[Ramius]

It's not so much the matter of what sort of "conveyance" it is. It is a border control issue. The area between the shore and 12 miles out is "the border". Anything in there is "on the border". It really is just that simple.

Are you (or anybody else) arguing that we should soften the borders and deny these powers to the Coast Guard?

[Travis McGee]

It's not just the border and 12 miles out, who told you that? The USCG can board you half way up the Mississippi, or in the middle of the ocean, no matter what flag you are flying.


I know they can do it, and will do it. I just ask that they not act like Nazi storm troopers on Kristallnacht while they are doing it, to ordinary average American taxpaying Joe Schmoes. Usually, they are respectful and polite, but sometimes they do come off as JBTs with a 'tude. Not often, but they do.

Is it too much to ask that they be polite and courteous to law-abiding American boat owners, when rousting them from sleep in the middle of the night for an uninvited "safety inspection?"