Sitting at the Border for No Good Reason

I curl. I curl in Canada during the winters. I will continue to curl there if for no other reason than to express one of my American freedoms to go where I want when I want so long as it violates no moral code. Yet I almost have the impression that our own government doesn't particularly want us visiting our northern neighbor and closest friend.

What brings this on is the number of times I have to sit at the border at 1 AM for sometimes 15 or 20 minutes of me trying, simply, to get back into my own country. I cannot imagine what kind of questions which need to be answered, and what kind of truly need to know information, any border guard really has to have about regular visitors to Canada.

I've been going there consistently for about 11 years now. They must know that. My record is virtually clean: not even a traffic ticket since the 1980's. I claim every drop of beer and spirits which I buy at duty free. I am meticulously honest with them, and it's all on record.

So why do I have to be asked, as I was last night for the umpteenth time, what's my occupation? How much Canadian and American currency do I have on me?

None of your damn business, quite frankly. I should be able to ask, 'Do you have anything on me? No? Then let me go home'. The rest is just presumption, and I thought we US nationals were innocent until proven guilty.

I guess not.

We have crossed the border with Canada for years without such unwarranted hassles. When we change how we live because of terrorism, the terrorists have won after all.