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When I was young we used to take road trips from the US to Canada - to party - or fish - or whatever we were doing. I also used to use the road sections from Michigan to NH through Canada to make the long distance easier. Never had a problem with customs. No passport needed, often no checkpoint open on the smaller routes.
Later, in my first career, I traveled across international borders and through customs all the time. I had a lot of respect for those guys. They were good people, and I could see the job was sometimes difficult.
After 9/11, the US closed all the small border roads, AFAIK. You have to go through a major checkpoint now. And our US customs guys now act like 3rd world thugs. Crossing the border on the road is a major PITA. The Canadian side was a lot better. A little more like what, to me, seems should be normal. I'm still angry at the way I was treated by our own Customs people last time I went across.* This is just our border with CANADA, FFS.
AFAIC, it is not justified. The US HAS grown paranoid, and it is not a healthy thing.
*BTW, I have not seen quite the same ramp-up of paranoia at the airport customs for international flights. Some, but not as bad. When I last drove across the border, it was a quiet day, and the customs people acted like I was a major physical threat. It was insane. FWIW, I'm WASP, past retirement, and my family name has been in the US for over 300 years - so no reason to be included in some stereotype of a threat. I've since seen vids of other people having similar problems at US customs after doing things as innocuous as shopping or going to a movie. The customs training group for those agents seems to me to have a bad internal culture.
Another note, as for running guns into Canada - that HAS been done before. Back during Prohibition.
One need only compare routine traffic stops in either country to gauge the fear present. In Canada, you're not likely to have a firearm stuck in your face with a cop shouting at you for doing nothing more than the automatic reaching for your glove box to present your registration and insurance papers.
You're right and I'm sick of it. The decline of the US has become so painfully obvious in recent years.
We used to take long weekend trips to places in northeast USA and an annual trip to Florida, we no longer cross the border and prefer to remain in Canada for our weekend getaways ,as for the trip to Fla? we are thinking of alternate locations.
We used to take long weekend trips to places in northeast USA and an annual trip to Florida, we no longer cross the border and prefer to remain in Canada for our weekend getaways ,as for the trip to Fla? we are thinking of alternate locations.
We used to take long weekend trips to places in northeast USA and an annual trip to Florida, we no longer cross the border and prefer to remain in Canada for our weekend getaways ,as for the trip to Fla? we are thinking of alternate locations.
Exactly. who came up with the idea of creating a border in the first place? the British and the American governments I suppose.
LOL.
I know for a fact that different countries already had borders as early as 2500 years ago in present day China. Even the Roman empire didn't exist then. let alone the UK or America. By the 10th century, there was already passpart-like documents issued by the government which allowed people to cross country borders.
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