# Trump's Wall 15 to 20 billion. Can we do it better and cheaper? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 26, 2017, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243 "2017-01-26T18:13:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2017, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/81 "2017-01-28T22:36:36Z")
There’s nothing much out of the ordinary going on in Gaza right now, as far as I can tell. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2017, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/82 "2017-01-29T01:33:18Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > You can’t see me now, but I’m holding my head in my hands, rocking back and forth and moaning. Trump is a better advocate for Israel. I just hope he doesn’t decide that nuking the Gaza strip would be a good thing. It looks like we will get our embassy in the right city, despite my earlier ignorance. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2017, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/83 "2017-01-29T05:27:18Z")
Trump isn’t a better advocate for Israel, he’s a lunatic who will drag us down with him. We eould be very wise to keep our distance. As for the embassy - it’s a complicated issue. IMHO, there are many downsides to moving it now, and few upsides. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2017, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/84 "2017-01-29T06:02:15Z")
Is there going to be a Checkpoint Charlie for people traveling legitimately? ---
**Author:** ![up\_the\_junction](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f1d935/32.png) [@up\_the\_junction](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/up_the_junction)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2017, 9:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/85 "2017-01-29T09:18:48Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > There’s nothing much out of the ordinary going on in Gaza right now, as far as I can tell. For a prison camp, you mean. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2017, 9:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/86 "2017-01-29T09:30:42Z")
[N/M] ---
**Author:** ![Battle\_Pope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@Battle\_Pope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Battle_Pope)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2017, 10:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/87 "2017-01-29T10:19:04Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Is there going to be a Checkpoint Charlie for people traveling legitimately? Delaypoint Donald ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2017, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/88 "2017-01-29T14:39:50Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > Trump isn’t a better advocate for Israel, he’s a lunatic who will drag us down with him. We eould be very wise to keep our distance. > > As for the embassy - it’s a complicated issue. IMHO, there are many downsides to moving it now, and few upsides. One the other hand, you don’t want to get him angry. A radio commentator said, “Trump doesn’t have a thin skin, he has no skin at” (and takes everything very personal) Thanks for the info on moving the embassy, Alessan. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2017, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/89 "2017-01-29T15:55:16Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > One the other hand, you don’t want to get him angry. A radio commentator said, “Trump doesn’t have a thin skin, he has no skin at” (and takes everything very personal) Yeah, it doesn’t help that we have an idiot Prime Minister who’s managed to annoy every single world leader he’s ever met and most of those he hasn’t. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c57346/32.png) [@Little\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Pig)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2017, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/90 "2017-01-29T16:45:05Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > I’m not clear on the timing of building this wall as compared to Israel’s several military actions jnvolving Gaza. Anyone? [Netanyahu in hot water over praise of Trump’s wall](https://www.yahoo.com/news/netanyahu-hot-water-over-praise-trumps-wall-123304444.html). ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2017, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/91 "2017-01-29T20:23:13Z")
> [@Little\_Pig](#): > > [Netanyahu in hot water over praise of Trump’s wall](https://www.yahoo.com/news/netanyahu-hot-water-over-praise-trumps-wall-123304444.html). Why should anyone be surprised? We’re talking about a [guy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Netanyahu#Fourth_premiership.2C_2015.E2.80.93present) who tried to give Hitler a pass when it came to the Holocaust. The goddamned PM of Israel and he defends Adolf fucking Hitler. ---
**Author:** ![up\_the\_junction](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f1d935/32.png) [@up\_the\_junction](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/up_the_junction)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2017, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/92 "2017-01-29T20:50:31Z")
Hey, everyone can make mistakes … ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2017, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/93 "2017-01-30T02:32:23Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > Yeah, it doesn’t help that we have an idiot Prime Minister who’s managed to annoy every single world leader he’s ever met and most of those he hasn’t. I thought Bibi was highly thought of. Perhaps I should go to Shul more often. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Okrahoma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90db22/32.png) [@Okrahoma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Okrahoma)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2017, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/94 "2017-01-30T03:32:45Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > I thought Bibi was highly thought of. Perhaps I should go to Shul more often. 🙂 He’s thought of highly enough to have been the longest-serving Israeli Prime Minister. In other words, thought of highly enough where it counts. But his opposition may console themselves with the thought that in the last Israeli elections, 76% of the voters didn’t vote for Bibi. You know, the way Democrats console themselves that 54% of the voters didn’t vote for Trump. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2017, 8:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/95 "2017-01-30T08:35:59Z")
To simplify a very complicated subject, Bibi’s continued re-election is the result of fact that the Israeli public has veered to the right following the collapse of the peace process, which also lead to the cratering of the Labor party (exacerbated by Ehud Barak’s utter fecklessness), combined with his admittedly masterful party politics, which mainly consisted of driving out anyone who might possibly challenge him inside the Likud - or succeed him. It’s a messed-up situation. Bear in mind, though, that Israeli politics is a contact sport. We’re not Americans, who can say, “We won the election, so live with it!”. In Israel, elections are the start of the political process, not its conclusion. A government can fall at any time, for any reason. Considering Netanyahu’s [current legal woes](https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2017/01/netanyahu-israel-corruption-adelson/513422/), that may happen sooner than you think - assuming he doesn’t survive them like the cockroach he is. ---
**Author:** ![Isosleepy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/isosleepy/32/479_2.png) [@Isosleepy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isosleepy)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2017, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/96 "2017-01-30T13:49:48Z")
Back to the original question: I think it can more easily be accomplished by digging a shallow ditch along the border, flooding it with waste-oil, and set it on fire. That’s right, a border of towering FLAMES. The presence of the Rio Grande is convenient in this scheme - see Cuyahoga River anno 1969. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2017, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/97 "2017-01-30T14:11:52Z")
> [@Isosleepy](#): > > Back to the original question: I think it can more easily be accomplished by digging a shallow ditch along the border, flooding it with waste-oil, and set it on fire. That’s right, a border of towering FLAMES. The presence of the Rio Grande is convenient in this scheme - see Cuyahoga River anno 1969. You are on the right track but it is incomplete. We need to go full Hunger Games and mix it up. A fire river is just one of many strategies that the game designers can use but they have to mix it up to keep people on their toes. They could also put crocodiles in the Rio Grande and line the banks with hives of killer bees. It is simple, natural solutions that can help reduce the cost as well. ---
**Author:** ![up\_the\_junction](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f1d935/32.png) [@up\_the\_junction](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/up_the_junction)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2017, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/98 "2017-01-30T14:29:33Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > You are on the right track but it is incomplete. We need to go full Hunger Games and mix it up. A fire river is just one of many strategies that the game designers can use but they have to mix it up to keep people on their toes. They could also put crocodiles in the Rio Grande and line the banks with hives of killer bees. It is simple, natural solutions that can help reduce the cost as well. Hey, this is good. You can also extend those two pipelines coming down from Canada and randomly hose hundreds of miles like a giant lawn sprinker. ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2017, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/99 "2017-01-30T20:16:51Z")
Honestly, if Trump just _says_ he built the wall, his supporters will believe it, and the rest of us can save a lot of money. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2017, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243/100 "2017-01-30T20:55:23Z")
> [@DrCube](#): > > Honestly, if Trump just _says_ he built the wall, his supporters will believe it, and the rest of us can save a lot of money. I think you’re on to something. He doesn’t even have to show a picture of the wall: when he sees a picture of the border that doesn’t have a huge wall in it, he can just call it fake news. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trumps-wall-15-to-20-billion-can-we-do-it-better-and-cheaper/778243.md?page=6)