Immigration patrols on domestic Amtrak

On Jul 14, 7:53 pm, "Bill in Schenectady" wrote:
"Janet Wilder" wrote in message

...





Bill in Schenectady wrote:

I still think it's dumb. Protect the borders at the borders.

I live 6 miles from the Mexican border. The Border Patrol does its job but
illegals do slip through. Many, many of them are caught at checkpoints
along US 281 and US 77. Those checkpoints are located 70+ miles north of
the Rio Grande.

The local media reports on the catching of illegal immigrants and drug
shipments at these checkpoints on an almost daily basis.

--
Janet Wilder
Bad spelling. Bad punctuation
Good Friends. Good Life

I suppose I shouldn't compare the southern border with the northern.
Relatively few illegal immigrants come over from Canada.


Are you kidding me? The illegals from Canada just blend in more
easily. When the Canadian economy was bad the numbers probably rival
that of Mexico.


I rarely hear of
anyone being caught due to checkpoints near the Canadian border (or even at
the border itself).


Because it's so much easier for Canadians to come in as visitors.


In fact, the guy with the TB case came across on the
I-87 crossing from Canada into New York State. He was on a watch list, and
border patrol just waved him through.

The same border patrol treated my family of four, with two teenaged girls,
rather roughly when we came through the same crossing last year. They
showed us who was boss, but didn't catch someone on a watch list

On Sat, 14 Jul 2007 22:39:37 -0700,
wrote:

Personally, I never use Amtrak. If I want to
experience Soviet-era travel, I'll go visit
North Korea instead.

I had no problems using it and I certainly wouldn't consider
it Soviet-era. Of course, if you never use it, you'd never
know, would you?

I feel left out; as a non-USAian no-one asked to see my ID
on the way to Buffalo.


Cheers, Alan, Australia
--
http://loraltraveloz.blogspot.com/
latest: Mossman Gorge in the Daintree Rainforest
http://loraldiabetes.blogspot.com/
latest: Self-Testing and Type 2 Management

On Jul 14, 6:44 pm, "Bill in Schenectady" wrote:

We were on the Lake Shore Limited, traveling from Chicago to Schenectady
(the train goes on to New York City) when, just after the Buffalo stop, the
train stopped and two uniformed immigration patrol officers boarded and
walked through the coach class cars asking each person if he or she is an
American citizen.

And this surprises you because...?

Amtrak official policy (as stated on their website) is that
government-issued photo ID is required to purchase a ticket.
Moreover, passengers must produce valid ID
("Papers Please!") any time they are asked to do
so while on the train.

Personally, I never use Amtrak. If I want to
experience Soviet-era travel, I'll go visit
North Korea instead.


At it's worst, it reeks of countries where you can be stopped at any time
and place and asked to present your papers.

In article om,
wrote:

Amtrak official policy (as stated on their website) is that
government-issued photo ID is required to purchase a ticket.
Moreover, passengers must produce valid ID
("Papers Please!") any time they are asked to do
so while on the train.

This is required by the federal Transportation Security Administration
(TSA). Your bone is with the US government.

On 2007-07-14 22:53:17 -0400, "Bill in Schenectady" said:

Relatively few illegal immigrants come over from Canada. I rarely hear of
anyone being caught due to checkpoints near the Canadian border (or even at
the border itself). In fact, the guy with the TB case came across on the
I-87 crossing from Canada into New York State. He was on a watch list, and
border patrol just waved him through.

There was also the little matter of an intended Arab bomber trying to
get through a checkpoint in Washington state back in 1999 or 2000.
Fortunately, he was caught at the border and put out of circulation.

wrote:
On Jul 14, 6:44 pm, "Bill in Schenectady" wrote:

We were on the Lake Shore Limited, traveling from Chicago to Schenectady
(the train goes on to New York City) when, just after the Buffalo stop, the
train stopped and two uniformed immigration patrol officers boarded and
walked through the coach class cars asking each person if he or she is an
American citizen.

And this surprises you because...?

Amtrak official policy (as stated on their website) is that
government-issued photo ID is required to purchase a ticket.
Moreover, passengers must produce valid ID
("Papers Please!") any time they are asked to do
so while on the train.

The document Amtrak asks a passengers to carry is a driver's license (or
equivalent state issued photo id). It's insufficient to establish
citizenship if a Customs officer demands proof. It's another one of
those purposeless annoyances in the guise of security.

Personally, I never use Amtrak. If I want to experience Soviet-era travel,
I'll go visit North Korea instead.

Yeah, I'm sure it's just like the Soviet Union was, where I'll bet you
never traveled by train either.

On Sat, 14 Jul 2007 22:39:37 -0700,
mangled uncounted electrons thus:

On Jul 14, 6:44 pm, "Bill in Schenectady" wrote:

We were on the Lake Shore Limited, traveling from Chicago to Schenectady
(the train goes on to New York City) when, just after the Buffalo stop, the
train stopped and two uniformed immigration patrol officers boarded and
walked through the coach class cars asking each person if he or she is an
American citizen.

And this surprises you because...?

Amtrak official policy (as stated on their website) is that
government-issued photo ID is required to purchase a ticket.

Does that mean a US-government issued ID? If so, the tentative
plans my wife and I are making to use Amtrack for internal travel
(rather than fly internally within the USA) on our next visit
won't be possible...

Moreover, passengers must produce valid ID
("Papers Please!") any time they are asked to do
so while on the train.

Not too much different from being asked to show your ticket by a
gripper on trains in the UK...

Martin D. Pay
UK citizen/passport holder (and non-driver - no driver's
licence!)

In article , Martin D. Pay
wrote:

Does that mean a US-government issued ID? If so, the tentative
plans my wife and I are making to use Amtrack for internal travel
(rather than fly internally within the USA) on our next visit
won't be possible...

No, it does not mean a US government issued ID. It means a government
issued photo ID. If the photo ID is issued by the Albanian government
it is a valid. And it does not have to be a passport. It can for
example, be a drivers license issued by the Albanian government.

"Bill in Schenectady" wrote in message
news:a_emi.2187$fP4.1511@trndny07...

Legally, I don't think traveling by Amtrak is any different than driving
on highways. You don't see roadblocks on the nation's interstates (except
for some poorly thought out ones on the interstates leading from Canada
and, presumably, from Mexico). This train never crossed a border. And
the officers did not bother with the presumably wealthier sleeper
passengers.



I've been stopped by such patrols on Interstates in California

Keith

In rec.travel.usa-canada Whitelightning wrote:
Once west of the great lakes the border between Canada and the USA is
damn near imposable to secure unless we put troops on the border spaced
every 100 yards, would to be every 25 yards in some places unless we
started clear cutting vegetation.

It is already clear cut, 20 feet wide.

--
K.

Lang may your lum reek.