The TSA did not Catch our Friend with his Gun

You should really feel safe in America these days: "The land of the secure." How wonderful it is to have all those Homeland Security and TSA agents running around, among others, to keep you safe!

Well, here's a sad story with some interesting facts that will likely stir you up a bit. I really hope you can sleep well tonight after hearing about it. I know I run the risk of making you feel a little bit less secure, maybe even in peril. But someone's got to keep nudging you lest you pass out and get thrown into the boxcar with the rest of the marked men.

A good friend and longtime member of this blog was arrested last week in Bermuda for trying to carry a loaded pistol onto a plane. You see, even though he is getting older, he is still quite physically active and has been a very good law-abiding American citizen. Part of his keeping active includes shooting. He has a concealed weapons permit, as the legislation requires, and painstakingly makes sure to report his gold holdings, capital gains or offshore accounts to the government when required to do so. He is a Ron Paul supporter and hates the United Nations as much as any of us do, but he has gone out of his way in his life to be an "upstanding citizen." On top of that, he is a faithful Baptist, having attended the same church for some seventy years. He also is a former Marine who really likes guns. But now he will possibly have a criminal record and face significant jail time.

Here is the sad part: he accidently went through airport security with his gun.

He left his loaded 32 caliber pistol in his church bag like he always does. He carries the pistol for self-defense purposes. He will be the first to tell you that he believes the USA and other places will soon erupt into raging "territories of violence." He did not want to become a victim without putting up a fight. Unfortunately, on a recent business trip which was supposed to end up down in Chile, a country which he has grown to love and appreciate as the best place to be during the coming chaos, he forgot to take his pistol out of his bag. He then tried to go through security and board a series of flights that would end in Bermuda. Surprisingly, he made it pretty far.

He put his bag on the conveyer belt at his hometown airport and it was scanned by watchful TSA agents. Curiously, the gun was not detected. He had to pass through TSA screening again in Miami for his connecting flight. Once again, his gun passed right under the noses of the TSA. He actually flew on two flights with a gun stashed away in a bag in the overhead compartment. He did not know it of course. But had he been a "terrorist," he could have easily taken over the plane. Doesn't that make you scared?

Upon arrival in gun-hating Bermuda, he passed through customs without trouble. Not all countries scan luggage coming into the country. I am not sure, therefore, if yet another security force missed the gun again or if it was not scanned at all. The problem arose after his business was concluded and he was boarding his continuing flight to Chile. This time the scanning security agent saw the gun. He was pulled to the side, arrested and imprisoned. He is still being held at the maximum security detention hall, waiting for arraignment. All his goods, gun, gold, money and passport were confiscated. He had been trying to get a deal on a second passport for years and never got one. I bet he wishes he had a second passport now!

He tried to explain that it was an accident, yet to no avail. Many friends and church members or pastors have written character letters on his behalf. So far, the court does not believe that our friend was not trying to board the plane with criminal intent. The idea that he could have twice made it through the illustrious and powerful security forces of the United States of America seems farfetched. The gun must have been acquired in Bermuda and was about to be used in a felonious act. The law abiding citizen has become a terrorist.

And all of that transpired in Bermuda. Imagine how bad off the poor man would have been treated had he been caught by the TSA molesters in the USA! Can anyone spell g-u-l-a-g? He would probably have been tasered, fondled, pepper-sprayed for three solid minutes, beaten with batons (in that order) and then run through a kangaroo court resulting in a conviction that aligned him with Al Qaeda. At least in Bermuda he has the best lawyer money can buy and gets a comfy orange jumpsuit with porridge every morning. Let's hope that he can get out of this jam as soon as possible.

Please pray for our dear friend's release. The last accidental gun import to Bermuda by an American (yes, it has happened at least twice before) resulted in a man not being able to leave the country for seven months. Had our friend not had a deep desire to care for his 96-year old mother, he would have been in Chile long ago, quietly living life in his second (beach) home acquired some years ago. Then he would have avoided all this misery and grief. Instead, he is feeling the ire of a politically correct, anti-gun and anti-liberty world. Think you're walking the straight and narrow up yonder? Watch out. You could become the "land of the secure's" next victim.

P.S. You can legally own a gun in Chile. Most people cannot do so in New Zealand, Hong Kong or Bermuda. Maybe you should assign greater weight to that issue when evaluating countries to live in or keep your assets.

     Sovereign Man is about to launch its resilient community in Chile. Do you want to be a part of it? If Chile is on your radar screen, perhaps you should check out the residency program which I offer. Go to www.chile-consulting.cl and view the entries at bottom center or send an email tojcobin@offshoreadvisorygroup.com and I will send the program links directly to you. I will be talking about the program with Simon Black's teleconference regarding the resilient community on November 30, 2011 at 1 p.m. EST.
     Dr. Cobin’s book, Life in Chile: A Former American’s Guide for Newcomers, is the most comprehensive treatise on Chilean life ever written, designed to help newcomers get settled in Chile. He covers almost ever topic imaginable for immigrants. This knowledge is applied in his valet consulting service, where he guides expatriates through the process of finding a place to live and settle in Chile, helping them glide over the speed bumps that they would otherwise face in getting their visas, setting up businesses, buying real estate, investing in Chilean stocks or gold coins, etc. The cost is $49.
     Dr. Cobin’s sequel book, Expatriates to Chile: Topics for Living, adds even further depth on important topics to expatriates who either live in Chile already or who have Chile on the short list of countries where they hope to immigrate. The book deals with crucial issues pertaining to urban and rural real estate transactions, natural disasters, issues pertaining to emigration and its urgency, money and the quality of life, medical care and insurance, business opportunities, social manifestations (including welfare state and divorce policy concerns), Chile in the freedom indices, social maladies (lying, cheating, stealing and murder), as well as discussion of a few places worth visiting and some further comments about Santiago. Note: If the link to buy the book at SovereignMan.com does not appear, just send US$39 by PayPal to jcobin@policyofliberty.net and send an email or PayPal notice that you have completed your order.     Buy Dr. Cobin’s Public Policy books at Amazon.com:
Christian Theology of Public Policy: Highlighting the American Experience (2006)Bible and Government: Public Policy from a Christian Perspective (2003)A Primer on Modern Themes in Free Market Economics and Policy (2009)