Cell Phone App Helps Illegal Immigrants Cross U.S. Border

By Janice Kephart on March 16, 2010

The Transborder Immigrant Tool, a cell phone GPS app developed by university professors with taxpayer monies, has been touted as essentially guiding illegal migrants more safely across the desert, helping them find water and avoid the Border Patrol. The app is available to anyone for free, thus encouraging illegal entry while aiding and abetting violations of immigration and criminal law. Drug dealers, smugglers, traffickers, MS-13 gangs and potential terrorists also are being provided a free technology gateway into America.

Putting this cell phone app in context, today we have smuggling routes increasingly controlled by criminal gangs and drug cartels. Violence against illegals is up as is violence against Americans, especially in the southwest corridor, where Border Patrol agents and those living close to the border are increasingly dealing with violent crimes. Phoenix is considered a "kidnap" capitol, for example, and drugs are being carried by mules, dropped by planes, and protected with guns. We also have significant numbers of persons being apprehended from countries that the State Department has designated as terror sponsors-- up over 550 in 2008.

Put those numbers in context of 2009 reporting by the Border Patrol that it was only able to secure 697 miles of SW border out of nearly 2,000 miles, and only 32 miles of operational control over the 4,000 mile border with Canada. And there's no apparent interest in upping those numbers. That reality-- in juxtaposition to border budget and personnel cuts by this administration -- amounts to a dangerous potential for an app like this one.



These professors should be ashamed of parading this cell phone GPS device as helping illegals when they could have been developing a device to help the Border Patrol catch the illegals, or rescue the ones stranded, better. The university professors claim this app promotes "free expression" and that such free expression is priceless. What this app has to do with free expression is unanswered. Also unanswered is what is less priceless about our economic and national security?

News Article:
Critics Blast Transborder Immigrant Tool as 'Irresponsible' Use of Technology
By Joshua Rhett Miller
FOXNews.com