A Wall Creating More Divide Will Only Waste Taxpayer Dollars

A Wall Creating More Divide Will Only Waste Taxpayer Dollars

It is clear that President Trump maintains his goal of building a border wall, but it remains to be seen if this is possible or the best thing for America.

Sophie Ciokajlo
Sophie Ciokajlo Dec 31, 2018
74
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President Trump had a recent Oval Office meeting with Democratic leaders from Congress, Chuck Schumer, and Nancy Pelosi, in which he discussed border security and his infamous wall across the US and Mexico border. Trump, Schumer, and Pelosi argued back and forth on television quite contentiously, with Pelosi attempting to explain that border security can mean things other than building a wall. Trump is requesting $5 billion from Congress to fund border security and the wall, while Democrats are suggesting $1.3 billion for the border security fund. Pelosi and Schumer explained that they are trying to avoid a government shutdown due to lack of agreement on spending.

Trump claims that we need to increase border security, but the reality is that spending on border security increased under both the Bush and Obama administrations. The amount of border-crossers that were apprehended at the US border in 2000 is substantially more than the number currently being stopped. Trump claims that we need more money and more resources to stop these immigrants, but research has proven that there are in fact fewer immigrants to stop than there were in 2000. A recent Pew Research Center study found that there are less illegal immigrants living in the US than there were at the peak of illegal immigration in 2007.

The reality is that illegal immigration was a problem created by Trump's 2016 campaign. Yes, there has always been an immense amount of immigration into the United States, and a lot of people attempting to make it into America try to do so illegally. However, a lot of people move to America legally. Trump has generated this unreasonable picture of people trying to come to the United States with the intention of breaking our laws and hating American culture, which is just not the case.

What the concept of "the wall" fails to recognize is that America was built on the principle of creating a country where anyone can put in the work necessary to prosper and to support their family. Immigrants throughout American history have been trying to do just that, they are chasing a promise of American freedom and equality. Immigrants stand for American ideals more than those born in the United States do. These people are humble and hold themselves responsible for their own success, they are leaving somewhere dangerous in search of a life that protects them and their families.

Trump's promise to "make America great again" focuses on making America something it's never been before. The US would not exist in its modern-day capacity without immigrants, both to build our population and our workforce. It's been proven that immigrants, even today, help to expand the American economy, with immigrants and their children working hard to achieve upward mobility in American society. If we want America to grow and evolve, it needs immigrants to do so. Shifting to other ethnicities and cultures of immigrants just means that we are becoming a more diverse society. Beyond the logistics of funding and building the wall, it is unrealistic for Trump to expect that closing America off from the rest of the world is an appropriate way to lead one of the largest world powers.

Sophie Ciokajlo
Sophie Ciokajlo Dec 31, 2018
At Butler University

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I'm The Girl Who'd Rather Raise A Family Than A Feminist Protest Sign

You raise your protest picket signs and I’ll raise my white picket fence.
Ellie Winters
Ellie Winters Oct 2, 2017
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Social Media feeds are constantly filled with quotes on women's rights, protests with mobs of women, and an array of cleverly worded picket signs.

Good for them, standing up for their beliefs and opinions. Will I be joining my tight-knit family of the same gender?

Nope, no thank you.

Don't get me wrong, I am not going to be oblivious to my history and the advancements that women have fought to achieve. I am aware that the strides made by many women before me have provided us with voting rights, a voice, equality, and equal pay in the workforce.

SEE ALSO: To The Girl Who Would Rather Raise A Family Than A Feminist Protest Sign

For that, I am deeply thankful. But at this day in age, I know more female managers in the workforce than male. I know more women in business than men. I know more female students in STEM programs than male students. So what’s with all the hype? We are girl bosses, we can run the world, we don’t need to fight the system anymore.

Please stop.

Because it is insulting to the rest of us girls who are okay with being homemakers, wives, or stay-at-home moms. It's dividing our sisterhood, and it needs to stop.

All these protests and strong statements make us feel like now we HAVE to obtain a power position in our career. It's our rightful duty to our sisters. And if we do not, we are a disappointment to the gender and it makes us look weak.

Weak to the point where I feel ashamed to say to a friend “I want to be a stay at home mom someday.” Then have them look at me like I must have been brain-washed by a man because that can be the only explanation. I'm tired of feeling belittled for being a traditionalist.

Why?

Because why should I feel bad for wanting to create a comfortable home for my future family, cooking for my husband, being a soccer mom, keeping my house tidy? Because honestly, I cannot wait.

I will have no problem taking my future husband’s last name, and following his lead.

The Bible appoints men to be the head of a family, and for wives to submit to their husbands. (This can be interpreted in so many ways, so don't get your panties in a bunch at the word “submit”). God specifically made women to be gentle and caring, and we should not be afraid to embrace that. God created men to be leaders with the strength to carry the weight of a family.

However, in no way does this mean that the roles cannot be flipped. If you want to take on the responsibility, by all means, you go girl. But for me personally? I'm sensitive, I cry during horror movies, I'm afraid of basements and dark rooms. I, in no way, am strong enough to take on the tasks that men have been appointed to. And I'm okay with that.

So please, let me look forward to baking cookies for bake sales and driving a mom car.

And I'll support you in your endeavors and climb to the top of the corporate ladder. It doesn't matter what side you are on as long as we support each other, because we all need some girl power.

Cover Image Credit: Unsplash
Ellie Winters
Ellie Winters Oct 2, 2017
At Grand Canyon University

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Dear America, We Can Step Forward As A Country If We Stop Believing That Only One Belief Is Valid

It's time to promote unity and emphasize our commonalities because only through unity can we step forward as a country.

Shanru Xu
Shanru Xu Jan 22, 2019
454
views

Dear America,

2018 was a year of political strife and conflict. The left and the right fought constantly. Republicans and Democrats blamed each other for the tiniest mistakes, and there were only a small number of successful bipartisan deals. Politicians and citizens alike seemed more concerned with sticking to party platforms, even ones they truly didn't believe in, rather than compromising with the other side to improve our society.Yet all this name-calling and hatred — what does it do in the end? What does it accomplish?

We've only seen an increased polarization of American politics and an expanded hostility towards "the other side." We don't consider the well-being of each and every person in America and the bettering of our society, or the building of a stronger world for our children and grandchildren.

We spend so much time insulting each other's political beliefs that we forget probably the most important fact that links us all together: We are all human. We all share the same basic needs, the same struggles, the same moments of happiness and sadness.

And yet we are willing to put our similarities aside and only focus on our differences. We are willing to thrust ourselves into the deep anger and loathing that comes in attacking those different from us. We are willing to parry insults behind the safety of a phone screen and forget all about what makes us alike. And we are willing to gloss over the fact that we have more similarities than differences.

SEE ALSO: Dear Trump, Thanks For Transforming Me Into A Responsible, Educated Citizen

Yes, political beliefs make a person. Political beliefs define the values, ideas and thoughts of a person. But sometimes, we have to reach over those beliefs, as hard as that may be, and focus on the bigger picture at hand. What will insulting someone because of those beliefs do? It definitely won't change their views or make them see things from your point of view.

It's sad and frustrating that this endless fighting doesn't even occur between two countries or two governments or two nation-states. Instead, we see arguments and strife between two family members, two neighbors or even two strangers, all living in the same community and under the same government, all sharing more similarities than differences.

We need to stop focusing so much on singular ideas. We need to stop believing in the close-minded idea that only one thought is the best thought. And instead of wasting energy trying to change other's opinions, we need to use that energy and time to promote unity and emphasize our commonalities.

These past few years have truly divided America. Let's make 2019 a year of unity, because only through unity can we step forward as a country.

Shanru Xu
Shanru Xu Jan 22, 2019
At Alpharetta, Georgia

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