DHS Watchdog OKs ‘Suspicionless’ Seizure of Electronic Devices Along Border

[crich70]

I live in south central Wisconsin so I don't see how they could make such a claim stick myself.

[Apache]

Originally Posted by Kali Yuga

If you're more than 100 miles from the coast, then you are out of the zone. A big chunk of Georgia, though, is less than 100 miles from a coastline, as you can see on the map.

It should also be fairly clear that the 4th Amendment hasn't been suspended in all of Boston, New York City, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, etc. Illegal searches are not being reinstated en masse because of this policy, which by the way has been found constitutional by the Supreme Court.

If this is a policy Americans don't want, then we should try to get rid of it. That doesn't justify hyperbolic claims about the policy.

I live more than 100 miles from the coast in a staight line and it shows my location as in the zone.
Apache

[HarryT]

Moderator Notice
Please keep the discussions here strictly to do with the subject of the original article. If this thread expands into a general political discussion it will be moved into the P&R forum.


Thank you.

[LovesMacs]

Here is an example. A couple of years ago I visited the southwest USA, in and around El Paso, Texas. I had left El Paso on the way to Carlsbad Caverns National Park. Some 60-70 miles (about 96-112 km) away from the US-Mexico border all traffic on the highway I was using was diverted for inspection by border patrol agents. An armed agent politely but intently asked me and my family where we were from, what our purpose was, etc. as another armed agent with a dog walked around our car and other agents looked on. Nothing was out of order and we were on our way after several minutes. Nonetheless it was somewhat intimidating and completely unexpected so far from the Mexican border.

I would be less willing to travel in border areas if such a policy were enacted.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Please keep the discussions here strictly to do with the subject of the original article. If this thread expands into a general political discussion it will be moved into the P&R forum.


Thank you.

How do you discuss this topic without getting political?

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by LovesMacs

I would be less willing to travel in border areas if such a policy were enacted.

I live in a border area; just a few miles away from the ocean. I'm screwed!

[Bilbo1967]

Slightly off topic, but if this were introduced in the UK it would affect everybody. There is no part of the UK that is more than 100 miles from a coastline (nowhere further than about 75 miles actually).

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by Bilbo1967

Slightly off topic, but if this were introduced in the UK it would affect everybody. There is no part of the UK that is more than 100 miles from a coastline (nowhere further than about 75 miles actually).

According to the graphic, 2/3 of the US population live within this 100 mile zone.

[MovieBird]

Originally Posted by rogue_librarian

The actual west coast, of course, but see for yourself:

[map]

Except that our 'border' extends past the actual land out into the water by 12 nautical miles (~14 miles), 24 nm for the contiguous zone, and 200 nm for exclusive economic zone.

A straight line from Sacramento to Point Bonita is 79 miles, which means that if you go out to the contiguous zone, the border is over 100 miles away.

Sacramento is about 83 miles in a straight line from Lake Tahoe, Nevada. It just seems silly to claim it's close to an international border.

Claiming the Sacramento Seaport is like claiming that Yuma, Arizona is an international destination because they have an international airport. Never mind that the only international flights are USMC flights bringing military personnel in for WTI...

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by Bilbo1967

There is no part of the UK that is more than 100 miles from a coastline (nowhere further than about 75 miles actually).

Nowhere further than 70 miles, apparently.

[Bilbo1967]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

According to the graphic, 2/3 of the US population live within this 100 mile zone.

Yes, I saw that. It seems a high proportion for a relatively narrow looking strip. I guess populous cities naturally form near coastlines for a number of reasons.

[Bilbo1967]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Nowhere further than 70 miles, apparently.

Good God, Britain's shrinking

I live in the Midlands, you can come and stop with us - Norfolk's definitely doomed!

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Nowhere further than 70 miles, apparently.

You guys live in a tiny country. 11 of our states have a greater area than GB and the UK, and 31 states are larger than England.

[Bilbo1967]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

You guys live in a tiny country. 11 of our states have a greater area than GB and the UK, and 31 states are larger than England.

Size isn't everything

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by Bilbo1967

Yes, I saw that. It seems a high proportion for a relatively narrow looking strip. I guess populous cities naturally form near coastlines for a number of reasons.

We use the interior for farming and ranching