The Intercept is identifying Mario by a pseudonym because he still works for a federal agency, and fears that using his name would lead to reprisals and jeopardize his job. A military veteran, Mario enlisted in the Border Patrol in 2009 and resigned in 2011. Although he has been out of the Border Patrol for years, his account sheds light on practices that reportedly continue today, and provides a rare insight into the culture of an agency that has been rhetorically emboldened by the Trump administration and promised more money, personnel, and technology to carry out aggressive border enforcement.
Crossing borders is so normal for travelers. However, when that border is closed due to visa restrictions and creating a divide between two pieces of adjacent land just because of political reasons it creates a literal divide. But divides can be overcome and crossed.
Using their passion of slacklining a group of outdoor enthusiasts get some rafts, paddle down the river that makes up the border between the USA and Mexico and set up a crazy high slackline. The Imaginary (slack)line that crosses the border is their way of connecting the two countries. We are all one people, we are all travelers, outdoor enjoyers and creations of nature.
If you haven't read it, I'll give you a big hint - there's not much of a difference. With a fair amount of dulce de leche swirled in, I think it's fair to say these banana muffins sit squarely on the border between muffin and cupcake!
Background
We are a group of Berlin-based moms who came together at the beginning of the Russian invasion. Early on we discovered a small charity directly at the Polish-Ukrainian border called Folkowisko. We started gathering small donations for the charity and this small act led to the creation of a support network that, in the few weeks since, has helped extract people from red zones, find housing for refugees and assist in sending supplies directly to the people who need them most in Ukraine.
With the financial support of friends from all over the world, we have already filled two trucks with essential supplies (food, medicine, blankets, sleeping bags, winter jackets, baby food, diapers and more). Just last week, these trucks arrived at the border, where people have been waiting several days to cross into safe zones. More medicine supplies were successfully delivered to seven hospitals inside Ukraine.
Next Goals:
Evacuation Efforts
We are working with volunteers to aid in the evacuation of Ukranians affected by the Russian attack. All funds will go towards logistical needs, accommodations and financial relief for vulnerable refugees. Our team is also collaborating with other organizations with a similar focus on sharing resources and information. We assist anyone needing to evacuate Ukraine, giving priority to those located in the most at-risk war zones and members of marginalized groups.
Supporting initiatives in Poland
We are helping small NGOs in Poland, alongside other private initiatives like the Shehyni First Aid Center (a makeshift hospital setup at the border). You can learn more about Shehyni on facebook: Centrum Pomocy Humanitarnej w Szegini
We are also working with the Be An Angel Initiative, which is now focused on finding accommodation throughout Europe for refugees located on the Moldavian border.
The Humane Society of Harlingen, in the Texas valley near the Mexico border, took our advice and they were one of the first shelters to proactively empty their kennels when COVID-19 began. They galvanized their community, driving foster and adoption, as well as working with fellow rescue partners, to get as many animals out of the shelter as possible. They successfully made changes to their processes to help keep their staff, adopters, and volunteers, as safe as possible. The Humane Society of Harlingen also hit their first month of over 90% of pets' lives saved during March, which is incredible.
As a filmmaker, Catherine Hardwicke is used to smashing through boundaries and expectations. Now the UT grad swings into the burgeoning new wave of mid-budget action dramas with her cross-border drug war drama Miss Bala.
Miss Bala actually adapts an earlier film by the same name, a street-level crime flick that went on to be Mexico's entry for the 2011 foreign language Oscar. The original inspired was based on a real life incident, when the 2008 Miss Sinaloa, Laura Zúñiga, was busted by the cops in a truck filled with suspected gang members, cash, and guns. When the producers of the remake approached her, Hardwicke said, "They knew I was from the border of Texas, so they asked me, 'Does this appeal to you?' A kickass girl. Border identity issues. Yes!"
In the 2011 version, Laura Guerrero (Stephanie Sigman) lives in Mexico; in this rewrite, Gloria (Gina Rodriguez) is Mexican-born but lives in Los Angeles, and her cross-border identity is a major component of how she is treated on both sides of the divide. That's what binds her to gang boss Lino (Ismael Cruz Cordova), who has his own cross-border story. "They both have this identity issue," said Hardwicke. " 'Am I too gringo to be Mexican? Am I too Mexican to be gringo? I don't speak fluent Spanish, I speak pocha Spanish."
Carrie Fisher was a witty memoirist, a sardonic comedian and a blunt interviewee. But most people will remember her as a princess. And with good reason: her Princess Leia in Star Wars will always hold a place in film history as the first kickass princess.
I love the thrill and excitement of crossing overland borders, especially in unusual places. In that sense, perhaps THE most interesting and notorious one of all is the India Pakistan border. Every single day when the border closes, soldiers from the two nuclear super powers come face to face with each other and engage in a bizarre and hostile standoff. And the best thing: we are all invited to come and watch!
This situation is found at the so-called Wagah border and has existed ever since 1959. It follows a dramatic and violent partitioning of British India in 1947 that led to the creation of the two nations as we know it today. The hostility that remains, can clearly be seen during a carefully choreographed ritual of military bombast. It lasts for a small hour and ultimately leads to a delicate ceremony of lowering the two national flags.
Every day thousands of patriots (and then some tourists) travel from far and beyond to the border located between Amritsar and Lahore. The main attraction is watching the soldiers as they battle it out to see who can show the most aggressive pose of all. Yes, as weird as it sounds, but they raised this to an art form on its own. And oh, it also involves a one-legged man.
My first experience at the India-Pakistan border is on the Indian side. After being very sick for days, I finally feel the strength to join a group of backpackers from my hostel in Amritsar. We are informed to leave early and not to bring any bags. I take some camera gear in my hands, my passport and jump in an auto rickshaw to race off towards Pakistan. It is a moment I had been looking forward to for many years, so you can imagine the excitement.
About half an hour in the music abruptly stops when two poker-faced soldiers emerge, clearing the street while marching towards Pakistan. Carrying automatic machine guns, Ray-Bans and consumer-type headsets, they position themselves right next the border fence.
India and Pakistan not only share a border, but also a tragic history of conflict. It dates back to 1947, when British rule over the Indian subcontinent came to an end. What followed was a violent partitioning along religious lines, splitting up British India into what is now known as Pakistan, India and Bangladesh (at the time considered East Pakistan). Since then three wars have been fought and it is estimated that during this time over a million people lost their lives.
Today India and Pakistan remain entangled in conflict. The hottest point is the disputed Kashmir region, located approximately 100 kilometers north of the Wagah border. With both countries being nuclear super powers, there is a fine line between peace and mutual destruction.
The border closing ceremony concludes with the lowering of the national flags. A well-respected moment, comically accompanied by a dissonant harmony of horn sounds. As soon as the flags are taken down there is a remarkable and quick handshake across the line that is easy to miss. A more dramatic act of slamming the gates shut, signals the soldiers to parade back to their border post.
So you want to cross the border of Jordan to Israel or Israel to Jordan by bus? Good on you! Flights are so expensive and this border crossing is A LOT easier than made out on google! Trust me, I did it, and here's everything you need to know to cross from Amman into Jerusalem (and then onwards to Tel Aviv).
Where ever you are in Jordan this is the best crossing to get into Israel. I was in Amman so got a private cab to the border which cost 25 dinar (approx $35USD) and took just over an hour. I've heard Uber is a little cheaper, but I had a driver that I always used in Amman who I trusted and knew I could rely on.
Then you will have to wait to get a bus over the border. And when I say over the border I literally mean about 1km. They will wait until the bus is full to leave which could take up to an hour or longer if it is a quite day.
Our first night in Uganda was spent in the small border town at the park facilities where it turned out cheaper to rent a bed for about R30 than to camp. Cold showers and pitted toilets are familiar to us by now. Toilets was a strange affair in Uganda. This was our ablutions at the local community camp site.
Arizona and Colorado are by far the most represented states on the base. The Arizona guys, who run border ops year-round, feel that this is their turf. The 3UP leadership, however, is from Colorado. There might be a coup brewing. Why should Arizona report to Colorado? Should there even be a national leadership? Then there is the bigger question: how to unify the militia movement more broadly. 3UP has previously coordinated with Arizona Border Recon but does not currently do so. In these ever-tenuous militia alliances, leadership inevitably becomes a point of contention.
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