Well, bully for you. FWIW, I have lived and worked in five EU countries and one other close by. I know from experience that you simply can't generalise.

I have only visited 39 US states - probably more than most FTers, I guess, and possibly more even than you - but I know you cannot generalise about people in the US. What people in Maine believe can be very different from what the good ol' boys in the South believe, and Californians are different again, just to give examples that many will sympathise with. Just as you can't generalise about the US, you can't do so with the greater population of the EU either (or 'Europe' as you call it).

It's clear that we disagree quite profoundly and there's no point in continuing this kind of debate. I'm off to do something more productive ;) .

A cheap attempt at sarcasm, reason be gone:

[sarcasm]Oh, come on! You really think there’s border security? For the most part, the US has absolutely no idea who’s entering the country after the initial point of entry.

Just look at all those terrorists in the United States on September 11 and the freedom of movement that they had … who knows what they could have done!

Unlike America, the European states are under Brussels' thumb and have their authorities checked. American states are not under Brussels' thumb and it’s quite unfortunate that rightist politicians have destroyed security in a move against being under Brussels' thumb.[/sarcasm]

I suggest one not attempt to use false appeals to authority. It doesn't strengthen your point when one gets down to the logic of it all.

What Europeans want for their individual countries and for the EU is their business. I am not a big believer in meddling in the internal affairs of democratic countries and imposing (or trying to impose) my way. ;)

Extra-territoriality is troublesome. The explicit intent to engage in such is even more so. Unnecessary foreign entanglements. I think someone warned us about that a long time ago.

It's the opposite. Europe has always had terrorism, but the US doesn't seriously have a terrorism problem. The US had the horrible attack on 9/11 and the Oklahoma City bombing. That's it. Europeans have had terrorism for as long as there has been a Europe. In the 20th century alone there were thousands of terrorist attacks in Europe.

There's no such thing as an European state. Europe is not one-nation and it doesn't look that will happen anytime soon.

I was watching a news segement on the "European Journal" TV program produced in Brussels and circulated on America's PBS network. It talked about how German border security agents wish the old-style checks were still around today and they talked about all the smuggling and other illegal activity.

And a terrorist group in the US would have access to all the other states in the US, and it's so much worse: there is far more land in the US than in Europe. Sure the states aren't separate countries, but how does that make a difference when catching terrorists? Why aren't you tackling the glaring problem we have in the US, thanks to the US Constitution?

I stand corrected. At the very least, then, they have the good sense not to panic and do things that don't seem quite geared toward solving the problem but sound nice.

Thank you for sharing the obvious. :D

People would never be motivated by petty self-interest, including job security and ego. Never. :rolleyes:

If certain German border security agents believe there is a real problem, then they could appropriately lobby their superiors and the public to change matters. If they are right about the "need", make a compelling argument which can convince a critical mass, and are determined, then it shouldn't be too hard for them to "succeed" if they are smart and effective.

That is one of the major reasons I prefer to live in Europe. The reaction to 9/11 in the US has been horrible. Much of it makes me embarrased to be an American. I happened to be in Europe during 9/11 and while the Europeans were of course horrified, life went on as normal. They don't live in fear perhaps because terrorism isn't anything new to them.

No doubt. Gets old having to tell folks I'm from Canada but at least I don't get dirty looks or Bush jokes.

The program said they have and many Europeans are concerned about Schengen as well. There was talk about suspending it last year when there was some big soccer event in Portgual or Spain. Can't remember. I think it was some UEFA event.

They did and still do enforce border control when they are afraid of soccer hooligans entering their country to cause havoc. It is quite simple to stop a bunch of passengers on a EZ jet flight who fit a profile. Same for those who drive in. But that doesn't affect the rest of us.

As a business traveler, I love Schengen!

As someone who worked for President Bush, I proudly sport my Bush-Cheney stickers. I love getting into discussions about these sorts of things. :)

When I lived in Canada and commuted daily to work in the States, I had a Bush sticker on my automobile and a Bush sign in my yard at my Canadian house. hehe :)

Stimpy, I am very surprised to read that statement from you. Apparently you support the idea of profiling, for example, young male Englishmen when Manchester United is playing a German team. Of course, it is obvious that some of those young men might not even be interested in soccer, much less be hooligans.

The reason I am so surprised is that you have expressed your disagreement with profiling in the past.

On a thread dealing precisely with that, intobsv posted, "I guess I will never understand people that say that Middle Eastern looking people should not be targeted by airline security personnel. Please explain to me why a 65 year old woman is as much a danger as a 24 year old Arab Muslim."

Your reply in the following post was a sarcastic, "I think we should profile all blond haired blue-eyed people with short hair. You never know when another Timothy McVeigh could be lurking out there."

How do you justify profiling, say, young Englishmen but not young Arabs?

I can see why some people would like Schengen, but I think there's room for improvement from a security perspective. And as a tourist, I like my passport stamps. :D