Bamboo clusters | Photo via Creative Commons
Seriously, here are the suggested components of a Biden Doctrine for the southern border with the State of Mexico that the Mexican bamboo and moringa proposal will enable Mr. Biden to look like a genius of an environmentalist president. He would appear determined to help disadvantaged Americans and Mexicans achieve socio-economic interdependence.
First, dismantle all the inferior-designed and poorly-constructed steel-and-cement walls and fences by the Trump Administration and sue the contractors for shoddy quality and low-quality materials for a refund and for probably bribing their way to receiving the onerous contracts. District Attorneys may do all these steps in addition to any criminal prosecution they deem fit, proper, and sustainable in court.
All the money recovered should form part of a $1-billion seed capital for the various co-ops. The Hispanic and other minority communities should raise private capital to match the $1-billion (or more) investment by the federal or state governments and local agencies. In short, this initiative will be a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) — on both sides of the border.
Second, create (for want of a better term) the SWATTT teams. SWATTT (or SWAT3 for short) is the acronym of Social Workers, Agriculturists, Teachers, Technicians and Technocrats teams (of Americans and Mexicans) to “reinvent” the wall by building instead of a 1-mile vast stretch of bamboo groves and lines of moringa trees — on both sides of the border. It will make the areas of operation green with vegetation and produce more oxygen that will circulate the world as an additional benefit.
They may expand the SWAT3 teams and field in the states where hundreds of farmers committed suicide due to losing their farms due to bankruptcy. The units can do more to revive, for instance, the cotton industry, restart looming operations, “reinvent’ the tannery and leather-craft industries, etc.
Third, start also constructing the log-cabin-style housing (with 21-century amenities) — as short-term accommodations — for all the American homeless in the U.S. and Mexican homeless and refugees on the Mexican side. Bamboo poles may be injected with melted recycled plastic for a cooler effect during summer and retentive heat during the cold months. They will aid Mexico too in fielding their SWAT3-led economic activities.
All of the plumbing in all the buildings, houses, restaurants, etc., will be designed to capture the water used in rinsing and be piped directly to the trees and bamboo plantations as “gray-irrigation water.” The rest of the wastewater will go to settling ponds or tanks for cleaning and recycling.
“Seriously, here are the suggested components of a Biden Doctrine for the southern border with the State of Mexico that the Mexican bamboo and moringa proposal will enable Mr. Biden to look like a genius of an environmentalist president. He would appear determined to help disadvantaged Americans and Mexicans achieve socio-economic interdependence.”
Fourth, start constructing infrastructures for manufacturing plywood, wallboards, paper bags, diapers (for infants and senior citizens), chopping boards (plus other kitchen utensils and containers), chopsticks, furniture, bicycle parts — all from bamboo. And food canning of bamboo shoots, moringa tea, and seed extracts, and other products.
By the time the factories are up and running, there will be ample supplies of bamboo and moringa ingredients. On a staggered and scheduled basis, the workers and the consumers should own these suggested economic activities.
They may truck in additional raw materials from outside suppliers from both countries as needed while waiting for the bamboo orchards to mature and be ready for harvest.
Fifth, SWAT3 to help the residents and workers operate vegetable gardens, meal trucks, canteens, restaurants, pension inns, and medical clinics (in every town or village along the border) with transportation and security outpost to feed and protect the workers, the ex-homeless residents, and tourists.
Privatize and organize as cooperatives these recommended ventures. These activities will also help combat the onslaught of epidemics and pandemics, just like the current COVID-19 tragedy.
Issue an Executive Order mandating the voluntary use by all government-run kitchens (including the White House and the military) of this healthy food ingredient for soup, delicious vegetables for chicken or beef stew, etcetera expand the market for bamboo shoots (either fresh or canned) and also, for the moringa food products.
Sixth, use stockpiles of housing materials and consumer items at sites along the border to construct permanent housing in the designated areas (on federal land leased) as needed for agriculture, housing, industry, trade, and security.
“They can build grain terraces and food-storage sites; then commuter trains. They can do green-energy projects and even an excellent task of creating aqueducts and a pipe system to divert river waters from being wasted and just dumped by mother nature into the sea or ocean.“
Seventh, train workers to organize cooperatives and bid for projects as construction enterprises to obtain more successes. They can build grain terraces and food-storage sites; then commuter trains. They can do green-energy projects and even an excellent task of creating aqueducts and a pipe system to divert river waters from being wasted and just dumped by mother nature into the sea or ocean. The waters can be used not only for the projects on the American-Mexican border but also for replenishing nearby aquifers that are drying up.
They may tap the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and other engineering brigades to assist the SWAT3 teams in doing the projects named earlier. They can also dub for a better name as the “Biden Aqueducts and Pipe Systems” (BAPS).
The great rivers like the Rio Grande that are parts of the border and are tributaries to other water bodies can be dredged and widened — so that a new version of the Panama Canal can be planned and constructed before the turn of the 22nd century. All of these activities will accelerate the making of Mexico as the world’s fifth-biggest economy by 2050. Or even earlier, the suggested Biden Doctrine will help prioritize and sustain projects that will benefit both countries.
There are more-suggested socio-economic targets. But perhaps joint American-Mexican study groups can consider them — as outlined in this column. This columnist is doing just to lay down the conceptual framework of approach in solving urgent-and-critical problems affecting the United States, Mexico, Canada, Central-and-South America, the Caribbean, and even the World.
“It may be the essence of a Biden Doctrine that Americans and Mexicans wish. It is time to be visionary. It is time to act. It is time to go bold. But on a partnership with neighbors and allies.”
Calamities, disasters, pandemics, and human-made tragedies know no border or boundary; they do not respect nationalities, creed, color, or sexual orientation, degree of education; they hit both the affluent and the financially-disadvantaged.
It is up to President Biden and his administration to lead the partnership with their Mexican counterparts. As the great general and statesman Douglas MacArthur once told Filipino national policy-and-decision makers, leadership is essential. He compared it to a string. General MacArthur allegedly and metaphorically asked the Filipinos: “Have you tried to push a string?”
It may be the essence of a Biden Doctrine that Americans and Mexicans wish. It is time to be visionary. It is time to act. It is time to go bold. But on a partnership with neighbors and allies.
Related story: Part I – How Mexican Bamboos Can Make Joe Biden a Genius
