This morning near Chicago thousands of commuters were delayed as trains were halted and emptied in search of “a suspicious man with a gun”
Sounds like this secret service agent could use a few little re-training (or de-(commuter)-training!)
Oh great, a newb agent screwing up the Metra service today - like we needed more delays besides the snow and cold! At least he bothered to dress in distinguishing clothing (green jacket) - if he were all in black he’d look like everyone else on the train in the morning.
I think this is the best part:
:smack:
Besides being mindbogglingly stupid to ask that without showing some ID… dude, does it look like there are any metal detectors?
If only those BN rubes were as astute and sophisticated as us swells on the UP West line! 
Here’s another story about this:
Apparently the agent identified himself as Secret Service when the ticket agent saw the agent’s weapon as he reached for his wallet to pay for the ticket. The ticket agent says he didn’t identify himself, so someone is trying to cover their ass.
My favorite part of the story is this:
Just like hundreds of others throughout the area today–only they didn’t cause huge delays. Perhaps a “coaching” session is in order?
:smack:
Only in Chicago would it be considered unusual or suspicious for an ordinary guy to get on a train with a gun. Okay, maybe a couple of other places too, but it’s still silly. 'Round here I wouldn’t be surprised at all to learn that I was sharing a train or large bus with several armed passengers.
Still, in this situation I would hope that the Secret Service agent at least showed his badge or something like that (do they have badges?); anybody with a gun on their hip could say “it’s okay, I’m with the Secret Service.” Then again, given the typical competence levels of municipal transit employees, I wouldn’t be surprised if the fault was mainly on the ticket agent’s end. But this is to say nothing of the city’s absurdly exaggerated response. Stopping and sweeping the entire train with police officers armed with rifles? Because one guy might have had a gun? Seriously?
And what authority would they have to search the passengers, anyway? If I were in a situation like that, I sure as hell wouldn’t consent to being searched by the police, and if they did it anyway they’d be getting some very polite communications from my attorneys. :dubious:
See, it’s a “snowbird’s” fault, not us regulars!
Stealth Potato, Illinois does not allow concealed or open carry of firearms unless you’re an officer of some sort (edit: open carry is allowed in rural areas under certain restrictions). I’ve seen a uniformed officer riding on the train with a holstered gun, regularly, on my route. Someone not in uniform would in fact cause a stir.
Oh, I’m well aware of that. I guess I should have replaced “Chicago” with “Illinois,” but Chicago was more specific to this case. Besides, isn’t Chicago the only place of consequence in Illinois? ducks shoes thrown by Illinois Dopers 
Still an absurd overreaction though.
It’s not a good day for Metra BNSF riders. An Amtrak derailment on the California Zephyr has delayed at least three outbound Metra trains this evening.
http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2009/01/amtrak-derailment-halts-3-metra-lines.html
There’s a message here–you might be better off driving tomorrow!