"Light up" the borders!

Overcome the language barrier

By Tom Kovach

the background

The vast majority of my Air Force career (Aug 1975 until Nov 1991, when I was illegally "downsized") involved law enforcement, security, anti-terrorism, and counter-terrorism. Some of those duties were mundane, even boring. But, as the saying goes, our job was "98% boredom, occasionally interrupted by terror." My duties also included recovering "black boxes" from plane crash sites, preventing an international incident (related to the Tehran embassy hostage crisis), designing the security for a high-tech facility, a protection detail for President Reagan, and a "hot offload" or two. I've met people from many different countries and cultures (both in and out of the military), and have conversed with some of them in their own languages. This background gives rise to a suggestion for improving our border security. My suggestion would overcome all potential language barriers. (Even if we printed border warning signs in every language on Earth, some people can't read their own language.) If elected to Congress this fall, I plan to bring this suggestion to the proper authorities within our government. But, to succeed, the suggestion would need popular support. Hence, this column.

When I was stationed in Korea (1980-81), tensions were quite high. For the first month that I was there, the Tehran embassy crisis was still in progress. Terrorists had attacked American interests and allies. The Soviet Union was occupying Afghanistan. A young soldier from then-Czechoslovakia had attempted to defect by literally running south through the DMZ from North Korea. His bold move was met with machinegun fire — from both directions, because the American and Republic of Korea (ROK — "the South") troops immediately returned the fire that had come from North Korean positions. (How that kid made it through the crossfire is beyond me.) Unfortunately, his bravery was for naught. In an exercise of "diplomatic good will," the young soldier was given back to North Korea after a few days. I cannot imagine what fate awaited him.

Amidst those high tensions, we were stationed in an American compound on a South Korean base. As we patrolled the airfield each evening, the setting sun would illuminate a bare spot in the forest that overlooked the base from a steep mountainside. The spot was bare because all the trees had been burned away during an incident a few years prior. From that spot, a team of North Korean commandos had been spying on our base from the mountainside. The presence of the commandos became known after hikers came upon the campsite of a family that had been hacked to pieces. The brutal murders were the result of the fact that the family of campers had stumbled upon the commandos. The hikers reported their findings to ROK authorities. They sent out the ROK Rangers to hunt for the spies. When the ROK Rangers caught the North Korean commandos, they tortured information out of them, then hacked them to pieces, then set the entire area on fire. Hence, the blank spot on the mountain overlooking our base.

(If you ever see a soldier wearing an emblem on his chest — showing a knife encircled by a chain — do not pick a fight with that man! ROK Ranger training is brutal. I was on a volunteer waiting list for that school, but did not attend it. Later, when I was at a drop zone with some members of ROK Special Forces, they described the training. It was one of the few times that I was ever glad that I did not take up a challenge.)

Because of the high level of tensions, the ROK Army had an effective method for helping to ensure the security of our base. They did not employ this method very often. But, they didn't need to, because word of the technique was enough to deter intruders.

I propose that we use the same technique on our American borders.

the technique

At random intervals, in random locations around the perimeter of the base, the ROK Army would suddenly "light up" the area. Most times, they would use spotlights and/or illumination flares. But, if needed, they would "light up" the area with weapon fire.

One thing that our American military possesses is overwhelming, accurate firepower. We have the ability to "place metal on target" anytime, anywhere, in any weather, day or night. For the privileged few that have heard the "dragon burp" of an AC-130 Spectre gunship, and lived to tell about it, the sound is able to overcome any and all language barriers immediately. And, the sight of the destructive power of one of those night-fighting birds is enough to deter even the greediest "coyote" along the border. (News video from Afghanistan showed a car, which had previously contained terrorist leaders, after a Spectre visit. All it contained in the video was holes — hundreds of them.) From three miles up in the sky, on a cloudy night, the Specter can discern friend from foe on the ground with precision. It can put a 7.62mm bullet into every square foot of a football field in two seconds. (Check out this photo, called "Afghani Tornado".) It can put a howitzer round down on top of a tank before the tank can detect the airplane's presence. This is in addition to the firepower of troop-carried or vehicle-mounted weapons on the ground, helicopter gunships, or the new unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) — some of which carry weapons in addition to sensors.

So, let's start "lighting up" America's borders.

The Constitution of the United States requires that the Federal government, via its military forces, secure the borders of our nation. (Preventing invasion is a military duty, not a law enforcement task.) My suggestion is that we station our military forces — Active, Guard, and Reserve; plus, the activated Militias of the several states (yes, that means that states would start paying the Minutemen that currently volunteer) — along the entire length of both of our main borders. Then, at random intervals, in random locations, our troops would begin to "light up" the border regions. (To be fair, we could send Civil Affairs or Military Police troops to homes in the affected areas, in advance, to let resident citizens know that things will be a bit noisy that night.)

And, of course, the selection of locations for these activities would not be entirely random. By various sources, we can gather intelligence about the planned activities of illegal invaders — drug traffickers, terrorists, human smugglers, foreign troops, and job-stealers — that might attempt to cross our borders in any particular location. When intelligence and surveillance indicates that such invaders are within two miles of our borders, the guns would start blazing. Given the type of terrain, and the sparse population, the sound would carry far enough to deter most people. And, the ones that continue toward the border would do so with the sure knowledge that they are about to have a confrontation with a determined military force.

the precaution

A couple of years ago, I had the privilege of interviewing — first by e-mail, and later by phone — US Army Lieutenant Colonel Allen B. West. He was the infantry battalion commander that scared information out of a turncoat Iraqi police officer, Yahya Jhodri Hamoody. The information led to the acquisition of significant intelligence information. That information thwarted insurgent attacks, thus saving American and Iraqi lives. Further, the network of terrorists and traitors that was uncovered by that acquisition led to the capture of Saddam Hussein. The "first domino" in this successful chain of events occurred when LTC West fired a pistol near the head of Mr. Hamoody. Seconds later, the intrepid commander and his staff were writing down information as fast as it could spew out of the traitor's mouth.

What does the incident with LTC West have to do with border security? Plenty! You see, LTC West did not shoot Mr. Hamoody. He simply fired a pistol very close to his head. There was, of course, an implication that if Mr. Hamoody did not begin to provide needed information, the next bullet would go through his ears instead of near them. And, the technique worked — without any permanent damage to Mr. Hamoody.

In like manner, I am not proposing that we go around randomly shooting people that are contemplating an illegal penetration of our national borders. Of course, if the sights and sounds of all those weapons don't deter the planned penetration, then at least the people will know exactly what they're up against. And, because such demonstrations of firepower transcend all language barriers (and are visual enough to be fully understood by Deaf border-crossers), then there can be no cry of "foul" if a confrontation becomes necessary. And, since many border penetrations are done in groups, there will be a ready supply of manpower to carry any bodies back to the side of the border where they started. To make sure that our intentions are clearly understood, with no chance for random casualties, our government could build any future walls a half-mile inside the border. Everything between the wall and the border could be a free-fire zone. I'm confident that, if such a plan is implemented, news of it will spread to even the remotest jungle village in Guatemala within two weeks. And, when that word gets out, there will — hopefully — no longer be a need to actually pull the trigger.

the wimp factor

There are actually some people within America that will attempt to say that such a concept is "unfair," or that it is "too harsh". As was reported by the Center for Immigration Studies, Mexico is harsh with those that enter Mexico illegally. And, even some within the Mexican government admit blame for the hordes that enter the United States from that country. Despite these facts, and despite the fact that non-citizens have no "right" to demand a free ride in America, Senator Ted Kennedy and other Leftists kowtowed to illegal immigrants by saying, "The American people have spoken." Actually, Senator Kennedy, the American people will speak on Election Day. Hopefully, they will say, "You're fired!" (I'm hoping that the voters of middle Tennessee will say the same thing to my opponent, Jim Cooper, who voted against the Border Protection, Antiterrorism, and Illegal Immigration Control Act.) And, if necessary, the American people will speak along the borders. If they do, they might just say, "Open fire!"

© Tom Kovach