Thread

1. Tangurena2 · 1790856629 · focus · HN ↗

   > “In [Fiscal Year] 2025, out of the over 419 million travelers CBP processed at ports of entry, CBP only searched the electronic devices of 55,318 international travelers,” the agency wrote, or 0.0013%.

   The harassment is targeted at critics & opponents of the current regime. The message is very clear: Be afraid of us. Be very afraid

   There are 33 days remaining until election day. Vote out all the incumbents.

   1. petcat · 1790857424 · focus · HN ↗

      I will be curious to see statistics from past years. I'm wondering if this is a new thing. I'm pretty sure US customs and border patrol have always had this power. I think basically every country exercises this power

      1. anal_reactor · 1790857738 · focus · HN ↗

         The core issue is that on one hand, police needs power to protect the citizens, but at the same time the power might corrupt them.

         1. echelon · 1790858323 · focus · HN ↗

            This is why state powers need judicial oversight.

            There are some instances where powers need to be exercised in a hurry, but there should always be proper reporting and a paper trail, with stiff reprimanded for misuse or abuse of the system. Accidents can happen, but they should be infrequent and should follow protocol.

            It would be great if citizens had more direct involvement in these cases too. I don't see why egregious abuses shouldn't be tried by jury.

            Police and intelligence agency employees should be held to a higher standard than civilians (like military personnel are subject to UCMJ), and breeches of protocols should lead to harsher punishments imposed upon them. It would be fine to pay them more if it required more training and accountability.

            1. everforward · 1790866306 · focus · HN ↗

               They don’t get tried in part because of Qualified Immunity (which has some rationality but I think we’ve taken it much too far), and in part because the structure of the system doesn’t incentivize it.

               The people who would charge the officers are the same people who rely on the police to provide evidence. Both groups work closely together. Malfeasance by police typically provides the prosecution with evidence they want or people to charge. There’s no incentive other than morality to charge them, and a lot of reasons to find a way to rationalize it as untrue, or necessary, or whatever.

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