We go together like- Crockett and Tubbs, Murtaugh and Riggs, SJW’s and Commie thoughts, I mean we just fit. What am I talking about? I’m talking about X-Einstein and I, of course. Who is X-Einstein? X-Einstein is my Glock 19X. The greatest creation from the minds of the Austrian legendary Glock factory, built, and conceptualized by the one and only, Gaston Glock. This is Herr Gaston’s finest creation to date, in my humble opinion.
First some background, for those unfamiliar with the Glock 19X. The 19X was Glock’s submission to U.S. Army’s Modular Handgun System (MHS) Trials. Which was the Army’s selection process to become the Army’s new sidearm. The Sig Sauer P320 eventually won the contract, I also own one of those, it’s also a great handgun and should prove to be a great sidearm for our brave men and women serving this great country. Much like the other companies that submitted Handguns for the MHS trials, Glock decided to release a civilian version to the commercial market, with some minor changes.
The 19X is a sort of Hybrid Frankenstein gun. The slide is the length of a G19 and it is mated to G17 frame. There have many YouTube vids and other interweb post maligning the 19X, stating that the configuration should have reversed, G17 slide, G19 frame. While there may be some valid points to this argument, I love this pistol exactly the way it is. I have carried it for at least forty hours a week since I got it and the gun and it has been AWESOME. The 19X comes from the factory with a flat dark earth color scheme and factory night nights, a must for a defensive pistol, in my opinion. The 19X also come with legendary Glock reliability as a standard feature.
Ok, now for The Fuerst Option review. First off, 19X is a model number, not a name, and you give trusty sidekicks names. That is unless you’re a couple of Jacked Up robots from those sucky Star Wars Movies, and their A-hole owners just kept calling them numbers, WTF. And yes, I did say sucky Star Wars movies, All the Star Wars movies sucked, as you get older that should become clear, without me telling you that they suck. Life Coaching advice, if you are thirty or older and don’t have to take your kids to Star War movies, and you are in that movie theater, on opening night wearing a Han Solo t-shirt, it may be time to rethink your life direction. There are girls out there, just saying. I digress, since the 19X is a sort of Frankenstein Gun; I named mine, “X-Einstein”. That’s right I name my stuff. I gave myself the call sign, The Option, as it is whom the F I am. I explained this to my lovely wife, “Che-Nobyl”. That’s the call sign I’ve given her, because she is “Hot and Deadly”. We have been married twenty seven years. After hearing my new call sign, Che-Nobyl lovingly stated, “I think it’s time I look for a BETTER OPTION.”You cannot by that type of enthusiasm. I thought it appropriate to name my Badass bright orange Subaru Crosstrek “ The Option Response Vehicle. (See Above Pic) That Crosstrek is so amazingly Badass you couldn’t hide its greatness even if you used camo netting. My gold Honda Pilot “Bug out” vehicle is named “The Golden Beast”. I name stuff, that’s the shit I do. So The Option’s Glock 19X is now known as the call sign X-Einstein. X-Einstein is a total badass and cooler than James Dean. If Glock and everybody else want to call its color Flat Dark Earth, go ahead, I prefer to say X-Einstein is the color of a lion’s mane, coupled with the color of THOR’S Golden Locks. That works because lions are animal kings and X-Enstein is The Option’s Legendary Hammer. I believe that all 19X’s have been constructed in the Austrian Alps by specially trained and genetically enhanced Austrian Black Eagles, and freshly delivered, by before mentioned Black Eagles to the various world distribution centers. X-Einstein is obviously too awesome to have been built in an ordinary factory situation, so I have no other explanation, that would make any sense. I’m sure this is obvious to all you. At least it will be obvious once you own one. The night sights are so highly visible that they are probably constructed by materials created from alien technology found at Area 51 and put on the market through a highly classified partnership with Mr. Gaston Glock. I have no concrete proof here, I’m just saying, the night sights are nice. The trigger is crisper than Fall Washington Apples. X-Einstein match grade barrel makes my shooting more accurate than Phil Valentine’s assessment of Liberals Trump Derangement Syndrome.
I heard people say that The 19X is difficult to conceal carry. I have not found this to be the case. I take X-Einstein everywhere. I have no problem concealing him. Although his glow of awesomeness does shine through on a constant basis. I have found this weapon is really not much more difficult to conceal, than a Glock 19 or 23, though this may be a personal experience or preference type of thing, but carry X-Einstein everywhere and have zero issues.
For example, X-Einstein and I recently visited an East Nashville coffee shop, you know we were spending some quality time together, anyway there weren’t “any no guns allowed, helpless victims inside.” Stickers on the window, so in I went. The no sticker was obviously a clever ruse, or more likely from the occupants they were too lazy to put one up. The occupants looked like they were a Hybrid Antifa/Vegan Cheer Squad, holding a strategy for Anarchy meeting. It was a strange collection of bad Anime Tattoos, wild color hair, face piercings and wool caps which are worn indoors,at all times. I was wearing Jeans, Black Tee shirt, a light weight leather blazer and an NRA camo baseball cap. I stepped up to the counter and was greeted by some forty something male barista, named, Brahn. Brahn looked like Slender Man with a purple colored buzz cut/faux hawk, three nose rings and a lizard tattoo in the middle of his forehead, just below his hair line. Brahn immediately recoiled in horror upon looking at me up and down and questioned me in very rude tone “Who do you think you are?” I answered “I’m The Option” “Where The F you been?” in my usual cheerful tone. Brahn then stated “You have some nerve showing yourself in a public place.” To which I countered “Look who’s talking.” Brahn Said “I’m not serving anyone who supports the NRA, and wears clothing made out of murdered animals.” Brahn Then retreated from the counter and I believe began to sob over by the espresso machine and the gluten free muffins. I called to him that I loved his electric razors and when he was done with his child like tantrum/emotional breakdown over a hat could he please get me a large coffee, hold the Social Justice Non-Warrior flavored tear additives.
Just then I heard a screeching voice from behind me. The voice was horrible and chilling. It sounded like somebody dropped a hamster and a wineglass into a Ninja blender. I turned to find the crazy eyed woman behind me. I’ll let my response to her describe her appearance. “ Miss, Let me say this, no matter what our disagreements may be, It’s an honor to have Shrek’s Wife Fiona in our fine city.” In all honesty, she wasn’t green, she was more the orangish color of flavor blasted gold fish from the overly used spray on tan facility and her skin had the textured look of John Wayne era saddle bags. Fiona was not amused, “is that real leather?” “Of course, I’m from the Jersey Shore, the land of real leather and hair gel product. In my defense I’m sure many steaks and beef bologna sandwiches were made from the cow this blazer came from. My blazer has first name is W.I.L.S.O.N.” I then tried to mend the fences and said “I’m surprised you don’t like leather it seems to have a similar texture to your face.” Fiona Then pulled some words from the SJW book of bullshit go to tactic by yelling “You’re a Nazi”. I then at this point explained the way of the real world to crazy ill-informed Fiona. I told her in a voice that all could hear, that if I respected the opinion of fools and idiots and was not from New Jersey, which makes me immune from being offended, that statement may have actually offended me. See, my deceased father fought and was wounded in WWII. He actually fought real Nazi’s. He served his community as a Reserve Police officer standing up for people’s rights and protecting those who cannot protect themselves. My Father did that for no pay. He raised me to have the same beliefs and fight for those who cannot fight for themselves. I did so serving my community as a Law Enforcement Officer for over thirty Years. Unlike punks like you, I have actually seen what real dangerous fascists are capable of, as I was a responder to the 9-11 terror attacks against the World Trade Center. They should remember that there are thousands of great First Responders and Our Great American Armed Forces fighting and protecting against real fascists every day. And sadly many of them give the ultimate sacrifice. I looked around the room and everyone seemed offended and uncomfortable. Many seemed to have melted into puddles of soy milk chai tea, or whatever these they drink. So Mission Accomplished. You Aholes can keep your coffee, and in true Jersey Fashion I flipped the room the Double Barreled Bird turned and walked out. I was ready to head to Dunkin Donuts, Fairly Cop Friendly, when a young lady with a “Jen” on her name tag carrying a to go cup and a little bag of creamers. Jen said “ I’m sorry about all that” she handed me the coffee and rolled up the sleeve of her sweat shirt and showed me a Thin Blue Line tattoo on her inner wrist. Jen stated that her father was a retired Police Officer in Alabama. I smiled and said “Thank him for me” Jen Asked for what? “For his service and most of all, raising a good kid.” Jen smiled back and said, “Thanks to you also.” Then Jen said the words all police officers love to hear, “no Charge for the coffee”. I thanked her and gave her a ten spot.
All and all it was a good day. I got to Trigger some crybaby SJW’s , I met a young lady who made feel pretty good that there are still some really sweet people out there and not all hope for the future and my quest, to spread the word, of the importance of Every Day Carry Wisdom and Awareness, I got some free coffee, and most of all I got to spend some quality time with X-Einstein. I also learned a real good situational awareness lesson, I wasn’t expecting, My Subaru Crosstrek seamlessly blended into the urban East Nashville Hipster landscape. Who would have thought?
I guess along with my abilities such as picking an Awesome Wife and picking Awesome Guns, I must add my ability to picking Awesome Rides to the list. All this and I still remain humble. Wow. I really am The Option.
TFO Safety Suggestion- I tend to make fun of Antifa and groups and their ilk, but on a serious note, these groups are potentially dangerous, due to their large group violent mob methods of operation. These methods are dangerous to the innocent public in general, as their Protests are held in the streets of cities and towns, causing non-involved members of the community to potentially be injured. I suggest stay up on what’s going on in your communities and if you know there protests or similar events planned, avoid those areas, especially if you are going out with your children. Stay vigilant and stay alert. Be careful out there.
Everybody seems to be into coffee these days. It annoys me, because it’s like it’s a trendy Hipster thing now. I’ve been drinking coffee my whole life. My dad would give me coffee every morning, before dropping me off at the Kindergarten bus stop. I would have my thermos full of inspiration hanging with my friend Tony, who would be smoking a Tarrington 100, while the rest of the pack, was in the front pocket of Tony’s Sears Tough Skin jeans. The jeans were called tough skins, and they were held up with a belt. Your underpants didn’t show, if they did show you where rightfully laughed at. The only quasi acceptable reasons your underpants could show where the following, you were a little slow or you were struck by a car while riding your bike and the Paramedics were working on you. My Dad made great coffee. My Dad Liked his coffee liked he liked his women, Dark and Full bodied, like a Goth Rosie O’Donnell eating a feathered Raven. Coffee that was Strong and bold, the exact opposite of the Antifa Males. My Dads coffee was thicker than a professional Twerker. My Dads coffee would put these trendy coffee shop dwellers in the hospital. The Soy Sippers would have their girlfriends stolen away by a Cup of My Dads coffee. What I’m saying here is, after one sip of my Dads coffee the chicks would fall in love with its strength a rather date the actual cup of coffee than their current Soy boyfriends. I truly believe these Knuckleheads would lose their chicks to a cup of My Dads F-ing coffee. Full disclosure, I still love coffee and If I’m out, I may have my wife, the lovely Cher-Nobyl, I call her that because she is HOT and Deadly, run into the Starbucks and pick me up a cup of the old SJW Juice, hold the almond milk. I don’t go in, because I don’t want my friends to see in there. I feel much the same way about being seen in a Smart Car or a Mazda Miata.
Look, as time goes on and you guys get to know me, it may seem that I pick on C.S.D.C. The Coffee Shop Dweller Crowd an awful lot. well, maybe I do, but I do it with love and hope in my heart. I want to bring them into the tent of awareness and give them some wisdom. Truth be told, the group born between the Mid- Nineteen Nineties and the Mid Two Thousands have a lot to offer society. They are bright and very technologically savvy people; their problem is they have been psychologically weakened over time by the culture around them. The culture and society haven’t done them any favors. I’ve learned one important thing over my years that is universally true to everyone. Bad things are coming for us. Whether it be sadness, hard times sickness, death, its coming to all of us sooner or later, in varying degrees or ways. If you live your life and embrace it, live for others and not just yourself, tragedy and sadness is coming sooner or later. Many of us know this already. No matter if it’s just the living of life or you’re forced to defend yourself against some evil lurking around the corner, you have to be mentally tough. If not, you not are going to make it through. The head in the sand is not going to work my Homies, I’m sorry. If your offended by songs, movies, Toxic masculinity (whatever that is), cursing, etc. These maybe signs you have to toughen up a little. Here is a Tactical Rudeness lesson right here. Write this down- Nobody Cares That YOU Are OFFENDED. There no charge for that Life Coach Lesson. Hear this Dwellers! we need you under the Awareness Tent, with all our differences we can still work together to protect ourselves and communities against the Bad Guys that are out there. That’s what we also have in common, the bad guys out there, are ready to prey on all of us. That my Homies is where all the good decent people merge onto the same road. See commonality, the good win by looking out for each other. Let’s look for things we can agree on, build a foundation on that and work out the other stuff as we move forward. Let’s look at the many contributions the Dweller Crowd has made to our society already and find more commonality, for instance, here are a few. Lumberjack style beards on guys who have to pay someone to Blow leaves off their four by eight patch of condo front lawn(helping the economy), Skinny jeans being worn by men.( have to say, they would sure keep an in the waist band holster in place), Man buns. I got nothing, Safe spaces, where else can full- grown adults, go and use crayons and coloring books when they get upset( But, you add a steel door and heavy door frame ,now you have a safe room/safe space), See with a little compromise I’m bringing us together. How about Chai Tea and Coffee with whipped cream and sprinkles, Tofu pizza, soy ice cream, kale non-dairy milkshakes, Cinnamon swirl, hot pepper and pineapple beer, with kiwi and mandarin orange garnish. I know what you are saying, a lot of shit sucks, and you would be right, but, they are contributions to society and there were some positives to a few. For the love of F—K, I’m trying here. The important thing is we keep trying to find things that bring us good all together, we have are differences, but we all want to be safe and be capable of protecting ourselves and loved ones, so lets work together.
So that’s my plan, my journey in all this, bust the Dweller crowd’s balls, but know they mostly good hearted people, just like the crew I run with. We just have our shit together. See I can’t help myself, if it makes you feel any better I bust my friends and loved ones balls also, but I do it because I love them, and I do it with love and admiration in my heart. And, They bust mine right back. Its fun and we laugh and it brings us together. That’s always my plan, trust me, it always works. I also have to except that things are just different now. I was in a coffee shop the other day doing some writing and watching Fox News on my laptop. I was approached by some salted caramel and lavender coffee drinking Dweller who looked at my computer, and said in a whiney judgmental voice, “Why do you watch that? Did your parents drop you as a child?” Yes, I answered, they did drop me when I was a baby, over and over, Head first into a pool of Awesomeness and Badassery, and coffee. While you my Dweller friend, it appears you stumbled into a puddle of soy milk and Punkman tears, so move on. Dweller boy had nothing to say, he just ran straight for the coloring books.
Talking Guns Radio Getting Ready for SHOT Show 2019
It’s that time of year again as I prepare for SHOT Show 2019. Starting to get ready to setup podcasting guests, checking gear and making sure registration goes smoothly. I’ve added some photos to a gallery that I started sometime ago called Krueger’s View @ kruegersview.com . Check out “Bright Shiny Objects”. I’m also looking forward to posting a few articles before SHOT Show for our new group Talking Guns Media that I’ll tell you more about going forward.
At this time of the year I’d like to take a moment to thank all those that have given Kate and I the gift of FRIENDSHIP. A UPS driver who Kate didn’t appreciate at first but has become a very dear friend and a Scottsdale PD K9 officer who wasn’t talking to his partner. Then there is the Retired Navy Chief whose family lived in a distant state, and another very dear friend who liked Kate’s radio show from the Seychelles Islands, we think. The Air Force vet who painted our store, watched our dog and has just been there… she also suggested we hire a certain person at the store and it was the best thing that happened to us. Can’t forget the Scottsdale PD officer’s wife and 3 young children who would do Christmas shopping for dad at our store. A young recently divorced mother of two who only wanted part-time work and saved our “bacon” so many times, I call her The All Knowing. A former Jockey from NY, A retired school principal, two ladies we met at a gun show one who later worked for Kate and both are special friends to this day. A prominent lawyer who we knew before he went off to law school, a former N.J. cop and so many more who I won’t mention here. To all Kate and I want to say THANK YOU!
Wishing all a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS and A HAPPY NEW YEAR
While working a class a number of years ago we had a bonded couple. The female was a first time shooter and her other half, the more “knowledgeable” shooter, put the love of his life in a Smith & Wesson 2inch J-Frame. The first day went ok (or so we thought) but the second day not so much. As we worked the shooting line we noticed her gun hand had a bandage on it and after further investigation we was discovered that a rather large blister had developed on her hand.
After some discussion is was decided that she should give a Browning Hi-Power a try as it would be a more comfortable firearm for her to continue the class. One of the instructors let her borrow her Hi-power and proceeded to instruct her on the workings of that fine gun.
The rest of the class that day continued without incident. The next day low and behold she showed up at the class with her very own brand new Browning Hi-Power. She completed the rest of the week with great success and a lot less pain. And in the end she was awarded High Lady shooter in the class and third overall. Although the 2 inch revolver is a great little concealed gun for many in this case it was NOT the right gun for a first time shooter to take a week long course.
I was in traffic the other day and passed by a police officer on a roadside traffic stop. I happened to glimpse his gun belt and couldn’t believe how much equipment was on there. It made me think of the past when most officers were only equipped with their duty weapon, spare ammunition, handcuffs, baton, and their common sense, good judgment, and communication skills. The equipment available to the street officer today is astounding. I’m not anti-technology and some tools have made the job safer and easier, however, I also believe that it has profoundly affected the interaction between police and the public. Take for example the stun gun. It was originally designed as a less-than-lethal tool but seems to have transmuted to a compliance tool. I believe that in some cases it became overused and replaced sound tactics and good communication skills. That of course led to the increased scrutiny of the device by the public and the media. All you have to do is access “You Tube” and you’ll find it replete with videos of alleged stun gun misuse and abuse. Again, I think technology has increased efficiency and safety in policing, but it has also created apathy and communication issues among officers in regard to public relations and community trust. Look, I get it. Everybody is busy, but at some point we have to look at what we’re doing and take more time to relate to each other. The payoff is big. The guy you spent a few extra minutes with talking into the back seat of your patrol vehicle versus increased time doing paperwork, supervisory scrutiny, and civil litigation because of a use-of-force incident. The scenarios are endless and obviously everything is situational. I’m certainly not implying that all police officers use poor judgment, have poor communication skills, or are apathetic. I do believe that many police departments need to increase training in communication skills and professional conduct, and hold their people accountable when there is a gross deviation from those standards. We need to bridge the gap between technology and human interaction if we are to foster respect and trust within our communities.
I’ve noted a lot of posts on the web and social media regarding folks interested in purchasing a firearm for defense. Hopefully this game plan may help with the process.
Do your research before rushing out and buying a gun. Revolvers are good as far as ease of operation, but limited in capacity. Semi autos have the capacity but operation can be somewhat difficult (not impossible but require more training in operation). Glock, S&W M&P, Ruger SR9 & Springfield XDM are four semi auto handguns in 9mm that I suggest. It is only a suggestion but they really top the market in ease of operation and reliability. Go to an indoor range that rents handguns, explain you’re a new shooter and ask for a basic introduction lesson to go along with your rental (some will, some will not). Rent the handgun, along with eye and ear protection and purchase your 9mm ammunition and a target from them.
Do NOT fall into the trap of buying a gun then and there. Ask if you can rent two guns on the same visit and have a note pad and pen to put down your likes and dislikes. Next visit do the same with the other two guns. Then go home and look at your notes and make your decision.
Along with the gun you’ll need a good gun belt, holster, mag pouch, (I like International Handgun Leather at IHLUSA.com) eyes and ears, a baseball cap, ammunition and cleaning supplies.
THEN most important go and get yourself some TRAINING from a qualified trainer in the basic handling of a firearm, most quality ranges and clubs will offer or know where to direct you.
After this you should START to learn how to shoot, moving on to how to tactically shoot, finally how to FIGHT with the gun. After doing all of this you are now ready to really learn more about your equipment and more importantly to have a warriors mind set.
Throughout history, sources have been used to carry out dangerous and nefarious missions for intelligence operatives, law enforcement agencies and even criminal enterprises. Also known as an “agent” in the intelligence world, these individuals are recruited to do any number of operations, including gun buys, drug deals, extortions, murders, and cyber crimes. Criminals and intelligence operatives also use sources to create false trails of evidence in order to mislead investigations away from the employer of the source. Simply put, using a source ensures a large degree of separation between a criminal’s actions and the individual(s) and/or organizations that hire them. This ensures minimal to no connection and creates a backstop that leads away from the employer of the source.
For example, the FBI can often get information otherwise impossible to obtain by convincing a person with access to criminal associations to “flip” and work as a government source. The sources are then tasked with infiltrating criminal organizations, listening to and/or recording conversations about illegal activity, acquiring stolen or illegal goods, and even intruding on our enemies through cyber activities.
With this concept of effective source tasking in mind, lets consider the Democratic Party’s repetitive accusations of Russia’s meddling in all things political and their latest accusations targeting Attorney General Sessions speaking to a Russian Ambassador. It may not be as clear a picture as you think.
I’ve been saying since the DNC hack was first announced in 2016, that the potential of the DNC hacking themselves was plausible for the purpose of drumming up the victim card for Hillary Clinton’s camp to cover for the then impending hack of John Podesta’s email which came to light through WikiLeaks It would have been very easy for the Democratic Party and Hillary Clinton to recruit someone from Russian Intelligence to carry out hacking and other cyber crimes, especially if you consider all the connections Hillary Clinton amassed during her time as Secretary of State as well as from her husband’s presidency.
Of course this is speculation and may sound outlandish, but it’s hard to deny how effective a Russian Intelligence source would be in developing a cover story for the Democratic Party as a Russian source would have the ability to leave specific, known Russian cyber footprints behind to be traced by authorities. In the cases of General Flynn and Attorney General Sessions, a Russian source could also provide notifications when phone calls have been made to their ambassadors.
Remember, a good source will never appear to be working for the person directing the mission. Simply put, recruit a Russian Intel agent to do your dirty work and everything they do will come back to Russia.
This could also have been the case with the January 2017 BuzzFeed and CNN fake news reports about a Trump Russian prostitute fiasco that never took place. It was here that a Washington political research firm hired by Trumps political rivals, paid a retired British Intelligence Officer to “investigate” Trumps ties with Russia, ending in a 35-page fake report full of lies about Trump.
That fake report was then mysteriously disseminated by the Democratic Party, members of Congress (i.e. John McCain), the White House, and was included in a classified National Security briefing to the Obama administration without being verified by the FBI or the CIA. Simultaneously, and without verification, the fake information was being reported by members of the media as fact, giving the information a credible appearance.
While it is easy to conclude that collusion was necessary for this chain of events to occur, you should pay close attention to how the events started with a controlled source. Like I said, sources are very effective.
And so a pattern has emerged of “take our word for it, it’s connected to Russia and it’s bad.” Yet little evidence is presented to substantiate any of those claims except a Russian cyber footprint here and there, the words of political appointees in our own intelligence community left over from the Obama administration and/or the main stream media outlets stepping up to provide misleading authenticity. As a trained investigator, I find this “blame Russia” pattern all too convenient for me to believe.
Why is it always Russia? Why does it always benefit the Democrats or individuals that hate Trump to blame Russia? If Russia is so aggressively pursuing the U.S., why wasn’t Russia an issue during the previous administration? I theorize that many in Washington D.C., have in fact obtained prior or current Russian Intelligence agents as sources to carry out leaks and/or cyber intrusions that wont lead back to the U.S.
Conspiracy or not, it is clear that 2017 will see more questionable accusations from the Democratic Party and Anti-Trumpians against President Trump. Conveniently blaming, you guessed it, Russia
As the activist and their judges in the 9th Circuit Court wrestle with President Donald J. Trump over immigration and executive orders, one of the most dangerous mistakes consistently being repeated by politicians and academic policy makers is still being overlooked. That being subject Matter Experts (SMEs) with real, recent operational experience are not consulted and detailed solutions are rarely considered.
Perhaps this is best exposed when considering the immigration screening issue. Call them immigrants, refugees, asylum seekers etc., it really doesn’t matter because there is a breakdown of epic proportions happening when it comes to fingerprinting immigration applicants and collecting their data while they are in their country of origin. The break down occurs in that if fingerprints are taken and information is collected, it is not being ran through the Department of Defense (DOD) secured databases before the applicants come to the United States. This is important because the DOD databases contain information on an unknown number of dangerous people who have been caught and released in war zones, or people who may be associated with them.
Currently in the United States there are hundreds of ongoing investigations of individuals that have come to the US (some as long as 10 years ago) that were originally caught by the DOD in the Middle East making bombs, planting IED’s etc. The DOD fingerprinted these individuals but that information was never put in databases that were shared with State Department or Border patrol. Because remote locations where immigrants are submitting their applications for admission into the US often do not offer the technology to scan fingerprints or upload data, individuals are not even fingerprinted in places like Djibouti where immigrants from Somalia get “screened” when they seek to immigrate to the US.
Even in the places where immigrants are fingerprinted, those prints are still not uploaded to databases for a total and complete scan of their history. Phone numbers are not being run properly through DOD databases either during this process and they ultimately go unknown as well. Yet many immigrants are still put on a plane by our State Department and sent to the US.
When these immigrants arrive in the US it is ensured that they are fingerprinted, but in most cases those prints and other important data are still not ran through the classified DOD databases. Yet the process continues and they are processed and cleared to enter into the US from whatever holding facility in which they arrive.
Interestingly, the one time when the DOD systems can be accessed isn’t until years later when immigrants approach ICE to get benefits or citizenship. That is apparently when information is finally ran through the DOD system.
Now, hundreds of cases are being investigated domestically in the United States involving immigrants that have been residing inside the US for long periods of time (in some cases over 10 years) who are connected to bombings and other crimes from war zones in the Middle East, where their information had been collected by operators in the field, and uploaded to DOD databases with no plan to share with other agencies.
There are more details to this story but it is problematic in that no one really knows exactly what immigrant information is screened and when that screening occurred. Although Donald J. Trump has only been in office one month, this is an issue that has largely been overlooked by previous presidents, and could easily be missed by Trump’s team.
If President Trump’s administration concentrated on these types of details that subject matter experts working on the ground understand, many of the screening gaps could be closed and our immigration security could take a huge leap forward.
As a former FBI Special Agent, my investigative mind tells me these issues will continue to plague immigration screening because so much attention is being placed on executive orders and hiring more Customs Officers and not simple solutions.
The Devil is always in the details, that’s why simple issues always cause such massive problems. Don’t believe me? Just ask someone who is working at the ground level, like the policy makers should be doing!
