I saw a Facebook post yesterday; actually one of my Facebook friends. Just kind of a muse; a short, simple question, really. Should we just close our borders? I’ve heard the thought before from folks that I considered “radical whack jobs.” This person isn’t.
And now, I’m hearing it more and more. And when I saw it this time, I didn’t know whether it made sense or even to give it a second thought. But, I have.
Why can’t we just close our borders? Why can’t we just be happy here? We live in the greatest country in the world. Shouldn’t we just circle the wagons and take care of our family, the United States of America?
Can we afford to be the world’s savior any longer? When did it start anyway? World War I? It continued through WWII and Korea and Vietnam. It ostensibly did thru Gulf War I and Gulf Wars II. But has it? Has it lost its meaning? Is the world a more complicated place now than it was when we knew we had to stop Adolph Hitler? We had to stop him from putting more Jews in ovens, and taking over Europe. That seems pretty simple.
But, haven’t we created some of the problems we are now fighting in the Middle East? Do we want to be helping save the people ISIS is brutally murdering …beheading? Or should we be minding our business here?
What would happen if we brought home the Americans who want to live here and then closed our borders? Would ISIS come here; find a way to fight us from within?
What about disease? Can we close our borders and not help people with deadly disease like Ebola? Do we want to do that? On the other hand, can we afford to help and risk our collective health?
Can we just close our borders with the interconnectivity in our world? Our companies do business in every corner of the world. How would we manage that if we close ourselves off?
As I write this, I’m still trying to shake off some nasty virus, so my thinking is very fuzzy, but I have to admit the feeling of being the independent, sovereign, giant that we are, closing borders sounds a little attractive.
John Lennon wrote“Imagine there were no borders.” Wouldn’t it be nice if the world worked that way? On the other hand, could we imagine our country taking care of its own, becoming energy independent, taking care of our families and those who need help here, and closing our borders?
I KNOW. I know it can’t / won’t happen and this is probably a waste of space and time. Probably better suited back in one of my old Philosophy / Poly-Sci college classes?
Can we turn our backs on the millions of people who need help in the world? There are so many people who need help.
I’m probably just tired. But when I saw the post, it obviously made me think for a moment.
Should we close our borders, in and out? Does it make any sense?
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