True Nature of the Canada-US Border

[bush_cheney2004]

Update.

The ambulance that was detained at the Windsor/Detroit border had a police escort and pre-approval to cross.

It was a computer that randomly selects vehicles for inspection that created the mess. Of course the border guard should have ignored it but....there you go.

Not necessarily....the sampling plan for inspection needs to be executed as designed for the math to work. News media tells this story and Ressam's brother-in-law knows what to do.

As for the Anchorage Inn, they were supposed to go on right through, but border officials stopped them to check ID. Some were lacking photos. The guards claim 9 minutes, the firemen 15 delayed minutes.

More hype...the Inn was fully engulfed and not likely to be saved by Uber Firefighter from Quebec.

[Wilber]

We did go through an extensive security check going from Paris to London, but I figured that was because we were going by train. I'm assuming trains, like planes, have security checks even within nations.

Good question, certainly the mode of transportation should have a bearing on the security measures involved. However bringing down a building with a train would present some interesting problems.

[Wilber]

More hype...the Inn was fully engulfed and not likely to be saved by Uber Firefighter from Quebec.

Something the border personnel were no doubt aware of at the time.

Not necessarily....the sampling plan for inspection needs to be executed as designed for the math to work. News media tells this story and Ressam's brother-in-law knows what to do.

But then if this comedy had never happened it would never have hit the news media and Ressam's brother wouldn't have a clue. It's the dumb things you do which makes your enemy smarter.

[August1991]

One can only drive from country to country without a border check within the European Union, so we had to stop at the Swiss border, for example, when driving through Europe.

The European countries that have no checks at the border are the countries in the Schengen agreement. (The UK is not part of the agreement.)

When a Schengen country issues a visa to a foreigner, all other Schengen countries respect the visa. (For example, if an Indonesian obtains a visitor visa from Germany, the Indonesian can travel to France without need for another, French visa.)

To do away with the border checks between Canada and the US, Canada would have to accept a US visa for entry to Canada and the US would have to accept a Canadian visa for entry to the US. This happens now de facto since it is rare that if a foreigner obtains a US visa, the Canadian government will refuse to issue a Canadian visa. All US greencard holders are visa-exempt for entry to Canada and a permanent resident of Canada can obtain a US visa without difficulty.

I blame the Liberal government for not negotiating this with the US.

I agree. But this is a territory with a very long history balanced by equals. The English/French/German/Spanish/Italian dialectic is one of equals: they can make each other equally miserable, and they have the archives to prove it...

That's not true between Germany and the Netherlands.

In any event, we are talking about relations at a personal level here, not government to government or military to military. It was a firetruck/ambulance with a few people who wanted to cross the border. Governments don't cross borders; people do.

Edited November 22, 2007 by August1991

[bush_cheney2004]

Something the border personnel were no doubt aware of at the time.

Unknown.....border guard was doing job...same way they caught Millennium Bomber from Canada.

But then if this comedy had never happened it would never have hit the news media and Ressam's brother wouldn't have a clue. It's the dumb things you do which makes your enemy smarter.

See above.

[fellowtraveller]

Good question, certainly the mode of transportation should have a bearing on the security measures involved. However bringing down a building with a train would present some interesting problems.

The security at Biritsh airports for flights to and from the rest of Europe is the same as if it was between the UK and non-European country. Airports like Heathrow have had heightened levels of security for over 30 years.

The purpose of a terrorist blowing up a train in this region would be a) the Chunnel the Chunnel c) the Chunnel d) a major station in Paris or London. The destruction or damage to the Chunnel would be a 9/11 level act of terrorism. I think St Pancras is now the Eurostar terminus in London.

[Wilber]

The security at Biritsh airports for flights to and from the rest of Europe is the same as if it was between the UK and non-European country. Airports like Heathrow have had heightened levels of security for over 30 years.

The purpose of a terrorist blowing up a train in this region would be a) the Chunnel the Chunnel c) the Chunnel d) a major station in Paris or London. The destruction or damage to the Chunnel would be a 9/11 level act of terrorism. I think St Pancras is now the Eurostar terminus in London.

Agreed, in the case of the train, the target would be the train itself, its infrastructure and the people who use it. The same for an aircraft except it is much more flexible when it comes to targets. Both are far different from a private vehicle, ambulance or fire truck which could still be tracked and stopped at any time after it has crossed the border. I think if that fire truck had headed for LAX someone would have twigged long before it got there.

Interesting that there is no visible security on domestic trains in the UK, or at least there wasn't the last time I took one a couple of years ago.

[fellowtraveller]

Agreed, in the case of the train, the target would be the train itself, its infrastructure and the people who use it.

What?

I don't know how you could misunderstand so completely. In the case I cited, the target would most certainly not be the train, but the Chunnel.

Do you know what the Chunnel is, and its symbolic and real importance to the economy?

[Wilber]

What?

I don't know how you could misunderstand so completely. In the case I cited, the target would most certainly not be the train, but the Chunnel.

Do you know what the Chunnel is, and its symbolic and real importance to the economy?

Look up infrastructure.

[Guest American Woman]

We did go through an extensive security check going from Paris to London, but I figured that was because we were going by train. I'm assuming trains, like planes, have security checks even within nations.

Good question, certainly the mode of transportation should have a bearing on the security measures involved. However bringing down a building with a train would present some interesting problems.

As has already been pointed out, different structures could easily be targeted using trains, including the train itself. I really wanted to comment on the "bringing down a building" aspect though, because I really question if that was even the motive on 9-11. I think everyone, including bin Laden et al, were surprised when the towers fell.

Another comment. Cities' mass transit systems are totally vulnerable. There are no security measures. How could there be? I know that doesn't have anything to do with border issues, but the point is, there's only so much we can do-- and in the end, it's really very little.

Edited November 24, 2007 by American Woman