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Customs agents' job is to prevent contraband and unauthorized individuals from entering the country. It is not their job to berate American citizens returning

Customs agents' job is to prevent contraband and unauthorized individuals from entering the country. It is not their job to berate American citizens returning from trips abroad. It is not their job to engage in emotionally charged interrogation regarding a person's religious views. It is not their job to intimidate, harass, or jump to unsupported conclusions.

confuzatron 16y ago
I'm pretty sure it's their job to ask people questions and put them off balance while doing so. Even to the extent of saying unreasonable things and raising their voices. It is irritating to be on the receiving end and I say that having only got the low-level treatment that I think everybody gets. But there you go.
- jemfinch 16y ago
  It's not their job to be unprofessional or abusive. People are innocent until proven guilty, even when they're crossing the border.
hop 16y ago
Thats not true, customs agents, TSA and Air Marshalls are all definitely trained to look for anything suspicious and/or fits a rough potential terrorist profile. Coming back from the Pakistan/Afghanistan, having a live round you carried on a plane, Osama Bin Laden candy... You are pretty much asking to have a sit down chat when going through customs.
- jemfinch 16y ago
  Do you really think the terrorists that pose a real danger to the U.S. are so inept that they'd carry a burqa, "Osama bin Laden" candy, and a round of live ammunition on a plane? Which do you think is more likely? That a terrorist secretly plotting against the United States is willing to risk capture over a package of propaganda candy? Or that an American abroad found the candy notable enough to bring a pack back as a conversation piece? The terrorists we ought to be afraid of (if we ought to be afraid of any at all) are not the ones bringing Osama bin Laden candy and burqas on planes. They're the ones who blend in perfectly, the ones we would never pick out of a lineup, the ones who would never make amateur mistakes like bringing a Qu'ran onto a plane. Customs agents aren't going to frazzle the dangerous terrorists by yelling at them. No, to catch the dangerous terrorists, we need real intelligence gathering and analysis. Customs agents on power trips will not suffice.
  - msbarnett 16y ago
    > Do you really think the terrorists that pose a real danger to the U.S. are so inept that they'd carry a burqa, "Osama bin Laden" candy, and a round of live ammunition on a plane? Well, the ones inept enough to do that are only not a threat if we stop them when they do inept stuff like that.
    - jrockway 16y ago
      Well, the ones inept enough to do that are only not a threat if we stop them when they do inept stuff like that. Good thing this policy stopped the Unabomber and Timothy McVeigh.
- potatolicious 16y ago
  As a non-American who works in the US and crosses the border often, there is more to this. Sure, if you just came back from Afghanistan/Pakistan, are carrying sketchy items in your luggage, etc, I wouldn't be terribly surprised that you had to go chat with a friendly customs agent just to be sure you're not trying to blow anything up. That's not what happened though - and despite the fact that this is purely a one-sided telling of the story, I've had sufficient dealings with CBP to suspect that it is most likely entirely true. The author was harassed, verbally abused, and treated in an entirely unprofessional manner. The customs agent was out for blood/witches and gave up all semblance of professionalism and reason. This is extremely typical of my experiences with CBP. The most hilarious thing is that most customs booths I've come across have had a big "we promise to treat you with professionalism and courtesy" poster from DHS emblazoned on it. I've never seen professionalism out of that organization - it's either complete and utter apathy, or (if they smell blood), complete and utter belligerence. The fact of the matter is, CBP agents treat every single traveler as guilty before being proven innocent. Every slight deviation from the norm is treated as proof positive that you're a terrorist. Every denial and scrap of evidence you have is merely treated as a smokescreen from your true guilt. I swear, to work as a modern American border guard probably implies complete sociopathy - I'm not sure how it'd work otherwise. CBP is an embarrassment to America. If all we ever saw of American was, well, the first people you meet at the border, I'd never want to visit. As a non-American I'm certainly not in a position to fix this, but for the Americans out there, please fix this. This is one of the many reasons why America enjoys such a dubious reputation abroad, and needs to be fixed. The author here is an American citizen - the treatment foreign nationals get is considerably more blood-boiling.
  - pbhjpbhj 16y ago
    >The author was harassed, verbally abused, and treated in an entirely unprofessional manner. Isn't this just part of the weeding out process, they're trying to provoke a reaction to establish whether you're some sort of violent fundamentalist? Presumably the psychologist looking from the other side of the one-way glass is assessing your body language and sub-conscious expressions to establish what you're doing there, if you're simply a naive tourist or someone who should be watched or retained.
matwood 16y ago
And they have a tough job. What if the story played out that customs/border patrol found ammunition falling out of a guys pocket and just confiscated it with no further questioning. Then a week later that guy blew up a building? It is their job to determine if someone entering the country is here to do harm. There are plenty of problems with whole airport security thing right now, but questioning this guy further probably isn't one of them.
- pyre 16y ago
  In reality, if the guy went on to blow up a building, major media outlets would be calling for any government official that so much as came into contact with him to be brought before a firing squad (regardless of whether or not there was a real reason to suspect him).
- ajays 16y ago
  You're missing the point. There's questioning, and then there's questioning. What these officers were doing was not "questioning", it was berating. They were just trying to act like sheriffs from an old Western. If they really wanted to question him, they would have done so gently, by gaining his trust and slowly loosening his lips. This is why the FBI is dead against torture (I know, this was not torture by any sense of the word) : it doesn't give them anything of value. On the other hand, they have had huge successes by winning the suspect's trust and letting him talk.

confuzatron 16y ago

I'm pretty sure it's their job to ask people questions and put them off balance while doing so. Even to the extent of saying unreasonable things and raising their voices. It is irritating to be on the receiving end and I say that having only got the low-level treatment that I think everybody gets. But there you go.

jemfinch 16y ago
It's not their job to be unprofessional or abusive. People are innocent until proven guilty, even when they're crossing the border.

hop 16y ago

Thats not true, customs agents, TSA and Air Marshalls are all definitely trained to look for anything suspicious and/or fits a rough potential terrorist profile. Coming back from the Pakistan/Afghanistan, having a live round you carried on a plane, Osama Bin Laden candy... You are pretty much asking to have a sit down chat when going through customs.

jemfinch 16y ago
Do you really think the terrorists that pose a real danger to the U.S. are so inept that they'd carry a burqa, "Osama bin Laden" candy, and a round of live ammunition on a plane? Which do you think is more likely? That a terrorist secretly plotting against the United States is willing to risk capture over a package of propaganda candy? Or that an American abroad found the candy notable enough to bring a pack back as a conversation piece? The terrorists we ought to be afraid of (if we ought to be afraid of any at all) are not the ones bringing Osama bin Laden candy and burqas on planes. They're the ones who blend in perfectly, the ones we would never pick out of a lineup, the ones who would never make amateur mistakes like bringing a Qu'ran onto a plane. Customs agents aren't going to frazzle the dangerous terrorists by yelling at them. No, to catch the dangerous terrorists, we need real intelligence gathering and analysis. Customs agents on power trips will not suffice.
- msbarnett 16y ago
  > Do you really think the terrorists that pose a real danger to the U.S. are so inept that they'd carry a burqa, "Osama bin Laden" candy, and a round of live ammunition on a plane? Well, the ones inept enough to do that are only not a threat if we stop them when they do inept stuff like that.
  - jrockway 16y ago
    Well, the ones inept enough to do that are only not a threat if we stop them when they do inept stuff like that. Good thing this policy stopped the Unabomber and Timothy McVeigh.
potatolicious 16y ago
As a non-American who works in the US and crosses the border often, there is more to this. Sure, if you just came back from Afghanistan/Pakistan, are carrying sketchy items in your luggage, etc, I wouldn't be terribly surprised that you had to go chat with a friendly customs agent just to be sure you're not trying to blow anything up. That's not what happened though - and despite the fact that this is purely a one-sided telling of the story, I've had sufficient dealings with CBP to suspect that it is most likely entirely true. The author was harassed, verbally abused, and treated in an entirely unprofessional manner. The customs agent was out for blood/witches and gave up all semblance of professionalism and reason. This is extremely typical of my experiences with CBP. The most hilarious thing is that most customs booths I've come across have had a big "we promise to treat you with professionalism and courtesy" poster from DHS emblazoned on it. I've never seen professionalism out of that organization - it's either complete and utter apathy, or (if they smell blood), complete and utter belligerence. The fact of the matter is, CBP agents treat every single traveler as guilty before being proven innocent. Every slight deviation from the norm is treated as proof positive that you're a terrorist. Every denial and scrap of evidence you have is merely treated as a smokescreen from your true guilt. I swear, to work as a modern American border guard probably implies complete sociopathy - I'm not sure how it'd work otherwise. CBP is an embarrassment to America. If all we ever saw of American was, well, the first people you meet at the border, I'd never want to visit. As a non-American I'm certainly not in a position to fix this, but for the Americans out there, please fix this. This is one of the many reasons why America enjoys such a dubious reputation abroad, and needs to be fixed. The author here is an American citizen - the treatment foreign nationals get is considerably more blood-boiling.
- pbhjpbhj 16y ago
  >The author was harassed, verbally abused, and treated in an entirely unprofessional manner. Isn't this just part of the weeding out process, they're trying to provoke a reaction to establish whether you're some sort of violent fundamentalist? Presumably the psychologist looking from the other side of the one-way glass is assessing your body language and sub-conscious expressions to establish what you're doing there, if you're simply a naive tourist or someone who should be watched or retained.

matwood 16y ago

And they have a tough job. What if the story played out that customs/border patrol found ammunition falling out of a guys pocket and just confiscated it with no further questioning. Then a week later that guy blew up a building? It is their job to determine if someone entering the country is here to do harm. There are plenty of problems with whole airport security thing right now, but questioning this guy further probably isn't one of them.

pyre 16y ago
In reality, if the guy went on to blow up a building, major media outlets would be calling for any government official that so much as came into contact with him to be brought before a firing squad (regardless of whether or not there was a real reason to suspect him).
ajays 16y ago
You're missing the point. There's questioning, and then there's questioning. What these officers were doing was not "questioning", it was berating. They were just trying to act like sheriffs from an old Western. If they really wanted to question him, they would have done so gently, by gaining his trust and slowly loosening his lips. This is why the FBI is dead against torture (I know, this was not torture by any sense of the word) : it doesn't give them anything of value. On the other hand, they have had huge successes by winning the suspect's trust and letting him talk.