Travel Overseas on Holiday? You are Suspect.

Figuring the Bush (free beer) economic stimulus package was no more than a pittance considering what my family has spent on his damn war, we traveled overseas for the last few weeks and spend our bonus moola in the EU.

And what reward do I get for spreading the love?

Complete hassle to get back into the country.

Anyone else finding passport/border control a bit overbearing these days?

The flight from Europe was one of those grueling 11 hours deals, where the sun never sets and your day becomes 36+ hours long.

At passport control I was asked to join the baggage search line.

Fine with me.

Dig through my dirty underwear and smelly socks if that's how you get your jollies Mr. TSA.

But then came the strange questions.

Where did you go?
Where did you come from most recently?
Where do you work?
What is your job?
Did you travel alone?
What was the purpose of your travel?
May we see your driver's license in addition to your passport?

The smart ass in me was tempted to ask if I was under arrest.

If so, I really would prefer a lawyer present when the state starts asking me all these personal questions and demanding duplicate ID.

I am a fucking taxpayer with a valid passport. What right does anyone have to dig into my life like that?

But then I realized, the official US border arbitrarily set inside the airport was still 30 feet away. I decided to keep my trap shut and hope for the best.

Perhaps I didn't have any Miranda rights yet.

Any lawyers out there? When do we become American citizens in an airport? Or am I just being old-fashioned to think I have certain rights as a US citizen?