Postcards and Video From The Edge

CNN Lou Dobbs - video:

Virtual Fence Construction Stalled, Cost Overruns, Technology Doesn't Work - Why Are We Not Surprised?

The federal government is falling behind on its latest efforts to secure our southern border. High-tech virtual fencing was to be deployed more than two months ago. But it has run into significant delays, and the system will be far more expensive than first estimated. Boeing holds the contract for developing the technology known as SBInet, or the virtual fence, which is more than two months past a deadline of June 13 for turning over the technology to the government, and the project is costing more than originally estimated. According to ICE, "Customs and Border Protection is committed to giving the agent the tools they need. We are working with a sense of urgency to get this technology operating the way it needs to be to help the agents do their job to secure the border." Critics, though, are highly cynical that the Department of Homeland Security has any intention of securing the border. Peter Gadiel of the 9/11 Families for a Secure America said: "Instead of using reliable low-tech technology, it's using the highest, most complex technology that's available, and nobody should be surprised that it doesn't work. It's not designed to work. And people have to understand that that's the purpose here. It is designed to fail."

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SPP DISCUSSED DURING 'THREE AMIGOS SUMMIT'
President Bush is seeking to deepen U.S. links with Canada and Mexico.

The president flew to Canada for a summit meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Steven Harper and Mexican President Felipe Calderon. "The Three Amigos Summit" is the third of its kind. One of the issues on their agenda was the so-called Security and Prosperity Partnership among the three countries. The White House insists the Security and Prosperity Partnership is not a threat to U.S. sovereignty. Critics of the Partnership remain unconvinced. They say the SPP is an attempt to create an outright North American Union without Congressional oversight. Chris Farrell of Judicial Watch said: "It really is sort of this public policy, academic, governmental set of elites who are making decisions and harmonizing rules and regulations outside the scope of the general public's knowledge." Canadians worry that Canada's rigorous worker and food safety standards will be watered down. Critics in all three countries fear an erosion of national sovereignty, integrated currency and courts -- something almost akin to the European Union. See the video...