Federal Agencies exceeding authority... Trend?

[MLeake]

http://www.aopa.org/aircraft/articles/2013/130516pilot-detained-searched-for-mysterious-reasons.html?WT.mc_id=130517epilot&WT.mc_sect=gan

So, DHS agents since 2010 have been claiming authority to conduct unscheduled ramp checks - and ramp checks per se are the province of the FAA. AOPA (Aircraft Owner's and Pilot's Association) is investigating a series of such incidents.

Note the comment about agents unloading baggage and gear, and leaving the mess for the pilot to clean up.

Note the invasive search, with threats to conduct it with the pilot in handcuffs, if necessary.

Note that Customs officers are detaining aircraft that have not departed the US, but that have flown into legalized marijuana states.

Who has oversight? If DHS works like DOJ, IRS, and State, Napolitano will say this is the work of rogue underlings and that she never knew about it because she had recused herself...

 

[CharlieDeltaJuliet]

After the Patriot Act, we are really not a free society anymore.... Well really the government controlled too much e en before... I am not being a conspiracy theorist, I simply sat a read the actual Patriot Act.... It is scary... Read it if you get a chance. The original is a 134 page(IIRC) PDF.

 

[Jo6pak]

Seems that trend has been going on at least since FDR.

Regarding the Patriot Act, as I have tried to figure it out. There are so many things included that refer "strengthening" or "expanding"to many other bills and gov't powers, it is like reading stereo instructions in Swahili. You basically need to be a scholar of law to figure out what most of it really means.

 

[rebs]

Our government has gone too far period and is going even further. Disarming the citizenry is the goal and then look out for what they will do.

 

[BumbleBug]

Personally, I feel like the Patriot Act is a good example & comparison of what can happen if we allow circumstance & emotions to suddenly allow laws to undermine the 2nd amendment.

After 9/11, with a Country reeling from tragedy & filled with rage & fear, the Patriot Act was introduced & quickly brought into effect with little resistance. It has grown out of proportion under a blanket of secrecy into something no one ever really wanted or needed. Terrorism was just an excuse. It was like a beast that our government was just waiting to unleash when the "perfect storm" arrived - like 9/11.

After the Patriot Act, we are really not a free society anymore

Truer words were never said.

Once the 2nd amendment is breached, with so called logical & sensible laws born of emotion & fear, the down hill erosion will begin. There is no mistake about it, the ultimate intentions are obvious. The elite, corrupted political machine says "trust me", although they only have a history of deceit.

End of rant...

...bug

 

[CharlieDeltaJuliet]

You are right, it is smoke and mirrors. It is the exact same (on a smaller scale) thing that happened with the Patriot Act , that happened in New York, Connecticut, and Colorado after Newtown. When you can use a tragedy to the advantage of getting legislature passed that goes against the very values and "rules" that our nation and government was founded on.

Our government has complete control and power over it's citizens. Other countries have government that fear it people. It is vice versa in this nation. When I was young, I grew up damn proud to be American, because I knew I was free. Now, I know I am only as free as my government will let me be.....

 

[Dr Big Bird PhD]

Not to be a Ron Paul parrot or anything, but the establishment of the Federal Reserve in 1913 provides the liquid leverage for the expansion of these federal agencies.

If we did not run on a fiat, centralized currency with easily manipulated interest rates and no restraint on credit expansion, our government literally *could not* expand at the rate it has without using physical coercion.

 

[Tom Servo]

Once the 2nd amendment is breached, with so called logical & sensible laws born of emotion & fear, the down hill erosion will begin.

Actually, that really began in earnest in 1968 and pretty much reached its nadir in 1994. In the intervening time, we've actually reclaimed quite a bit of lost liberty.

Yes, the government is larger and more meddlesome than the founders would have wanted, but the system still works, and it can be changed.

 

[Pilot]

So, DHS agents since 2010 have been claiming authority to conduct unscheduled ramp checks - and ramp checks per se are the province of the FAA. AOPA (Aircraft Owner's and Pilot's Association) is investigating a series of such incidents.

Yes, I agree, there are more incidents I am hearing about. The profile us pilots and airplane owners. (I am also an AOPA member, and have an airplane) If you do a lot of long distance flying in light piston aircraft be prepared to be questioned. A friend of mine does dog rescues, and flies a twin cross continent and also internationally, and he has been harassed for no good reason. They will attempt to get you to plea to a lesser charge to make them go away. Don't do it, get a lawyer.

Also look for DHS/TSA scanner vans at a highway, street corner and neighborhood near you. They're not just for airports anymore.

 

[BumbleBug]

Yes, the government is larger and more meddlesome than the founders would have wanted, but the system still works, and it can be changed.

Sorry, I'm not so optimistic....

 

[rebs]

The system is working so to speak, but not the way it was intended to work. As said by ohers we are no longer truly free people. We are being governed and laws are being passed that the people do not want or need. The Patriot Act is a prime example of this. Since when is it American that a person can be locked up and held indefinitely without a trial ? What happened to do process ? Obama has great idea's to take from the rich and give to the poor, but the reason is that he is buying votes. Obamacare is a huge mess that is going to change health care for everyone and not for the better. Rough times are coming if the American people allow it to happen.
Nothing is being done about unemployment or jobs or anything else except a desperate attempt to disarm the American citizens. Why do think that is ?

 

[NH_Pilot]

So getting back to the first post, if an individual has their personally owned recreational airplane parked in front of the hangar that they own, and one or more individuals walk up, show no ID, and announce that they intend to check the pilot and aircraft, do precedents like Terry v Ohio apply? Can the individual say "I do not consent to a search" and make it stick? If the individuals refuse to show ID, can you call 911 to get a member of the local PD to sort it out?

And to address the topic of firearms, you look at the anonymous individual and state "I am legally armed". What does a fed do?

Thanks,

Wes

 

[rebs]

If you look at everything that is happening like camera's on street corners, drones, Obama care, massive federal spending, changes in immigration laws, desperate attempts to circumvent the 1st and 2nd amendments etc..
What direction do you see our government is heading ? Don't you get the feeling that something is going very wrong ?

 

[BigD_in_FL]

It has been this way since Lincoln suspended the writ of Habeus Corpus, The folks created the Fed in 1913 - read "The Creature from Jekyll Island" -and FDR ballooned the federal gov't during the Depression - this is nothing new; it is just that the internet allows more folks to do a better job at finding out

 

[tomrkba]

Really? The 2A has not been breached? So you are saying I can carry my pistol in Washington DC without any sort of government permission?

The 2A has been nullified on Federal property for decades. Let's stop fooling ourselves: every right in the Constitution is being violated in various degrees by Federal law. This is their game: pass laws and let SCOTUS tell us the Constitution means something other than what it says! US citizens have to be among the most gullible people on the planet with regard to government and law.

 

[MLeake]

On a related note, as far as working outside theoretical charters...

...we have this report from infowars:

http://www.infowars.com/armed-dhs-guards-protect-irs-from-tea-party-protesters/

Granted, I take Alex Jones with a grain of salt.

Also granted, Treasury security in past decades might well have come from the Secret Service, which now falls under DHS.

Even so, why does a Tea Party protest rate a visible show of federal force?

 

[csmsss]

Even so, why does a Tea Party protest rate a visible show of federal force?

It does, only insofar as it is regarded that someone who seeks to limit the reach and grasp of our central government is now considered treasonous and therefore dangerous. As best I can tell, there has not been a single act of violence committed by a Tea Party member at any of their demonstrations. Contrast that with the various Occupy Wall Street protests.

In other words, a political ideology is rapidly being seen as a criminal enterprise by those who run our government.

 

[sigcurious]

Granted, I skipped around in the video, but I saw now show of federal force. I saw DHS vehicles parked in a parking lot. There was one guy in a uniform at the beginning.

Also granted, Treasury security in past decades might well have come from the Secret Service, which now falls under DHS.

This seems to be more the case or rather more specifically that FPS is now tasked with providing security for federal facilities.

The FPS mission is to render federal properties safe and secure for federal employees, officials and visitors in a professional and cost effective manner by deploying a highly trained and multi-disciplined police force.

Source

 

[Tactical Jackalope]

If you look at everything that is happening like camera's on street corners, drones, Obama care, massive federal spending, changes in immigration laws, desperate attempts to circumvent the 1st and 2nd amendments etc..
What direction do you see our government is heading ? Don't you get the feeling that something is going very wrong ?

I couldn't agree with you more. And the pulling of innocent people from their homes with force, without a proper search warrant during the Boston search for the second terrorist. That seemed like an opportune practice run for future plans if you ask me.

 

[NWPilgrim]

While the govt is chomping away at our freedoms in many areas as mentioned above, I think the 2A is the last line of demarcation for our liberty.