Heavily-armed Texas gunboats now patrol Rio Grande

This isn't breaking news, and not sure if it is the right forum either, probably not. So please move if necessary.

Texas DPS is now patrolling the Rio Grande on the Texas border with heavily armed gunboats to search for drug runners. The boats usually operate with 6 M - 240 30 caliber fully automatic machine guns.

The DPS now has 4 of these gunboats patrolling the Rio Grande and the inter - coastal waterway, with two more on the way, costing taxpayers 580,000 dollars each. IMO money well spent...

khou.com

SOUTH TEXAS -- Ask Kyle McCarty where he worked just a few months ago and he’ll tell you about patrolling the roads around Odessa as a state trooper.

"Yes, sir," says McCarty, an affable young man with a Texas twang just two years into his career with the Department of Public Safety. "Just regular road crew, black and white."

So the cat and mouse game on the border continues. Troopers now watch for smugglers from their heavily armed gunboats. And smugglers position spotters to watch for the gunboats. "They’re in constant communication," Goble says. "If they see us operating in a particular location on the river, they’ll just push it 10 miles either end of us. They’ve got their techniques down to a science, almost. They can move a load of dope across the river in just a matter of minutes. And they can have it completed prior to us even arriving."

It's absurd that our Federal government, for over a decade, has been wasting billions of dollars 'defending the nation' by starting wars with other countries, while the actual US borders are left basically wide open for this sort of activity (and many others). Absurd. Even the most bleeding heart liberal should see it's idiotic that the state should have to defend an international border with such meager resources.

reply to post by Daedal


Any Vietnam Vets looking for a JOB,,, ?

Delta, P.T. Boats,, a requirment,,

I would think operation PHOENIX vets would do better.

reply to post by cavtrooper7


well im guessing but when u want too flush out anything,,of a close up nature,
best too go in clean,,knowing it has a new freshness,, too the approach.

older the better??

reply to post by Daedal


In your opinion drug boats for 580,000 is a good deal?

It does not matter if you have 10,000 of these boats the drugs will still get through.
It does not matter if you make all drugs punishable by the the death penalty.
people will still find them and still do them.
Still a good deal?

I think any amount of money spend of drug arrest are silly and a total waste of tax payers money.
If you want to reduce drug use spend the money on education and rehabilitation instead.

Originally posted by knowledgedesired

If you want to reduce drug use spend the money on education and rehabilitation instead.

And if you want to reduce the incentive for drug cartels, drastically reduce the profit motive by by decriminalizing their products.

reply to post by knowledgedesired


Surely something has to be done, and patrolling the waterway to fend off incoming drugs while putting pressure on the cartels is something the DPS shouldn't have to do.

If the feds would do their job of enforcing existing laws, then the states wouldn't have to take it upon themselves to do it or try too. Once the drug lords know that the U.S. finally means business and will not further allow the border to be a free for all, we may begin to see progress on the so called "war on drugs."

I do agree that rehabilitation and decriminalization will help, but the latter will not happen. For every capture and seizure of illicit drugs, I'm sure there's a mother somewhere who won't be waking up to a knock on the door.

Originally posted by Daedal

If the feds would do their job of enforcing existing laws, then the states wouldn't have to take it upon themselves to do it or try too. Once the drug lords know that the U.S. finally means business and will not further allow the border to be a free for all, we may begin to see progress on the so called "war on drugs."

No no no. The 'existing laws' are the problem.

Our prohibition created the drug cartels. The war on drugs will not be won by defending the border, even with the entire US military stationed at home. The war on drugs will never be won, because it's a war that creates its own enemies, and the more we try to fight that war, the more enemies we create. It's an exponentially uphill battle and we only find ways to make it worse for ourselves.

Now that the gunboats are there, the cartels will just have to buy bigger guns. They'll probably get them from us.

reply to post by drwizardphd

I completely agree. The war on drugs will never be won, and our prohibition is what gives them power. But as it currently sits, what other option besides changing laws are they to do?

reply to post by Daedal


I think the only real solution is decriminalization. Protecting the border is important regardless of the drug cartels, but we need to be careful not to spend too much money doing it.

I just don't know if common sense solutions will ever become mainstream. Ron Paul advocated for decriminalization and he's been shunned by the media and even his own party. Until more people start to see the bigger picture I fear we're just going to keep making things worse. It's just sad to see so many innocent people getting killed over drugs.

reply to post by BobAthome

Said like a scout sir.

Since TPTB wont do their job, Texas will take care of itself as it always has. I think that price is pretty crazy...But the thing is , these people know there is nothing keeping them from tryin to come over with dope..they get chased, they run for the river and splash down and go as far as to still grab the drugs and take it over to the otherside, not just get away, but get away with the dope still...once a few go down in a blaze of gunfire and they start actually losing these shipments, they will have to come up with a plan B. No it will not totally stop it, but you can just let them have a free reign either. Im sure the gov will start bitching before long how Texas is overstepping its bounds by defending its borders..Im not sure how long this can go on with the Fed pushing the states down, but Texas is not a state to be messed with, its not just s catchy slogan.