10 ms·

DEA agents conduct surprise searches of Amtrak passengers

102 points by eplanit 7y ago

wayanon 7y ago
I would find this distressing to see as a tourist let alone a US citizen. Why not go the whole hog and have pre-boarding searches like airports?
- jazzyjackson 7y ago
  Most train stations in the US have 1 - 3 trains daily. I guess there's airports that only have a few daily flights and their security hangs out without work most of the day, but that must be expensive. So searching the train let's you search people who may have boarded at a dozen different stations. But yeah those of us who take the train instead of flying have been counting our lucky stars that the security theater has skipped Amtrak so far. It's so nice to travel from one city to another without being treated like a criminal. All good things must come to an end.
- salawat 7y ago
  Because travelling is increasingly becoming synonymous to being up to something? This is what drives me mad. This is such a violation of every principle of good hospitality. By delegating responsibility for one's safety away from oneself to the responsibility of the purveyors (or overseers) of the mode of transportation, we all end up being treated as threats until proven otherwise. It is such a tenuous balance. Excessive restriction of the conditions under which hospitality is granted leads to a breakdown of social reciprocity, intensification of in-group mentality, and alienation of the outsider. This stratifies and jeopardizes the ability of these myriad in-groups to coexist and transact peaceably, detracting from the possibility of maintaining any semblance of a national/international unity, or at least peaceful polity. It's diplomacy, in essence, at smaller and more localized scales. Most societies have carveouts for providing for the need of the outsider, because tit-for-tat is such an easy state of affairs to end up in. Mind, the tit-for-tat part is implicit, not explicit, as most text on hospitality emphasizes the duty of the host to care without concern for [individual] reciprocity. Collectively speaking however, the way one culture recieves another does have an impact on overall relations between polities. I just wish there was greater emphasis placed on this. I get it, lofty ideals tend to be the first to get binned, but sometimes the ideal is worth tolerating a greater degree of perceived immediate risk in order to facilitate a much larger payoff in terms of unity of action across non-emphasized in-groups. Sometimes it's the difference between all travelers looking at and being suspicious of each other in transit, perpetuating macro-level conflict into every strata of everyday life, and a group of strangers coming together, and momentarily sharing the unique opportunity of traveling together, and being able to freely exchange in an environment of goodwill and camaraderie, and to be assured of unity of action through dissolution of fear at having to react to defuse violence on behalf of the traveling group. Dissolution of macro-scale tension must begin at the bottom Of the social pyramid. Trying to work from the top down is a fool's errand.
  - lsc 7y ago
    Driving is largely unregulated, so I doubt this is about preventing travel.
    - dredmorbius 7y ago
      Unless pigmented.
  - tunap 7y ago
    Sometimes it's the difference between all travelers looking at and being suspicious of each other in transit, perpetuating macro-level conflict into every strata of everyday life, and a group of strangers coming together, and momentarily sharing the unique opportunity of traveling together, and being able to freely exchange in an environment of goodwill and camaraderie, and to be assured of unity of action through dissolution of fear at having to react to defuse violence on behalf of the traveling group. Ironically, in the months after 9/11 I experienced the latter comraderie flying. It was the beat time to fly, IMO, if you could look past the soldiers w/ automatic rifles loitering around. In fact, the soldiers were quite peraonable once engaged, as well. Go figure.
- toast0 7y ago
  Airport searches may uncover illicit drugs, but aren't run by the Drug Enforcement Agency. The Transportation Security Administration searches are looking for weapons and explosives.
- joshuaheard 7y ago
  Terrorists aren't blowing up trains, yet.
- chiph 7y ago
  Their VIPR teams have done this in the past. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visible_Intermodal_Prevention_and_Response_team https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visible_Intermodal_Prevention_... Response by the public has been pretty negative - they know what airports have become and don't want to be hassled in other locations.
coldcode 7y ago
Just say no. In fact these agents have no authority to force you to submit to a search without a warrant, probable cause or a dog. Most people either don't understand that, or fear the consequences. What can happen of course is intimidation and causing you to miss the train entirely. Papers, please, may be a stereotype but one agents like these heartily believe in.
- sys_64738 7y ago
  Then they'll try the old "You're papers are not in order." to see how you react.
  - dannyw 7y ago
    Sometimes, but not anyways. Admittedly my sample size is limited to ~3, but asserting my right to decline searches (outside of borders, where you don't get such right), have resulted in 0 searches. Usually they keep questioning you for a while, but it's not hard to respond in a way that doesn't give them probable cause.
    - darth_skywalker 7y ago
      >> Usually they keep questioning you for a while, but it's not hard to respond in a way that doesn't give them probable cause. You should try exercising your fifth amendment right to remain silent. The police explicitly remind people who are arrested that anything they say "can and will" be used against them in a court of law.
      - yardie 7y ago
        Most people want to talk there way out of a bad situation. Like the police will Mirandize them and they still won't shut up! Dude! shut up, weight for your lawyer, and under no circumstance waive your right to a speedy trial until you have counsel.
        acollins1331 7y ago
wallace_f 7y ago
I don't know what motivates someone to be so psychopathically obsessed with invading other people's privacy, stealing their property, and even ruining their lives.
- ashildr 7y ago
  They are brave agents of freedom. You find those in every country.
- joshuaheard 7y ago
  Catching criminals?
  - allset_ 7y ago
    Then do that, with actual targeted investigations. This is just harassment and a fishing expedition.
    - joshuaheard 7y ago
      In sales, it is known as "cold calling".
- akira2501 7y ago
  > I don't know what motivates someone to be so psychopathically obsessed with invading other people's privacy, stealing their property, and even ruining their lives. It's because the system is setup to reward them for a 0.1% success rate. These people don't see themselves as invading your privacy, they see themselves as climbing the DEA ladder.
- wl 7y ago
  In a different society, these people might be highwaymen. The government lets them do the same kinds of thing with official sanction and support.
appleshore 7y ago
Amtrak’s a perfect representation of everything wrong with the US. A slow, unreliable train. Seems always delayed hours without being informed of why or how long. Receives almost $2 billion in federal subsidies. Bathrooms are dirty. And then you’re pressured searched by a DEA agent whose already scanned the passenger logs looking for targets....
- mattkrause 7y ago
  I took Amtrak regularly along the East Coast. Door-to-door was both faster and cheaper than flying, plus the experience was a lot more pleasant. Less travelled routes have a chicken-and-egg problem: nobody uses them, so they’re not a priority, so they get even worse. NYC to Montreal, for example, should be 2x as fast as it currently is....
  - mlthoughts2018 7y ago
    The Acela line with business & first class is literally the only quality Amtrak line in the country. For that line, and that line only, it can be worthwhile as an alternative to flying or driving among a select few destination spanning from DC to Boston. I’m sure that line accounts for some wildly disproportionate revenue for Amtrak, but in most other places people prefer to pay cheaper fares and don’t care about the surrounding quality properties enough to pay more for them.
    - mattkrause 7y ago
      And that’s the only major part of the network where Amtrak controls the tracks. Elsewhere, it’s hamstrung by limited capacity and bad/illegal behavior by private operators. The Office of the Inspector General put together a fairly comprehensive report about this: https://www.oig.dot.gov/sites/default/files/Amtrak_Root_Causes_Final_Report_9_8_08_with_508_charts.pdf https://www.oig.dot.gov/sites/default/files/Amtrak_Root_Caus... In principle, this could easily be fixed—-and cracking down operators ignoring the preference rules did help a lot—-but people have to want it.
    - leetcrew 7y ago
atlasunshrugged 7y ago
I recently took part of this route (DC to Chicago then Chicago all the way to LA) in December of 2018, the people were really fascinating. Lots of folks, especially older ones, who just didn't like taking flights and weren't up to driving cross country and then some who were train enthusiasts and just loved trains and then a few families. It's a real shame that they're doing searches like this, it sounds pretty sketchy.
frickinLasers 7y ago
"An email uncovered in a federal drug trafficking case from last year showed that Greyhound tried to kick the DEA out of its Albuquerque station. [...] Greyhound declined to comment about the email or what has happened since." Sounds like someone has been gagged by a National Security Letter.
mnm1 7y ago
And that's how you make stealing legal. Perry is a thief, plain and simple, not to mention the many other derogatory terms that could describe this subhuman shitstain. He is the embodiment of the American idea of creating a problem where one doesn't exist and then "solving" it for profit. This is known as the war on drugs. It's extremely profitable not only in terms of money but also in terms of creating fear used for societal control, especially for controlling minorities. Ruining people's lives and society to make a buck. I hope it really does get dangerous for this scumbag. The world would be better off without him and all the rest of the people like him.
DebtDeflation 7y ago
>It’s legal for Perry to search people without probable cause, a warrant, or a dog because travelers supposedly realize that they have the right to decline to submit to his searches. We need to extend the Miranda Warning to circumstances such as these. "You are not under arrest and you have the right to refuse a search. If you consent to a search, and something illegal is found, it can be admitted into evidence against you in court." If every interaction started with those words, you'd see a lot more people exercising their right to refuse.
- wl 7y ago
  Miranda warnings don't seem to help much in practice. Pretty much everyone who is given one waives their rights and speaks anyway.
  - User23 7y ago
    It's particularly interesting to see videos where the suspect says something along the lines of, "I know my rights, I have the right to remain silent" and then proceeds to blab on and on at the officer. I suppose it's an object lesson in the difference between the right and the ability to do or not do something. Shades of Monty Python...
  - pavel_lishin 7y ago
    Is that true?
    - markbnj 7y ago
      The prevalence of advice videos from criminal defense attorneys advising citizens in contact with the police to simply shut their mouths would at least anecdotally support this statement.
      - Scoundreller 7y ago
        Top-of-head thinking? Défense lawyers probably remember really well the cases that could have been a lot easier to win. Just as doctors tend to prescribe what worked last time - easier to do what’s at the top of your mind than critically appraise the evidence.
AndyMcConachie 7y ago
I got fucked with by a plains clothes cop on an Amtrak once. He flashed a badge at me that I didn't even have time to read. Then he produced a bag and asked me if it was mine. It wasn't and I told him so. He left. He came back not 5 minutes more and claimed that it was my bag, basically insuating that I was lying. I told him again, this time rudely, that it was not my bag and to leave me and my wife alone. He looked pissed and left us alone. Most people who travel Amtrak, especially the long hauls, don't have as much money as people flying. I'd like to see the DEA try these tactics with rich people and see how far they get.
- leetcrew 7y ago
  > Most people who travel Amtrak, especially the long hauls, don't have as much money as people flying. why is this the case? I've only price shopped on the east coast, but I usually find that it's actually cheaper by plane than by train. sad because I am usually trying to justify taking the train.
  - stevenjgarner 7y ago
    I took the Amtrak California Zephyr from Reno, NV, to Ottumwa, IA a week ago - $118 coach seat or $936 for a roomette vs $547 flying - 39 hrs train time vs 24 hrs driving (which I do several times a year). Beautiful scenery and lots of time to think, write and program. No wifi but git push origin master when I finally got online worked out just fine. "Most people ... don't have as much money as people flying" probably true for coach, but not at all true for the roomette cars. The dining car is where the two demographics meet.
    - leetcrew 7y ago
      I do have a thing for trains, but 39 hours in a coach seat sounds pretty rough regardless of the scenery. I can see why there would be a downward pressure on price for such a journey.
  - pavel_lishin 7y ago
    Hell, it's probably cheaper to rent a car.
kburman 7y ago
Offtopic: What a strange layout this website has. No offense, Failed to make any sense to me.
BrianHenryIE 7y ago
The first time I traveled Amtrak, as a tourist in 2013, I was shocked to be asked for photo id just to buy my ticket. It seems a bit "Papers, please".
Keverw 7y ago
Interesting about one-way itineraries... I always wanted to go on a cross country train trip, the only time I've ever been on trains was at theme parks that just do a loop. No Wi-Fi though sounds a downer though. Maybe a time to read an ebook or edit vacation videos... My dream if ever making it big in tech is to retire early and travel full time, by train, cruise ship, by plane then buy an rv when ready to settle down some and slow down a bit with a house on wheels... Kinda interested in all styles of travel. So few years of traveling full time with just a suitcase and backpack, then buy my dream RV. Which be nice, be my own little apartment on wheels, can cook instead of eating out all the time, but still minimalism. I think buying a big house, staying in the same area 98% of the year if lucky enough to even go on a vacation and collecting junk would be boring. I know some couples have so much junk, they argue about it and have cluttered houses. Then people load everything on credit, which if used responsibly and paid back monthly you get reward points, but some people just let it get to them. I rather have more experiences than collecting things, and the things I have should have a purpose. Then even if you pay off your house in full, you don't really own it. If the state decides to build a new highway or high speed rail, they'll just knock it down. At least with a RV or Tiny house on wheels you can move it. Someone with a $250,000 RV probably owns it more than someone living in a 5 million dollar mansion, yet they are more homeless than someone living in a $100,000 house. So much to see and do, people dream about this all the time but money is a stopper sadly. There's a guy who owns his own business and decided to just cruise non stop, makes him happy and don't have much to take care of but he stays on the same ship about 6 months at a time booked back to back so he can have the same stateroom, I rather check out different ships and itineraries but everyone has different travel styles and wants. I know they have routes between Seattle and California, so maybe if booked 2 cruises with time to spare in between taking a train instead of a plane would be more scenic and a different experience, something to try at least once in a lifetime. Also, I heard they cut the diner car out, and it's more airline type food now in an effort to save money. There's even a site called Amtrak Vacations too, so I figured one-way trips would be more common... People might fly and ride the train and fly back home or whatever next if they are a nomad. It makes me sad people don't know their rights, even corporate media too... I seen recently a news story where they blur the video of the police, which I'm surprised since they are public officials. I feel like our founding fathers are tossing in their graves at what America is turning into, but I doubt any other country is much better anyways since some places are even worse. I know officials get sworn in to uphold the constitution, but I don't think they even read it... Just raise their hand and repeat what they are told to be sworn in. Should quiz them on it. Also surprised they don't search bags beforehand or tickets before getting on... I always figured it'd be similar to an airport. I know I heard a conductor goes seat to seat checking tickets at random, so seems a bit backward to me. I figured they would check everything before you board. Then also traveling solo is a red flag too I heard which can get you sent to secondary, so if you aren't married or have a boyfriend or girlfriend that can slow you down... but I seen on the news solo travel is more popular than it is but I guess customs assumes a person is a drug smuggler, but I've heard it happens to woman more for some reason... It seems like people who think for themselves and have alternative lifestyles such as digital nomads or even retired couples who RV get hassled more too, maybe due to stereotypes or profiling... Not a criminal, but just because you don't fit a profile you can be treated like one. Like I know in some states, nomads such as full-time RVers can't get a driver license or state ID unless they lie about living with someone else. Michigan is one I know of off the top of my head. So most people head to South Dakota and fill out an affidavit they are a full-time traveler, seems like that's making the state a bunch of money for catering to this niche. Seen a story about a couple who sold their house and got threatened by the Michigan DMV for not owning a house anymore because they used a mail forwarder. South Dakota and Texas allow mail forwarders. Florida does too depending on the county. One says if it's possible to live there even if don't park their full time, and not required to even lease a spot 365 days a year just possible to spend a night and it's good enough for them, so there's a campground that forwards mail and its allowed by the county. While another county, Clay County has interpreted something different and tried to take away voting rights recently. So If you live in a RV, boat or living out of a suitcase traveling you are basically a homeless person with money, so some states will discriminate against you. But then again by Michigan discriminating against them, they saved on taxes on their investment income by switching states so it ended up working out for them... I think maybe some states are tougher on residency requirements maybe because they have more social programs too, and you being a resident is a liability to them.

102 points by eplanit 7y ago

I would find this distressing to see as a tourist let alone a US citizen. Why not go the whole hog and have pre-boarding searches like airports?

jazzyjackson 7y ago
Most train stations in the US have 1 - 3 trains daily. I guess there's airports that only have a few daily flights and their security hangs out without work most of the day, but that must be expensive. So searching the train let's you search people who may have boarded at a dozen different stations. But yeah those of us who take the train instead of flying have been counting our lucky stars that the security theater has skipped Amtrak so far. It's so nice to travel from one city to another without being treated like a criminal. All good things must come to an end.
salawat 7y ago
Because travelling is increasingly becoming synonymous to being up to something? This is what drives me mad. This is such a violation of every principle of good hospitality. By delegating responsibility for one's safety away from oneself to the responsibility of the purveyors (or overseers) of the mode of transportation, we all end up being treated as threats until proven otherwise. It is such a tenuous balance. Excessive restriction of the conditions under which hospitality is granted leads to a breakdown of social reciprocity, intensification of in-group mentality, and alienation of the outsider. This stratifies and jeopardizes the ability of these myriad in-groups to coexist and transact peaceably, detracting from the possibility of maintaining any semblance of a national/international unity, or at least peaceful polity. It's diplomacy, in essence, at smaller and more localized scales. Most societies have carveouts for providing for the need of the outsider, because tit-for-tat is such an easy state of affairs to end up in. Mind, the tit-for-tat part is implicit, not explicit, as most text on hospitality emphasizes the duty of the host to care without concern for [individual] reciprocity. Collectively speaking however, the way one culture recieves another does have an impact on overall relations between polities. I just wish there was greater emphasis placed on this. I get it, lofty ideals tend to be the first to get binned, but sometimes the ideal is worth tolerating a greater degree of perceived immediate risk in order to facilitate a much larger payoff in terms of unity of action across non-emphasized in-groups. Sometimes it's the difference between all travelers looking at and being suspicious of each other in transit, perpetuating macro-level conflict into every strata of everyday life, and a group of strangers coming together, and momentarily sharing the unique opportunity of traveling together, and being able to freely exchange in an environment of goodwill and camaraderie, and to be assured of unity of action through dissolution of fear at having to react to defuse violence on behalf of the traveling group. Dissolution of macro-scale tension must begin at the bottom Of the social pyramid. Trying to work from the top down is a fool's errand.
- lsc 7y ago
  Driving is largely unregulated, so I doubt this is about preventing travel.
  - dredmorbius 7y ago
    Unless pigmented.
- tunap 7y ago
  Sometimes it's the difference between all travelers looking at and being suspicious of each other in transit, perpetuating macro-level conflict into every strata of everyday life, and a group of strangers coming together, and momentarily sharing the unique opportunity of traveling together, and being able to freely exchange in an environment of goodwill and camaraderie, and to be assured of unity of action through dissolution of fear at having to react to defuse violence on behalf of the traveling group. Ironically, in the months after 9/11 I experienced the latter comraderie flying. It was the beat time to fly, IMO, if you could look past the soldiers w/ automatic rifles loitering around. In fact, the soldiers were quite peraonable once engaged, as well. Go figure.
toast0 7y ago
Airport searches may uncover illicit drugs, but aren't run by the Drug Enforcement Agency. The Transportation Security Administration searches are looking for weapons and explosives.
joshuaheard 7y ago
Terrorists aren't blowing up trains, yet.
chiph 7y ago
Their VIPR teams have done this in the past. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visible_Intermodal_Prevention_and_Response_team https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visible_Intermodal_Prevention_... Response by the public has been pretty negative - they know what airports have become and don't want to be hassled in other locations.

coldcode 7y ago

Just say no. In fact these agents have no authority to force you to submit to a search without a warrant, probable cause or a dog. Most people either don't understand that, or fear the consequences. What can happen of course is intimidation and causing you to miss the train entirely. Papers, please, may be a stereotype but one agents like these heartily believe in.

sys_64738 7y ago
Then they'll try the old "You're papers are not in order." to see how you react.
- dannyw 7y ago
  Sometimes, but not anyways. Admittedly my sample size is limited to ~3, but asserting my right to decline searches (outside of borders, where you don't get such right), have resulted in 0 searches. Usually they keep questioning you for a while, but it's not hard to respond in a way that doesn't give them probable cause.
  - darth_skywalker 7y ago
    >> Usually they keep questioning you for a while, but it's not hard to respond in a way that doesn't give them probable cause. You should try exercising your fifth amendment right to remain silent. The police explicitly remind people who are arrested that anything they say "can and will" be used against them in a court of law.
    - yardie 7y ago
      Most people want to talk there way out of a bad situation. Like the police will Mirandize them and they still won't shut up! Dude! shut up, weight for your lawyer, and under no circumstance waive your right to a speedy trial until you have counsel.
      - acollins1331 7y ago

wallace_f 7y ago

I don't know what motivates someone to be so psychopathically obsessed with invading other people's privacy, stealing their property, and even ruining their lives.

ashildr 7y ago
They are brave agents of freedom. You find those in every country.
joshuaheard 7y ago
Catching criminals?
- allset_ 7y ago
  Then do that, with actual targeted investigations. This is just harassment and a fishing expedition.
  - joshuaheard 7y ago
    In sales, it is known as "cold calling".
akira2501 7y ago
> I don't know what motivates someone to be so psychopathically obsessed with invading other people's privacy, stealing their property, and even ruining their lives. It's because the system is setup to reward them for a 0.1% success rate. These people don't see themselves as invading your privacy, they see themselves as climbing the DEA ladder.
wl 7y ago
In a different society, these people might be highwaymen. The government lets them do the same kinds of thing with official sanction and support.

appleshore 7y ago

Amtrak’s a perfect representation of everything wrong with the US. A slow, unreliable train. Seems always delayed hours without being informed of why or how long. Receives almost $2 billion in federal subsidies. Bathrooms are dirty. And then you’re pressured searched by a DEA agent whose already scanned the passenger logs looking for targets....

mattkrause 7y ago
I took Amtrak regularly along the East Coast. Door-to-door was both faster and cheaper than flying, plus the experience was a lot more pleasant. Less travelled routes have a chicken-and-egg problem: nobody uses them, so they’re not a priority, so they get even worse. NYC to Montreal, for example, should be 2x as fast as it currently is....
- mlthoughts2018 7y ago
  The Acela line with business & first class is literally the only quality Amtrak line in the country. For that line, and that line only, it can be worthwhile as an alternative to flying or driving among a select few destination spanning from DC to Boston. I’m sure that line accounts for some wildly disproportionate revenue for Amtrak, but in most other places people prefer to pay cheaper fares and don’t care about the surrounding quality properties enough to pay more for them.
  - mattkrause 7y ago
    And that’s the only major part of the network where Amtrak controls the tracks. Elsewhere, it’s hamstrung by limited capacity and bad/illegal behavior by private operators. The Office of the Inspector General put together a fairly comprehensive report about this: https://www.oig.dot.gov/sites/default/files/Amtrak_Root_Causes_Final_Report_9_8_08_with_508_charts.pdf https://www.oig.dot.gov/sites/default/files/Amtrak_Root_Caus... In principle, this could easily be fixed—-and cracking down operators ignoring the preference rules did help a lot—-but people have to want it.
  - leetcrew 7y ago

atlasunshrugged 7y ago

I recently took part of this route (DC to Chicago then Chicago all the way to LA) in December of 2018, the people were really fascinating. Lots of folks, especially older ones, who just didn't like taking flights and weren't up to driving cross country and then some who were train enthusiasts and just loved trains and then a few families. It's a real shame that they're doing searches like this, it sounds pretty sketchy.

frickinLasers 7y ago

"An email uncovered in a federal drug trafficking case from last year showed that Greyhound tried to kick the DEA out of its Albuquerque station. [...] Greyhound declined to comment about the email or what has happened since." Sounds like someone has been gagged by a National Security Letter.

mnm1 7y ago

And that's how you make stealing legal. Perry is a thief, plain and simple, not to mention the many other derogatory terms that could describe this subhuman shitstain. He is the embodiment of the American idea of creating a problem where one doesn't exist and then "solving" it for profit. This is known as the war on drugs. It's extremely profitable not only in terms of money but also in terms of creating fear used for societal control, especially for controlling minorities. Ruining people's lives and society to make a buck. I hope it really does get dangerous for this scumbag. The world would be better off without him and all the rest of the people like him.

DebtDeflation 7y ago

>It’s legal for Perry to search people without probable cause, a warrant, or a dog because travelers supposedly realize that they have the right to decline to submit to his searches. We need to extend the Miranda Warning to circumstances such as these. "You are not under arrest and you have the right to refuse a search. If you consent to a search, and something illegal is found, it can be admitted into evidence against you in court." If every interaction started with those words, you'd see a lot more people exercising their right to refuse.

wl 7y ago
Miranda warnings don't seem to help much in practice. Pretty much everyone who is given one waives their rights and speaks anyway.
- User23 7y ago
  It's particularly interesting to see videos where the suspect says something along the lines of, "I know my rights, I have the right to remain silent" and then proceeds to blab on and on at the officer. I suppose it's an object lesson in the difference between the right and the ability to do or not do something. Shades of Monty Python...
- pavel_lishin 7y ago
  Is that true?
  - markbnj 7y ago
    The prevalence of advice videos from criminal defense attorneys advising citizens in contact with the police to simply shut their mouths would at least anecdotally support this statement.
    - Scoundreller 7y ago
      Top-of-head thinking? Défense lawyers probably remember really well the cases that could have been a lot easier to win. Just as doctors tend to prescribe what worked last time - easier to do what’s at the top of your mind than critically appraise the evidence.

AndyMcConachie 7y ago

I got fucked with by a plains clothes cop on an Amtrak once. He flashed a badge at me that I didn't even have time to read. Then he produced a bag and asked me if it was mine. It wasn't and I told him so. He left. He came back not 5 minutes more and claimed that it was my bag, basically insuating that I was lying. I told him again, this time rudely, that it was not my bag and to leave me and my wife alone. He looked pissed and left us alone. Most people who travel Amtrak, especially the long hauls, don't have as much money as people flying. I'd like to see the DEA try these tactics with rich people and see how far they get.

leetcrew 7y ago
> Most people who travel Amtrak, especially the long hauls, don't have as much money as people flying. why is this the case? I've only price shopped on the east coast, but I usually find that it's actually cheaper by plane than by train. sad because I am usually trying to justify taking the train.
- stevenjgarner 7y ago
  I took the Amtrak California Zephyr from Reno, NV, to Ottumwa, IA a week ago - $118 coach seat or $936 for a roomette vs $547 flying - 39 hrs train time vs 24 hrs driving (which I do several times a year). Beautiful scenery and lots of time to think, write and program. No wifi but git push origin master when I finally got online worked out just fine. "Most people ... don't have as much money as people flying" probably true for coach, but not at all true for the roomette cars. The dining car is where the two demographics meet.
  - leetcrew 7y ago
    I do have a thing for trains, but 39 hours in a coach seat sounds pretty rough regardless of the scenery. I can see why there would be a downward pressure on price for such a journey.
- pavel_lishin 7y ago
  Hell, it's probably cheaper to rent a car.

kburman 7y ago

Offtopic: What a strange layout this website has. No offense, Failed to make any sense to me.

BrianHenryIE 7y ago

The first time I traveled Amtrak, as a tourist in 2013, I was shocked to be asked for photo id just to buy my ticket. It seems a bit "Papers, please".

Keverw 7y ago

Interesting about one-way itineraries... I always wanted to go on a cross country train trip, the only time I've ever been on trains was at theme parks that just do a loop. No Wi-Fi though sounds a downer though. Maybe a time to read an ebook or edit vacation videos... My dream if ever making it big in tech is to retire early and travel full time, by train, cruise ship, by plane then buy an rv when ready to settle down some and slow down a bit with a house on wheels... Kinda interested in all styles of travel. So few years of traveling full time with just a suitcase and backpack, then buy my dream RV. Which be nice, be my own little apartment on wheels, can cook instead of eating out all the time, but still minimalism. I think buying a big house, staying in the same area 98% of the year if lucky enough to even go on a vacation and collecting junk would be boring. I know some couples have so much junk, they argue about it and have cluttered houses. Then people load everything on credit, which if used responsibly and paid back monthly you get reward points, but some people just let it get to them. I rather have more experiences than collecting things, and the things I have should have a purpose. Then even if you pay off your house in full, you don't really own it. If the state decides to build a new highway or high speed rail, they'll just knock it down. At least with a RV or Tiny house on wheels you can move it. Someone with a $250,000 RV probably owns it more than someone living in a 5 million dollar mansion, yet they are more homeless than someone living in a $100,000 house. So much to see and do, people dream about this all the time but money is a stopper sadly. There's a guy who owns his own business and decided to just cruise non stop, makes him happy and don't have much to take care of but he stays on the same ship about 6 months at a time booked back to back so he can have the same stateroom, I rather check out different ships and itineraries but everyone has different travel styles and wants. I know they have routes between Seattle and California, so maybe if booked 2 cruises with time to spare in between taking a train instead of a plane would be more scenic and a different experience, something to try at least once in a lifetime. Also, I heard they cut the diner car out, and it's more airline type food now in an effort to save money. There's even a site called Amtrak Vacations too, so I figured one-way trips would be more common... People might fly and ride the train and fly back home or whatever next if they are a nomad. It makes me sad people don't know their rights, even corporate media too... I seen recently a news story where they blur the video of the police, which I'm surprised since they are public officials. I feel like our founding fathers are tossing in their graves at what America is turning into, but I doubt any other country is much better anyways since some places are even worse. I know officials get sworn in to uphold the constitution, but I don't think they even read it... Just raise their hand and repeat what they are told to be sworn in. Should quiz them on it. Also surprised they don't search bags beforehand or tickets before getting on... I always figured it'd be similar to an airport. I know I heard a conductor goes seat to seat checking tickets at random, so seems a bit backward to me. I figured they would check everything before you board. Then also traveling solo is a red flag too I heard which can get you sent to secondary, so if you aren't married or have a boyfriend or girlfriend that can slow you down... but I seen on the news solo travel is more popular than it is but I guess customs assumes a person is a drug smuggler, but I've heard it happens to woman more for some reason... It seems like people who think for themselves and have alternative lifestyles such as digital nomads or even retired couples who RV get hassled more too, maybe due to stereotypes or profiling... Not a criminal, but just because you don't fit a profile you can be treated like one. Like I know in some states, nomads such as full-time RVers can't get a driver license or state ID unless they lie about living with someone else. Michigan is one I know of off the top of my head. So most people head to South Dakota and fill out an affidavit they are a full-time traveler, seems like that's making the state a bunch of money for catering to this niche. Seen a story about a couple who sold their house and got threatened by the Michigan DMV for not owning a house anymore because they used a mail forwarder. South Dakota and Texas allow mail forwarders. Florida does too depending on the county. One says if it's possible to live there even if don't park their full time, and not required to even lease a spot 365 days a year just possible to spend a night and it's good enough for them, so there's a campground that forwards mail and its allowed by the county. While another county, Clay County has interpreted something different and tried to take away voting rights recently. So If you live in a RV, boat or living out of a suitcase traveling you are basically a homeless person with money, so some states will discriminate against you. But then again by Michigan discriminating against them, they saved on taxes on their investment income by switching states so it ended up working out for them... I think maybe some states are tougher on residency requirements maybe because they have more social programs too, and you being a resident is a liability to them.