Thoughts While Driving

Tucson, AZ to Friendswood (Houston), TX is just under 1100 sm. From our house in Tucson it is only a few miles to I-10. Almost all the trip is on I-10 with only the last few miles on I-45, and State 528 (NASA Road 1). Because of I-10 the trip is quick, only about 16 hours of driving for an average speed of just under 68mph. My old Iron Butt motorcycle riding days habits kick in: Ride, fuel and pee, ride, repeat until you get there.

We did the going trip non stop, coming home we stopped in Ft. Stockton, TX mostly because I hate to ride or drive between Ft.Stockton and Van Horn after dark. It is one of the most deer infested roads in the States. Seldom can you go more than five miles without seeing a deer carcass on or beside the road over that route.

Bottom line there is plenty of time to think as you cover miles and miles of mostly high desert interrupted by only two major cities, El Paso, TX and San Antonio, TX. Also because I've done the trip so many times it has a rhythm to the fuel and pee stops, no surprises, no thought needed.

While MsBubba and I talked some about family and I talked about growing up and exploring the area we were driving through most of my thoughts were about where we are as a country, how dumb our country's current policies are towards Mexico and immigration along our Southern border. Also having to deal with the CBP checkpoints outside Sierra Blanco, TX and Deming, NM brings home how much our country has changed, how we have allowed policies such as "papers please" and drug checkpoints along with drug testing to be implemented.

I haven't the time or energy to go deeper than one example of how dumb our current President and his enablers are. While we were driving Trump talked of closing the Southern Border if he doesn't get his stupid wall funded. The economic costs of his government shutdown may hurry the coming recession, the cost of closing the border is almost incalculable. US border towns, both big and small, like El Paso or Del Rio rely on Mexican nationals crossing daily to shop for goods and food. It couldn't get dumber.

On a personal note; I was raised and my Grandmother was cared for in her later years by a "wetback"*. Carlos was always there except when he wasn't. When he was caught and sent back to Mexico there always seemed to be a cousin or brother that would show up to help out until three or four months later Carlos would be back. It was rinse and repeat until I grew up and left the farm and my Grandmother died. What happened to Carlos I'm ashamed to admit I don't know because I had been gone from the farm for many years before my Grandmother died and had lost touch.

We didn't have a sane policy toward immigration then, it is even less so today.

ken

*I know an offensive term but it is the one used during that time for undocumented workers. While our language has improved our treatment of good folks that improve our lives hasn't.