"Check Point"?
What kind of checkpoint doo we have in the States - other than checking your passport for going in / out of Alabama of course.... ???
------------------
Think Snow Eh!
Ox
Border Patrol checkpoint. I have one on the way to the shop also.
Everymorning, I leave New Mexico USA and drive north, staying in New Mexico USA, and
I have to stop at a Government Checkpoint and state my citizen ship. They have facial
recognition cameras and everything.. Once in a while they get a wild hair up their ass
and start asking a bunch of stupid questions. Like, where are you are going? The answer
is either "That a way".. or "Thats none of your G-damn business"..
Occasionally its "Can I search your trunk?". The answer is always NO..
Sometimes they have dogs that sniff your car..
They used to be manned by complete imbeciles, but over the years it seems they have gotten better
training, and the cameras have streamlined it a little bit.. I used to get in arguments with them
about once a week, not its not even once a year.
The last time they gave me a small problem was quite a while ago, I pulled in, and the Border
Patrol agent asked me where I was coming from. So I hung out my window and pointed backwards and
said "I'm coming from That Way", and then yelled "YOU JUST SAW ME PULL IN!!!!"...
And he pointed north and said "Let me guess, and you're going That Way"..
So I said, "Hey, You're pretty F'n Smart"..
In the past when they weren't so well trained, this is when the fun would start, vehicle surrounded,
lots of yelling "NO.. I am not pulling over to 'secondary', I'm F'n leaving".. Etc...
But this guy was nice and told me "Get the F' out of here".. "Thank You", and then as I was
pulling away he yelled "ASSHOLE"..
Good Times. You can get away with a lot more in New Mexico than you can in Arizon, Texas or Cali,
Border Patrol isn't deputized here, so they can't enforce any state or local laws. So the few times
Yosemite Sam has asked me for my license and registration and insurance, I simply say back.
"Nope, That's a state issue".
All kinds of fun.. There are a ton of videos on Youtube. Most of them are people looking for confrontation
to make a video. 99% of the time, when they ask "US citizen", you just say 'Yes' and you are on your way,
I don't get cranky until they start asking things that are none of their business. Which I guess takes
me back to the training aspect, they used to ask intrusive questions to see how nervous you were, now
they are better at asking stupid questions that aren't so intrusive. "Cool little car, what kind of mileage
does it get" is one I was asked recently.. I don't mind that so much.