I have given considerable thought to the current and ongoing debate about funding for a southern border wall. I’ve listened to both sides of the debate, and have read numerous arguments — both pro and con — as to why or why not we should spend money on a wall, as requested by President Trump and also recommended by those who work daily at the border.

I don’t presume to know if a wall will work, but I can read and see how beneficial it has been in other countries in keeping out unwanted/ uninvited visitors. Make no mistake about it, illegal aliens coming in to this country are in violation of U.S. laws.

If walls were not effective, then why did Barack Obama just construct a 10-foot high fence around his residence? Why do many in our government have walls around their homes?

The logical conclusion is that they want to keep safe those who live within the confines of those walls.

Thus, it makes sense to me that as a nation of laws, we keep out the lawbreakers until they can be fully vetted and determined to be potential residents who will benefit our country.

To see our elected officials — both Democrat and Republican — squabbling over $5 billion for a wall seems absurd when you consider the frivolous waste of our federal government.

A recent report compiled by Caleb Hull, director of content at Targeted Victory, a full-service strategy and marketing agency that provides information in the digital age and that focuses on solving global corporate challenges.

Hull discovered the following totally asinine and otherwise absurd items in our governmental budget:

• $3 million for World of Warcraft which goes to UC-Irvine researchers’ screen time;

• $800,000 to study the significance of genital washing;

• $2.5 million for a Super Bowl commercial that was so terribly produced that it was banned after it aired;

• $765,828 on pancakes to fund IHOP in an underserved area of D.C.;

• $442,340 to study the behavior of male prostitutes in Vietnam;

• $168,768 to study monkeys who throw their poop;

• $900,000 to study social interactions with guppies;

• $10 million to study dog tail wagging;

• $202,000 to determine if Wikipedia is sexist;

• $4.9 million to dress students up in fruit costumes and encourage them to eat healthy;

• $1.3 million to study the effectiveness of koozies keeping drinks cold; and

• $387,000 to study the effects of swedish massage on rabbits.

Unfortunately, many people coming in the U.S. via the southern border are bringing diseases that Americans have no immunity to combat. Coming from tropical countries, they bring Dengue Fever, Chikungunya virus and malaria — all spread by mosquitoes. They also have parasites, tuberculosis and countless other diseases.

It’s sad that some of our leadership think so little of Americans that they’re more concerned about people from other countries than they are American citizens. The role of government — first and foremost – is to protect its citizens — here and abroad. Sadly, they’re failing miserably at their job.

How wonderful it would be if our leaders would put Americans first on their agenda and not last.

Vicki Coggins
Albemarle