Well, Don, let me ask you this. Instead of buying another toy (and God knows I love to buy my own toys!), why don't you invest that money in some quality fight training?
Number 1, I'm too lazy. Number 2, I'm too busy. I could go on and on but I doubt I will discover a good excuse.
I have a hard time understanding the open borders deal. Just don't get it no matter what way I look at it. The economy argument - well, what could be worse for it than another terrorist attack. The political power explanation - well, if open borders are identified as a major reason for another terrosist attack no amount of illegal or legalized immigrants would be able to keep a group of poloticians or anyone politician in power and so on and so forth.
I grew up in a closed border country. Very few people got out and very few people got in without the goverment's knowldge and permission. Imagine several lines of barbwire fence with freshly tilled ground inbetween each (to show tracks and slow down runners). One of the fences would have an electric current running through it, touching it would set off an alarm in one of many border patrol army unit bases spread along the border every few miles. An army border unit would be qucikly dispatched to run down anyone getting across. German shepards are/were part of every patrol unit.
In third or forth grade, we were taken on a field trip and allowed to see a german shepard chase and take down a trainer. We were told that would happen to us if we ever tried to cross. Mountains or not it was all fenced and guarded 24/7.
Granted the US is a lot bigger than Bulgaria (about the size of TN) but you gotta start somewhere. Given the current level of threat it is beyond me that borders are not better guarded and protected in the way they should be and no real effort is made to get a start on it. I watched a special on PBS a while back and most border potrol officers interviewed seem to say that they often arrest and deport folks trying to get across over and over again.
PC crap, internationally of intranationally focused, is another pitfall in my opinion. Random checks seem like a gimmick to me. Old grandma's are being searched and bothered, while others ignored 'cause the puter didn't pull them up. I say search everyone or intelligently profile. I think profiling has more to do with common sense than any type of discrimination. Bush is trying to bring terrorist to "justice" but when a palestinian terrorist leader is brought to "justice" the White House finds it "very disturbing."
I'm not happy to live with any chance of a terrorist attack affecting me no matter how small it may be. The fact that it could and will affect some innocent citizens is enough.
Nik