They hate us for our freedoms II

As if airports aren't enough of a nightmare, now we have Amtrak entering the world of harrassing the innocent in the name of "security".

Amtrak will start randomly screening passengers' carry-on bags this week in a new security push that includes officers with automatic weapons and bomb-sniffing dogs patrolling platforms and trains.

The initiative, to be announced by the railroad on Tuesday, is a significant shift for Amtrak. Unlike the airlines, it has had relatively little visible increase in security since the 2001 terrorist attacks, a distinction that has enabled it to attract passengers eager to avoid airport hassles.

There goes the neighborhood.

Yeah, let's sacrifice a little more liberty to the cause of 'security at any cost'. Asshats.

Amtrak plans to roll out the new "mobile security teams" first on the Northeast Corridor between Washington and Boston, the railroad's most heavily used route, before expanding them to the rest of the country.

The teams will show up unannounced at stations and set up baggage screening areas in front of boarding gates. Officers will randomly pull people out of line and wipe their bags with a special swab that is then put through a machine that detects explosives. If the machine detects anything, officers will open the bag for visual inspection.

Anybody who is selected for screening and refuses will not be allowed to board and their ticket will be refunded.

Wow! Really? We have the right to refuse this flagrant violation of the Fourth Amendment? Sweet! Oh yeah...we WON'T BE ABLE TO TRAVEL. And this is okay with the American sheeple.

But the last line of the AP story is the one that justs melts my cold, Vulture heart.

"There is no new or different specific threat," Kummant said. "This is just the correct step to take."

And there you have it. There's no threat. There's no eminent danger. The government just deems it "the correct step to take." Well, by all means, then!

* Vulture's head explodes *