My experience with Amtrak Agent

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I traveled by AMTRAK frequently enough so that I've seen people drinking and behaving boorishly on those trains. I'm not thrilled by the thought of them carrying guns or having access to them on the trip from here to there.
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Like Mak, I fail to see the sarcasm here. Is this a genuine opinion?
 
So...if they don't agree with you, they shouldn't be allowed to have an opinon?
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No, they can HAVE the opinion, they just shouldn't be allowed to express it.

(For those unable to recognize, not only is this sarcasm, it is also illustrating the hypocrisy of saying you can have guns, but not use them!....)
 
Amtrak policy holds your 2d Amendment rights to be invalid, and has for a while. The lady's right on that point.

Her arguments strike me as:
"The policy is always right."
"Why?"
"Because it is the policy. The policy would not have been made if it were not justified."
"What if it's not justified?"
"It is justified, or it would not be policy."
Circular reasoning. Very mind-bending when you encounter it.
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I love to use "Circular reasoning" at work when I really want to make someone upset. It works every time. :D
 
Nope. Not even a metal detector.
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So really the only thing that prevents someone from taking a gun is the honor system that is followed only by good guys...and maybe the occasional bomb/drug sniffing dog.

I see. Guess it's a good thing I don't take the train.
 
Sterjo well all i can say is you cant change everyone. Obviously this person knows nothing about guns and nothing about 2a rights.
 
I dont think anyone should have the right to say that we cant carry guns.

So...if they don't agree with you, they shouldn't be allowed to have an opinon?

Nice to meet you, Comrade.
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I think what he means by "say" is "set policy." Think about word useage. "The policy says...." "corporate says...."
 
With all due respect to their policy....

If you are only traveling within states where your permit is valid, why not carry? If they find you violated their policy you might get thrown off the train, but how could you be prosecuted? Is there a federal law I don't know about?
 
Just a pointer, there is no such thing as "checked baggage" on Amtrack. The train doesn't really have a belly like a plane does. Bags that you don't want to bring with you to your seat can be stowed at the front or rear of each car.

And no, there are no security checkpoints or even a ticket checkpoint. When the train comes to the platform, everybody gets on, the train leaves, and the guy comes around checking your ticket. Those who don't have a ticket are thrown off at the next stop.

Also, I believe there actually IS a law regarding firearms on trains. I have a very hazy recollection about reading it once. If you are interested, you may want to research further.

It was about 3 years ago the last time I rode on a train.
 
Wow, Robert, I think I've found a rare mis-step. I can only hope this is an example of your sarcasm, but I don't see it.

If these people are willing to behave boorishly, what will stop them from carrying guns? It has already been noted Amtrak has no metal detectors.
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I'm rarely "sarcastic" and in this instance there's no satire, irony, or anything other than literal statement involved. Not only is it genuine opinion but also it's Grade A certified and comes with the manufacturer's limited warranty exclusive of suitability for any particular purpose. Read what it says:

I traveled by AMTRAK frequently enough so that I've seen people drinking and behaving boorishly on those trains. I'm not thrilled by the thought of them carrying guns or having access to them on the trip from here to there.
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Those two sentences are mine own. Whatever you add to them is yours, not mine. Have fun distorting.

For what it's worth, by the way, I've seen someone taken off an AMTRAK train at Union Station in Washington, DC, by two rather large refrigerators on legs for what I was told was having a gun on the train. The refrigerators said "Excuse me" as they walked their companion past me, and a conductor followed behind.

Now don't turn those two sentences into the story of a public execution or beheading unless you embellish it with elements of your own and take credit for the confection. :)

Seems to me, by the way, that in addition to the AMTRAK rules accepted by those who take passage on its trains the District of Columbia has some laws or other that might also apply within its city limits.
 
So really the only thing that prevents someone from taking a gun is the honor system that is followed only by good guys...and maybe the occasional bomb/drug sniffing dog.

I see. Guess it's a good thing I don't take the train.
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How come? It seems like they're pretty safe. Maybe being forced to take off your shoes and pour out your water doesn't actually make you safer? How many news stories have there been about people getting guns or other weapons on planes? I'm not convinced that elaborate security has much an impact on your safety. Personally I'll take the low security way every time.

I traveled by AMTRAK frequently enough so that I've seen people drinking and behaving boorishly on those trains. I'm not thrilled by the thought of them carrying guns or having access to them on the trip from here to there.
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By this logic isn't concealed carry a bad idea really anywhere?
 
By this logic isn't concealed carry a bad idea really anywhere?
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Aha! Does that statement mean you have at last conceded that I am Supreme Ruler of the Universe and Emperor of the Planet Mongo? Or is it an example of your inability to read simple English without filtering it through your own quirky thought processes? Or are you simply being willful or perverse?

Stay tuned to this station, Little Orphan Nanny fans, and see if you can figure out the outcome of this thrilling episode.

In the meantime, you can use your secret decoder badge to decipher the following statement:

I traveled by AMTRAK frequently enough so that I've seen people drinking and behaving boorishly on those trains. I'm not thrilled by the thought of them carrying guns or having access to them on the trip from here to there.
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No hints, kids. You have to do this one on your own.
 
In the meantime, you might want to sip your Ovaltine while reading this recent editorial from the Wilton (CT) Villager:

Amtrak acting appropriately on security

Amtrak, the nation's rail network, has announced an incresase in security measures, including random screening, and that seems a proper course of action.

There has been little in the way of security mesasures on the rail system and perhaps we have to consider ourselves lucky.

Impetus for establishing the security checks have been the number of terrorist bombings aimed at mass transit systems in Londan, Madrid, India and Russia.

The first implementation will come here in the Northeast Corridor, the rail system's busiest line. Thousands of passengers move daly between Boston and Washington, including those riding the high speed Acela.

The concentration of passengers on a train is a tempting target for a terrorist.

As proposed by Amtrak, the screenings will be random on the theory that they are harder for terrorists to counteract that fulltime procedures. You won't have to take off your shoes, only submit your baggage to a sweep by a detection device if you are asked.

Officials assure the public that the check will only take a few minutes. and you won't have to arrive at the station an hour early as you might at an airport.

There will be other security measures, including armed guards along with bomb-sniffing dogs. Just their presence on a platform might deter a would-be bomber.

The plan is modeled after that used on the New York subway system, a model that has withstood challenges in the courts. We think is entirely appropriate and not intrusive. It's for our own safety.
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And if you still have some Ovaltine left after decoding my simple two sentences in plain English and after you've read about AMTRAK's security, you might want to continue sipping while you read the agreement between AMTRAK and the Washington, DC, police department. It references the Standard Operating Procedure of the Amtrak Police Department on Firearms.
 
Amtrak is one of our government's most blatantly obvious socialist stupidities.

Railroads were shutting down passenger service because they were hemorrhaging money. So the Federal Government coercively took over passenger rail service, and claimed it would be "self-supporting." How, exactly, was this going to happen?

Amtrak should never have happened, and it should be shut down immediately.

We have several commuter rail systems running in parallel with Amtrak in this area. Amtrak doesn't serve this need. I fail to see what need, exactly, it DOES serve.

Note that, if there's a route where real demand exists, railroads would be eager to offer passenger rail service on this route anyway. And if there's no demand, why run the trains?

The concentration of passengers on a train is a tempting target for a terrorist.
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What concentration of passengers would that be?

On commuter rail, yes, but on Amtrak?
 
I'm sure whatever point you're trying to prove is terribly clever but I've missed it. Seems like sort of a pyrrhic victory, but congrats.
 
And no, there are no security checkpoints or even a ticket checkpoint. When the train comes to the platform, everybody gets on, the train leaves, and the guy comes around checking your ticket. Those who don't have a ticket are thrown off at the next stop.
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Wrong on both counts. My fiancee and I took the train no more than six months ago to visit my mom in Florida. We had to stop in to the customer service station to make sure our bags were the appropriate size, and they were randomly screening passengers bags at the station. This was the case at every stop we made - our bags were never searched, but other passengers' absolutely were.
 
How come? It seems like they're pretty safe.
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Not a safety issue for me. If there ain't a mechanism to disarm the bad guys at the door, then I don't disarm either. That's my rule. So good thing I don't take the train cause eventually I'd probably get in trouble.
 
Those two sentences are mine own. Whatever you add to them is yours, not mine. Have fun distorting.

For what it's worth, by the way, I've seen someone taken off an AMTRAK train at Union Station in Washington, DC, by two rather large refrigerators on legs for what I was told was having a gun on the train. The refrigerators said "Excuse me" as they walked their companion past me, and a conductor followed behind.

Now don't turn those two sentences into the story of a public execution or beheading unless you embellish it with elements of your own and take credit for the confection.
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Robert, I distorted nothing.

I merely asked the question: Although you prefer not to have those idiots armed, what is stopping them from doing so?

I have traveled rather infrequently on Amtrak (twice per year, generally around Christmastime) from CHICAGO, no less, and have not been screened nor approached.

Perhaps DC is different, but I know from my experience that not every train is scrutinized.

Now, please impugn my statements; unfortunately I will not get to enjoy it until much later tonight.
 
And if there's no demand, why run the trains?
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Go talk to your congressmen. Amtrak wanted to shut down service to a lot of cities that didn't make them money and congress stepped in and wouldn't let them. And all paychecks in Amtrak come from ticket sales, so your taxes were not paying that service agent.
 
I doubt I will ever get on a train, they only stop here at 2 am to let the hobos off, and they dont really stop for that.
 
Amtrak's major problem is that it is run by career bureaucrats who seem to think that trains are bad.

I used to have a neighbor when I was in the city... He wasn't rocket scientist material, but he was highly motivated. He wanted to become a porter, or other type of attendant, on a train. He let slip that he liked trains during an interview, and was told that they didn't hire "train buffs."

Sigh.

Yet it seems that most of their routes are not designed around inter-city/interstate transport, but are instead designed as "train buff" tours.

Double-sigh.

Let's look...

St. Louis to Atlanta...

1) St. Louis to Chicago to Charlottesville, VA to Atlanta - 36+ hours.

2) St. Louis to Chicago to DC to Atlanta - about the same elapsed time.

Blithering idiots are running the show.

Pricing is $210 to $360, and if you want a "bedroom" type dealie, since you're going to be traving for at least two days, that's another $283...

Greyhound tops out at $110, and gets me there in 17 hours - about twice driving time, but hey...
 
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