This is a story.

Osama Bin Laden is alive and well and living in Los Angeles. He cut his hair and shaved his beard and now wears a cowboy hat. How he entered the United States is unknown. He could have hopped on a boat in Ontario, Canada and disembarked in Ohio. Maybe he went for a long walk in the deserted areas northeast of Blaine, Montana and simply crossed over a broken fence on some farmer's land. Perhaps he learned how to speak Spanish in Venezuela and joined illegal migrant workers on the way to America. Or he could have accessed yet another undiscovered drug smuggler's tunnel. One way or the other, he is here, making his terrible plans of violence against anything American.

Yes it's just a story but not all that impossible to imagine. U.S. borders remain vulnerable despite recent efforts to better secure them.

Canadian/USA Border - With over 4000 miles forming the border between the United States and Canada, security is a huge undertaking. According to a 1998 report by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, many terrorist organizations have possibly set up roots there. They include Hamas, Hezbollah, and other radical Islamist groups from Iran and Algeria. http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/news/story.html?id=aa8696a1-5a53-40ca-868a-3c8f6009581c

The Department of Homeland Security is aware of this. They acknowledge that several weak spots exist. While the United States has concentrated its efforts toward securing the much shorter southern border, the level of vulnerability on the northern border is alarming. Over 12,000 border agents patrol the U.S.- Mexico border along with National Guard troops. There are approximately 1000 agents along the Canadian border which is twice as long. Other concerns are Canada's open immigration policy, the rugged terrain in some areas and the myriad of lakes and waterways that are difficult to patrol.

Some in Congress are demanding action, particularly those from the border states. They agree that spending billions of dollars in the war efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan and then skimping on border security is unacceptable. Lawmakers are finally addressng the issue but is it too late?

Mexican/USA Border - The Mexican border, though much better patrolled, is not without its loopholes. In 2007, a GAO investigator climbed over a four foot fence meant to stop vehicles from crossing and entered into and out of Mexico without law enforcement ever appearing. Retired drug czar, General Barry McCaffrey, said that just as drug smugglers can fly across the border at low levels and unload drugs on U.S. soil, so too can terrorists.

Present day Mexico is in turmoil. Drug cartels have practically seized whole cities and law enforcement there is easily bribed. Even more disturbing to the United States is that Al Qaeda has formed a presence there. A recent report by U.S. counterterrorism officials states that officials have authenticated an Al Qaeda video that threatens to smuggle biological weapons through tunnels under the Mexico border to the United States. http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/jun/03/al-qaeda-eyes-bio-attack-via-mexico-border/

Al Qaeda has had ties in both South and Central America for some time as well as Mexico. The influx of illegal Mexican immigration into the United States certainly is pause for thought. A corrupt or distracted agent or officer could well overlook a terrorist who poses as a Mexican. The drug-smuggling industry has access to numerous underground tunnels that connect Mexico to the United States. As recent as this year, an elaborate tunnel was discovered. Officials were surprised at how sophisticated it was. How many more are yet to be found or built? And who is using them?

The Good News - A renewed push to secure the Mexican border is in the works. The Obama administration and Homeland Security plan to double the amount of agents posted at the border as well as commit more equipment and resources. They also hope to work more closely with the Mexican government to curb a runaway drug environment.

Canadian and U.S. officials are already working together to make the border less penetrable. Law enforcement in both countries will improve communication and share information. Unmanned surveillance aircraft have already started patrolling the skies.The unarmed Predator B drone is able to detect a person moving from from 10 kilometers away.

Here is an interesting link to a live global incident map - http://www.globalincidentmap.com/map.php