law are the funds to pay for it.

The act provides no funding mechanism for the fence, though a $1.2 billion appropriation was approved as part of a bill the president signed this month. There are no concrete numbers, but estimates suggest the fence would cost twice that amount. The earlier bill, however, stipulates that the $1.2 billion could be used for a fence, lighting, vehicle barriers and high-tech equipment.

A poll released Wednesday by Opinion Research Corp. finds that 74 percent of the 1,013 Americans surveyed are in favor of more U.S. agents along the border, while 45 percent said they want a 700-mile fence along the border.

The CNN poll also said that 67 percent of respondents would like to see fewer illegal immigrants in the country, but 34 percent said they should be removed.

The fence bill has earned the ire of U.S. southern neighbors, as Mexican President-elect Felipe Calderon this month called the proposal "deplorable" and Foreign Secretary Luis Ernesto Derbez said Mexico was considering taking the issue to the United Nations, according to The Associated Press.

Calderon and President Vicente Fox later ruled out approaching the international body, and Fox said about three weeks ago he was "confident" the fencing would never come to fruition, the AP reported.

Environmental Concerns

Some conservationists worry that a big fence would affect wildlife, including migratory birds that use the moon and stars to navigate their migration. Wildlife experts worry about what the effect of big lights will do to migratory patterns.

Do Walls/Fences Work?

The Washington Post took a long view on this question, pointing out that even the Great Wall of China didn't prevent intruders from coming in.

Polls, Polls and More Polls

Here is a collection of polling reports from around the country as Election Day nears.

Time Change Produces Deer Danger

I would be interested to know if this is true where you live. The northeast Mississippi Daily Journal in Tupelo says the change back to standard time produces more problems for drivers because deer don't change their clocks -- people do. The story explains:

Because deer move around before sunrise and after sunset, the chances of a deer-vehicle collision increase because of the time change.

"Now when people get off work and go home the sun still is up and the deer are still in the woods," said Lee County Sheriff Jim Johnson. "As soon as the sun goes down, deer come out and that's going to put them on the same roads as the people going home from work and that's a collision waiting to happen. Our deer-related accidents really go up after October."

Understanding deer patterns can help cut down on these accidents, said Scott Edwards, a wildlife biologist with the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks.

"Deer move about two hours before sunrise and two hours after sunset," said Edwards. "During those four hours you'll see more deer activity than any other time. Now sunset falls at 7 o'clock when most people are already home from work and settled in. When the sun starts setting at 5:30 p.m. after daylight-saving time, people will still be on their way home from work, and this puts them on the same roads with the deer.

"Deer don't have clocks, they don't change their patterns. We do."

Edwards said the grass that's planted on the roadsides to stop erosion attracts deer for feeding, putting them in a position to be hit by vehicles.

"Up until the fall, deer feed in the woods on rye and other types of grasses," explained Edwards. "Now those things have started dying out, pushing the deer to the road to feed."

There is no doubt that deer collisions are big news around the country. Look at all of these stories.

See the "Top 10 states" for deer-car crashes in 2005. See this page from the New Jersey Audubon Society.

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