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From an outsider's point of view, what we see exercised in border security to the south of the States, compared to what you have as border security with us in the north, is just plain brutal - although things up here, you'll be happy to know, are getting worse: the last time I visited America, in April, I was pulled over and detained long enough to make me miss my flight, because I "visit too much".
I was told that because I choose to spend all four weeks of vacation I get yearly in the States, I visit too often. I asked for a definition of too often. Even said, give me a number, something to measure this by, or how am I going to know when I'm violating your laws? No answer was given, in fact I was told to shut up while they ripped my carry-on apart.
I know better than to provoke an asshole, so I couched the next questions as nicely as I could. I repeated my question about what was too much time and was told, "The amount you spend here." I pointed out I spend my money in America to their benefit, and wanted to know why a Canadian like myself was unwelcome. The guard then decided to try and force me to remember not only every day I had been in America since January 1 2012 (and I remembered most of them, which made him madder), he wanted to know the details of each day. Any wonder I was late for my flight?
I was finally released when they hit the kink section of my carry-on. The guard grabbed at the condoms and one of the packages broke open, smearing his uncovered hand with lubricant. He was thoroughly disgusted and let me go because, "You fucking sick Canadians don't belong here, just go!"
I could have reported him, but you can't fix an asshole and I wasn't about to jeopardize my travel further, so I chalked it up to dealing with an asshat. I am not looking forward to passing through Customs again when I go back down in a couple of weeks.
Now that's how Canadians get treated. I can only guess at how a Mexican gets treated but by all accounts, it's much worse.
As for "limiting government", which seems a grandiose term for which hand gets to spend the taxpayer's money, there is nothing wrong on paper with trying to cut corners to run a business - err, country - more efficiently. I work for an American corporation that has a branch in Canada. I know all about trying to cut corners, because I'm management. The company I work for is horrible at predicting where money should be spent so when they screw up, they "cut corners" by taking resources from places where they are needed and telling you to produce the same output. The Canadian government is slowly taking on this same mentality, and since we emulate a lot of American policy, it doesn't seem too farfetched to say y'all are probably doing something similar. The problem with on paper is that you look at figures, without looking at the actual tasks or staffing involved, which eventually leads to something going horribly, horribly wrong.
In an oversimplified example, say the government had a budget of one billion dollars to split between education, health care and border security. Each group says, we need half of that. That's not going to happen, someone is taking the hit and getting less money. Do you short change your educators and hope your next generation doesn't become simpletons? Do you stick it to the doctors, and hope there isn't an outbreak, or that people are ok with clinics shutting down? Do you lighten up security and risk having your country exploited? You could say on paper that all three should take the hit and tighten their belts, and hope it all works out, but if there's a population explosion then education and health are going to get hit much harder. You can't limit something arbitrarily, and there are too many factors in play to leave it to a vote, and hope that the majority is educated on all the pertinent criteria. If you need to limit the government then do it sensibly, for the welfare of your country, and with (dare I dream) a little transparency so that everyone can say, oh, right, this is why it's a hard choice (rather than just going with the loudest campaign slogan).
Regarding Obamacare, the idea is a prime example of on paper from what I've seen. It targets the middle class. The upper class has the funds to fend for itself. The lower class used to be able to cut deals or work with doctors who had sliding scale fees, but I've discovered from people in that very situation that Obamacare doesn't account for that. Everyone gets treated the same, in theory, and for the middle class it could lighten the load of medical bills, so, it may work for the majority. If the actual practice of Obamacare makes health care too hard for the poorest people to access, though, then it's just another model of the same thing you had before, where health is something you pay for, and those without cash, go without period. Even with all the issues Canada health care has, one thing I can't bitch about is how it's funded - through taxation. You make more, you pay more into the collective pool of money that covers your health. You make less, you pay less. But everyone still gets the same treatment. I'm ok with paying more into Canadian health care if I make more. My real concern is the shortage of doctors, nurses, in some cases beds, and with wait times for dealing with injuries.
Getting back to the OP, though: I think what America really needs to do is overhaul the way it decides to "limit" itself, and trust its people more to tell them how decisions are reached. I also think the border security at both ends needs an overhaul, so that more resources can be applied to enforcing immigration, rather than turning away potential revenue while generating PR nightmares. (One thing that has always confused me: if "too many illegals" - i.e. Mexicans - are getting through your borders, they're not doing it legally, so why not focus more on manpower and deportation than building anything...since they're getting through anyways? Any insights would be appreciated.)
Mind you, this is an outsider's view. It's worth as much credence as you give it.
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There is nothing worse than being right. Instead of being right, then, try to be open. It is more difficult, and more rewarding.
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RE: Conservative Philosophy on Border Security - 
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The current Republican base is less an issue driven chunk of the electorate with a political philosophy than a bunch of drooling, whining, special needs freaks who enjoy being the bitches of the Koch brothers and other people who wouldn't give them the steam off their piss, never mind rewarding them for their votes.
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