LINDENWOLD, NJ A swarm of DRPA police officers, uniformed screeners from the federal Transportation Security Administration and an explosives-sniffing K-9 greeted commuters at the Lindenwold PATCO station Tuesday morning, the first of what will be routine random searches of riders, their bags and vehicles.
This line runs from suburban South Jersey into Philadelphia.
http://www.courierpostonline.com/article/20100908/NEWS01/9080330/PATCO-riders-undergo-search
No cause random police searches? When I grew up in the 60's, this was the kind of thing you would see depicted overseas in a war or spy movie. I always felt blessed to live in a country where that sort thing could never happen. Or so I thought. My favorite line in the article was...
"We can conduct any kind of search we want," said Delaware River Port Authority Police Chief David McClintock. "We could ask TSA to bring wands or X-ray machines like they have in airports, though we don't think that's appropriate for PATCO riders at this time."
I know this quote from Ben Franklin is someone's sig. but it rings so true in this case and many others.
"They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety."
There are other stations on this commuter line just a few miles down the road where there was no searches. Anyone with ill intent could be at another staion and on a train within minutes. So, how did this "swarm of DRPA police officers, uniformed screeners" protect anyone?
This line runs from suburban South Jersey into Philadelphia.
http://www.courierpostonline.com/article/20100908/NEWS01/9080330/PATCO-riders-undergo-search
No cause random police searches? When I grew up in the 60's, this was the kind of thing you would see depicted overseas in a war or spy movie. I always felt blessed to live in a country where that sort thing could never happen. Or so I thought. My favorite line in the article was...
"We can conduct any kind of search we want," said Delaware River Port Authority Police Chief David McClintock. "We could ask TSA to bring wands or X-ray machines like they have in airports, though we don't think that's appropriate for PATCO riders at this time."
I know this quote from Ben Franklin is someone's sig. but it rings so true in this case and many others.
"They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety."
There are other stations on this commuter line just a few miles down the road where there was no searches. Anyone with ill intent could be at another staion and on a train within minutes. So, how did this "swarm of DRPA police officers, uniformed screeners" protect anyone?