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Paradox

The movement of goods directly links to the issue of whether the na�on should adopt borders that are more open or more closed. Adding to this discussion is the observa�on by Stephen Flynn in regards to the paradoxes that are presented by open and closed borders (US Congress, 2004). A paradox is an incongruity, a statement which seems to contradict itself. In the case of hardened borders, the paradox is that the more secure you make the border, the less secure it becomes. This security could be by physical or other means such as visa controls. The open border paradox is that the more open you make the border the more secure it is. How does one examine 24 million containers without impac�ng the flow of trade. This flow equates to nearly 66,000 containers per day. Think of the delays on travel with the scanning of passengers for planes. If there were no false posi�ves and the �me to scan a container, by some device similar to the body scanners for airport security, and that �me was only 3 minutes per container, the process would s�ll add 3,300 hours of effort per day. As 85 percent of the containers arrive at the top 10 ports in the US, that would equate to an addi�onal 280 hours of labor per port per day, which is a large economic impact.

As the reading and your research will show, there is no magic wand to solve the problem of border security. As such, the level of the na�on’s security at the borders is rela�ve. There will always be people and goods slipping into United States through unauthorized methods/channels. However, while America cannot achieve total security of its borders, it can implement programs that, to the extent possible, provide the na�on with the maximum level of security.