February 5, 2019. This morning we went to the clubhouse for breakfast and to listen to a Border Patrol agent share the latest information about the Border situation. It was a fascinating and informative presentation. This agent is from the McAllen station. It is one of eight stations in this sector. One of the most startling facts that he shared was the number of apprehensions from just this station. It averages 500-800 apprehensions every 24 hours.  The last 24 hr. period yielded 660!  There are so many that the Border Patrol has had to contract with a transportation company to transfer the captured illegals to the ICE stations.  When asked about the Wall he said that he could not voice his opinion. However, he told us that the three things that Border Patrol wants are, more infrastructure (a barrier), more technology, and more personnel. They are spread too thin.  When asked if things were better where there are barriers in place, he said yes, for two reasons.  One is that it slowed up the smuggling traffic and gave the BP more time to respond.  Two, the illegals usually moved on to someplace where there wasn’t a barrier. He said that a Wall, by itself, will not stop 100% of the trafficking, but, along with more technology and more personnel, it will certainly slow it down.  Another interesting misconception he wanted to straighten out is that the military (meaning National Guard) is here to help with protection and apprehensions.  That is not true. They are not allowed, by law, to do that.  What they are here for is to help clear land near the border, repair vehicles and machinery, watch the cameras and monitors,etc. This frees up the BP agents to have more time to work on protection and apprehensions. He said not to believe anything the media tells you.  They make it sound like the National Guard comes charging in here, armed and ready for action, capturing illegals and criminals.  Just not true. Another misconception is about the National Butterfly Center being destroyed by the Wall. Again, not true.  The NBC is divided into two parts separated by a stream. The front part is the developed part where the actual Center is.  The back part, on the other side of the stream, is undeveloped and not used by the NBC, even though they own it.  That is where the Wall will go.  It will not destroy the Butterfly Center as the media reports.  And guess what ? Butterflies can fly over a Wall and so can birds. It will not prevent migration. Well, there was more, but that covers most of what the agent shared with us. As I said, it was very interesting.
       
                                   This picture was take out the back window of our camper.