[Marine Inspector]

For the eighth month in a row, the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service reported a sharp drop in the number of immigrants detained entering from Mexico, viewed as the best gauge of how many are crossing the border illegally.

True, but what the INS is not telling you is that those sharp drops are dropping sharply themselves. In October 2001, the number of apprehensions dropped by over 50% from the previous year, but , by May of 2002 the number of apprehensions had only dropped 20% from the previous year.

The original 50% drop was due to 9/11 and wide spread rumors in Mexico that the US was going to enlist illegals to go fight in Afghanistan. As the shock of 9/11 wears off and the rumors dies out, the numbers start to rise to their previous levels.

Analysts and some patrollers, however, are cautious about jumping to conclusions. A report released yesterday by the Public Policy Institute of California said that, despite the short-term drop in apprehensions, illegal immigration has continued to rise for the past nine years.

This is also true and is due to the stepped up enforcement on the border. In the past, many of the illegals would frequently cross back and forth. Since the many border operations by the INS has made crossing the border more hazardous, many of the illegals are opting to stay in the US, as opposed to subjecting themselves to the risk of apprehension on the border, thus increasing the permanent illegal population in the US.

[FITZ]

True. I think some of the illegals know easy ways or easy places to go back and forth but are keeping those fairly secret even from the others. Illegals used to be pretty willing to tell you how they came over but now if you ask them they just laugh and won't say.