The actions of a few impact the lives of many but do they care? As they point the finger at each other and trade barbs at who is to be held responsible, people will go hungry, people will miss mortgage payments, children will be left in the cold. Compromise, while it can be difficult, is what we expect from our leaders. The people that we admire, as we voted them in to public office, to handle these problems in an adult and comprehensible manner, are letting us down. The bad part, and what doesn’t look so good for them, is that they will not miss a paycheck, except for a certain few that have stated that they will not take a paycheck until they clear this matter up. If they’re not as hungry as the people then their motivation isn’t as great. I won’t miss a paycheck but a lot of good people will be wondering if they can make their rent, if they can put food on the table for their children, if they are going to have money for gas to get to work that they are doing for free? I know that there is a compromise there somewhere. It’s just how motivated they are to get to that point. You know, the side that gives in for the sake of the people would most likely benefit the rewards of caring for the people. Just a thought.

If you can’t find a compromise, then let me offer one, agree to fix any barrier that is need right now. Identify the places where the barrier is degraded and agree to fix those right now and then meet in a couple of months to agree on how to proceed. No one will think that either side caved and will only be glad that the shut down is over. Also, being an ex -border patrol agent, lighting and sensors were always more important then the wall. If you were to put telephone poles with solar panels that charged batteries that powered sensors that would make lights go off and send a signal to the agents, this would make the job a lot safer for them and easier. The problem is when they get over the wall, tracking them can be a bitch. We use flashlights and night scopes that sometimes don’t have the depth perception that we need. But if we can follow lights that pop up on movement of a sensor, then we can place their whereabouts immediately.