Those who lose wars and lose territory always have longer memories than the winners. Mexicans never have forgotten that Texas was once part of Mexico, as was California and the several states between them. It is not large in our own memory, and we moved on long ago. I understand this because I am a Southerner. We have never forgotten either, and the north wonders why we won’t let go.
That said, I would never – never advocate returning the southwest to Mexico. The very idea is absurd, is it not? But it is not absurd to many Mexicans, who hope to reconquer the area by immigration, and others- the drug gangs – who feel they have an historical right to flout American jurisdiction.
The only way to deal with this is to make it abundantly clear that the hope of reconquista or the flouting of American jurisdiction is a hopeless pipe dream. That means vigorous enforcement.
Our government has turned a deaf ear to the pleas of its citizens on the border and elsewhere. That leaves a vacuum into which radical and militant groups feel empowered to enter. No peace loving person should see that as a good thing. No responsible government would alloow that to happen. But I am afraid that is exactly what is about to happen. If the government does not take up its responsibilities, then the best course as I see it is to begin impeachment procedures immediately after the election and installation of a new congress. There are are abundant grounds for doing so, and it cannot happen too soon.
