161–170 of 222 posts
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> The passport is to prove US citizenship. That's an incredibly flawed thing to ask for with domestic flights, though. Most US citizens don't have a passport at all.
A birth certificate or social security card would probably suffice, too.
Fun fact: the passport gates at UK airports appear to be biometric, but aren't. You step into a little gate, place your passport photo page down onto a scanner, and look into a camera for a photograph. The thing which slows folks down at passport gates (and the reason the best passport control agents don't have a jocular welcoming patter) is the hello/goodbye/talking around the manual "look at your face, look at your…
also worth noting: as a US citizen re-entering the country you do not have to present anything more to a customs agent than your passport. You are not required to answer any questions at all. Where youre from, where you were, what you did, nothing, however it may result in an inspection of your bags, so it depends on whether your interpretation of liberty is based on personal convenience. Disclosure: ive done this op…
Yeah, They can demand to search your things if you want in. Including unlocking your phone, the alternative is to give them your phone while still locked, or not be let in. Yes, this happened to me and other journalists.
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Some states have still not gotten with the times and converted to "Real ID" security in their driver's licenses. Because they're easier to fake, they're not always accepted but YMMV.
That's one spin on it, but more fear-mongered. The more accurate one is that elements of the Federal Government are "unhappy" that some States will issue a Drivers License based on understanding of road laws and practical skills, and not based on demonstration of legal residence or citizenship. Washington, for example, is one. You pass your test, written, practical, pay your fee. They don't ask about your citizenship…
If the federal government wants to have an ID that displays legal residence, then they can either entrust the states to do so or issue one themselves, which seems even less politically viable.
also worth noting: as a US citizen re-entering the country you do not have to present anything more to a customs agent than your passport. You are not required to answer any questions at all. Where youre from, where you were, what you did, nothing, however it may result in an inspection of your bags, so it depends on whether your interpretation of liberty is based on personal convenience. Disclosure: ive done this op…
The searches that even a U.S. Citizen could be subject to (without a warrant) are extremely broad[1]. > Legal precedents grant federal officers at ports of entry the power, without warrants, to require people to strip for a “visual inspection” of genitals and rectums, and to submit to a “monitored bowel movement” to check for secreted drugs.[1] We did a deep-dive on court settlements by CBP for invasive searches and…
A woman was detained at Philadelphia International Airport on her return from Punta Cana. After a few hours (~7hrs) of questioning she is pressured to sign a consent form, denied a consultation with an attorney and forcefully shackled and transferred to a hospital for a "monitored bowel movement" (This involves defecating in the presence of a CBP officer; No warrant needed).
She was then involuntarily committed to the hospital for "elevated heart rate" where she was forcefully stripped, underwent a "close visual inspection", administered lorazepam and olanzapine through IV, underwent an X-Ray, CT Scan along with a urine and blood workup - all of which came back negative for drugs or other contraband.
This entire ordeal lasted nearly 24 hours. After which, she was taken back to the airport and released to drive home. During her drive from the airport, she crashes into a highway median. She alleges that the she wasn't advised about the adverse effects of the medications being used to sedate her and that the medication was responsible for the accident.
All of this happened to a U.S. Citizen; without a warrant and without permission to call a lawyer.
This incident is discussed in further detail in the 4th section of the story mentioned earlier [1] "Invasive Searches: A woman's 24-hour ordeal"
[1] https://publicintegrity.org/immigration/shocked-and-humiliat...
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Fair enough. I (20s white guy, mostly asleep) probably don't fit the 'needs to be questioned' profile all that much. (And I'm not certain I'd have remembered answering a basic question like 'why were you travelling' anyways...)
A 20s male is probably pretty high on the list of people to question. I would guess that if you're a US citizen, as they're only concerned with what you're bringing in rather than what you're planning to do or how long you're staying, not looking like a stereotypical foreign terrorist probably doesn't help much. As a 20s non-white guy I'm never bothered, so maybe I'm just off-base here.
That stopped happening when I reached my 40s.
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Confused what the robustness of the passport has to do with this. I wasn't suggesting the physical flexibility of a passport makes it harder to carry it around or something. People generally just don't carry around passports for domestic travel in their own countries... people already have other IDs, this increases the chance you'll lose your passport, etc. for zero benefit.
>People generally just don't carry around passports for domestic travel in their own countries I certainly did in the UK, as well as to prove my age in a bar etc. Lots and lots of people "in their own countries" don't have a driver's license because public transport is enough.
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How do we not have a totalitarian state? You can't publish evidence of state war crimes without the CIA doing a character assassination job on you (pending a real assassination). You can't travel anonymously. You can't publish anonymously. You can't make bank transfers out of the country for arbitrary purposes. You can't deposit or withdraw cash above a trivial amount without significant scrutiny which is reported to…
> It's illegal to not let the state know where you habitually sleep (state ID/driver's license requirements). Today I learned the government expects me to sleep in my PO Box.
Also, even if you did have to provide your residence for your ID/DL, there's no law that says you have to get an ID/DL in the first place. Not having one will make life hard, but it isn't illegal.
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> How is this worse, privacy-wise, than taking naked images of you with mm-waves when you try and get on a plane? We don't have mm-wave scanners scattered across the country. We do, however, have cameras. Everywhere. CBP is under the Department of Homeland Security [1]. It's not a stretch to take the models, hardware, experience and scans CBP builds and use them in the interior. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S.…
I guess it just seems odd that we'd support actively limiting technological capability, rather than focusing on laws and policies that law enforcement should obey. It reminds me of the law in California that prevents police from using automated speed traps, so officers need to spend all this time and expense pulling people over for speeding, which leads to subjectivity, and ends up just being a waste of everyones tim…
There is a very long history in the US demonstrating that such laws aren't terribly effective.
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again, it depends on your definition of liberty. I take a hardline stance. to confirm: this is absolutely not recommended for everyone. The demeanor of your CBP officer shifts quite unpleasantly when you decide not to answer them. They will begin to lie to you about the events taking place, as its their job. This information is also valid for CBP stops inside the US while traveling by automobile. Your passport or dri…
> Your passport or drivers license should be all that is required. Is that for citizens or non-citizens? I would think it's only the driver's license for citizens, correct?