While driving down the expressway today, a non descript white minivan with blacked out windows, interior emergency lighting, and DHS Gov’t plates was being driven by a person, who had all the same gear as a cop, badge, vest, duty belt, rifle, bum cage, and was flitting from car to car calling in plates on an encrypted radio (i’ve used them, I know what they look like).
The Department of Homeland Security is patrolling the fecking highways now? Since When? I mean WTF is that about? I thought that was the job of the Illinois State Police? Am I wrong?
If the windows were blacked out, how did you see the ‘rifle’ and his duty belt? More importantly, how the living fuck would you know an ‘encrypted radio’ by looking at one?
Department of Homeland Security vehicles use standard federal government plates; they don’t say “DHS”.
My cite is personal observation: I know the director of the Bureau of Customs and Immigration; he was formerly the Vice-Chairman of the Export-Import Bank, in support of which I ply my humble trade these days. During the tme pending his Senate confirmation, he wore two hats; his driver would bring him to the Bank from BCIS in a Homeland Security vehicle.
**If the windows were blacked out, how did you see the ‘rifle’ and his duty belt? More importantly, how the living fuck would you know an ‘encrypted radio’ by looking at one?
More likely, you are chock-a-block full of shit.[\b]
Piss off. The rifle (or shotgun) was mounted to the bum cage, (I could see the silhouette through the windshield) and from my position in my own vehicle, which was a bit higher than the van, the duty belt was evident. Moreover, The Motorola sabre, used by the Feds (I used one when I was a DoD Officer) is, and I say usually, encrypted. Squad cars and such have been my business for 13 years, I know one when I see one.
Bricker, actually, the license plate architecture for the gov’t has changed a bit since I worked there, but the patch on the drivers shoulder was a circle that read “department of homeland security” and the plates read DHS on the far left side and numerals on the right. 2+2 and all that rot.
I’m not taking a “black helicopters” stand, but rather a jurisdictional one. Shouldn’t that kind of thing be left to the states?
All though I have no horse in this race I have to point out Bouncer that the Department of Homeland Security likely has access to LEADS ( I would hope so, if not then they are not even close to being an effective department). This is the law enforcement data service and they could easily run plates. In fact they likely have, or at least I hope they do, even betetr databases.
No, no…we haven’t sent out highway operatives since the unfortunate “Hitching Hustler” scandals. The Don’t Ask Don’t Tell folks got a mite nervous on that one…
Earlier this year, for a couple of months the Wal_Mart Police were patrolling my neighborhood outside of Kansas City. My neighbors and I had no clue why.