Members of the Minutemen Project have begun patroling the El Paso border with Mexico and will continue operations in other stretches of the U.S.-Mexico border. The ACLU has responded by sending their own volunteers to keep an eye on the Minutemen.

Those are the facts, now comes the opinion.

In this entry, I will try to make two points. The first is that we a broken immigration policy. Our government has failed to secure our borders, which has made us extremely unsafe and created a virtually open border that will have huge political and economic repercussions.

This lax immigration policy has created an environment in which more illegal immigrants are entering the U.S. than legal ones. This is unfair to prospective immigrants who are playing by the rules and waiting their turn in their home countries in order to enter the U.S. legally.

It is also unfair to legal immigrants already here. I don't buy the notion that illegal immigrants are taking Americans' jobs. That argument is simply ridiculous. The vast majority of illegal immigrants are unskilled an uneducated. However, illegal immigrants are taking the jobs of legal, tax-paying immigrants with a similar background.

The current situation is also hurting the U.S. economy, especially by way of entitlements. Entitlements to illegal immigrants are huge, there's no doubt about it This is especially true in states like California, where the number of illegal immigrants is huge and government programs are easily obtained. Add that to the fact that little, if any, tax revenue comes in from recepients of government entitlements who are here illegally. 

All this shows the government's failure to do anything about the current immigration system and illustrates the urgent need for reform.

My second point is about private activism and the role of checks and balances, not only in government, but in society at large.

The situation is fascinating. Minutemen patrol the border with vigor and a sense of duty. Out of frustration with the massive failures of our leaders, they take it upon themselves to protect our borders from terrorists and to curb illegal immigration. Until now, the organization has been peaceful in its efforts.

The ACLU on the other hand, plays the role of regulator. Volunteers for the civil liberties group are also near the border. Their very prescense on the scene ensures that the likelyhood of abuse by the Minutemen is minimized, if not eliminated. I believe both groups are generally sincere in their efforts.

We will never, as a society, agree on everything, so it's a good thing to see concerned citizens doing what they believe is right in a peaceful manner. I am not a fan of either of these organizations, but I will say that our nation's leaders could learn a lot about checks and balances from a situation like this, especially at a time when checks and balances seemingly mean nothing to any of our three government branches