Amtrak’s Comeback, Flying Cars, Smarter Farming, and Silent Surveillance: Why Your Road Trip Might Raise a Red Flag

This episode of the TechMobility Show travels across three big conversations shaping America’s future: rail, air, and agriculture—then lands on a stark warning about digital surveillance at home.

Ken opens with a deep dive into Amtrak’s resurgence, highlighting the railroad’s record-setting ridership, rising revenues, and long-overdue investments in equipment and facilities. After decades of neglect, Amtrak is finally seeing renewed public demand—driven by high airfares, highway congestion, and the appeal of rail as a calmer, more convenient alternative. Clean trains, upgraded routes, and on-time targets are helping Amtrak inch toward operational profitability by 2028, a milestone never before achieved.

From rails to the sky, Ken explores the emerging world of electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft (eVTOLs)—and whether the long-imagined “flying car” is finally real. He breaks down the Pivotal BlackFly ultralight aircraft, its intuitive joystick controls, its safety-first automation, and why federal regulations—not technology—may be the biggest barrier to widespread adoption. With models like the new Pivotal Helix entering the market, Ken argues the conversation is no longer science fiction, but regulatory timing.

Back on the ground, the episode turns to the next evolution of precision agriculture: controlled drainage and subsurface irrigation. Using a high-value Indiana farm sale as a case study, Ken explains how farmers are using underground water-management systems to reduce runoff, preserve nutrients, recapture irrigation water, and boost crop yields by 10–20%. In a time of rising input costs and mounting water-quality concerns, the technology offers both environmental and financial benefits.

Finally, the tone sharpens with a critical look at a secretive U.S. Border Patrol surveillance program that tracks millions of American drivers far beyond traditional border zones. Ken unpacks how “suspicious” travel patterns—undefined and unregulated—are triggering detentions, “whisper stops,” and invasive questioning of law-abiding citizens. He raises urgent questions about civil liberties, Fourth Amendment protections, and the growing reach of domestic surveillance in everyday life.

Chapters

• 1:10 Amtrak’s Past And Present
• 14:35 Flying Cars Move From Fantasy To Field
• 22:25 Subsurface Irrigation On The Farm
• 33:24 Border Surveillance And “Suspicious” Travel

Transcript

SPEAKER_02: 0:07

Welcome to the Tech Mobility Podcast. Brought to you by Playbook Investors Network. Your strategic partner for unstoppable growth.

SPEAKER_03: 0:15

Visit pincommunity.org to get started. I'm Ken Chester. On the Docket. The age of flying cars have arrived, underground irrigation on the farm, and your suspicious travel patterns. To join the conversation, be it to ask a question, share an opinion, or even to suggest a topic for future discussion, call or text the Tech Mobility Hotline, FAT number 872-222-9793. Or you can email the show directly talk at techmobility dot show. For those of you who enjoy Substack, you can find me at Ken C Iowa. That's K-E-N, the letter C I O W A. From the Tech Mobility News Desk. It's time to talk about Amtrak for a minute. If you have never taken a ride on the rails, I suggest you add that to your bucket list of things to do. I have always been fascinated with railroads my whole life. And in fact, when I was a kid, a friend of mine, whose cousin's dad worked for the railroad where we grew up, she made a whole day of it. She took us, his mother took us to a restaurant that used to be an old railroad depot. And at the end of the day, they decided to break some federal laws. And a bunch of us met down in the railroad yard, got put on a railroad switcher in the yard, went for a little cruise around the railroad yard. I'll never forget it. And that was over 50 years ago. Most fun I had in my life. There's something different about seeing America by rail. And for me, I've got it on my bucket list. There's two routes I absolutely, positively want to travel, and that is the Empire Builder from Chicago to Seattle, and the city of New Orleans from Chicago to New Orleans. I was just talking to my wife about this, and something I'm hoping to do. And if I do it, I'm going to post stuff from the road and give you a taste what it's like to be on the rails. What I'm talking about today, I want to talk about Amtrak. For those of you who may not understand the whole thing about Amtrak, quick little history. Little over 50 years ago, prior to the existence of Amtrak, private railroads like the Burlington Northern and the United Pacific and what used to be the Chicago and Northwestern and the Boston and Maine and a whole slew of them operated passenger service privately around the country. Long story short, the rise of automobile ownership, the increase of the interstate highway system, and better roads in general pretty much killed that off. So by the late 1960s, you had what they call commuter rail into the big cities, but it was suffering because railroads weren't making any money. Congress stepped in and lifted that service from the railroads and created the National Rail Passenger Corporation, otherwise known as Amtrak. It's a quasi-governmental agency. It's not totally private and it's not totally government. They do get some monies from the government. The reason why I explained all this is I'm getting you to the headline from Progressive Railroading that says for this year, Amtrak reports record ridership and revenue for fiscal year 25. Amtrak logged record ridership and revenue during fiscal year 25, 2025, ending September 30th, the railroad announced in its year-end report. The railroad provided 34.5 million rider trips, a 5.1 increase over fiscal year 24, and an all-time record. Bear in mind what the pandemic did to transportation, and they made a record, all-time record now, four years after the pandemic, and collected adjusted ticket revenue of$2.7 billion, a first in Amtrak history and 10.4% higher year over year, Amtrak officials said in a press release. There's been some talk about the condition of passenger rail in the United States of America. Legislation passed a few years back gave Amtrak some room to do the next some of the necessary improvements that they needed to do. As a result, they're seeing ridership come back. When you look at the cost of plane travel and all the grief you've got to do there. And the fact that Amtrak is even looking at expanding routes and working with states to expand routes. And by the way, state of Iowa, I'm still waiting for the train to get to Des Moines so I can take it to Chicago. Just saying. Putting it out there. And that's been a study going on for years, but I digress. Amtrak invested$5.5 billion in their facilities, up over almost 25%, 24% year over year in major capital projects and state of good repair initiatives. The point I want to make, and the point Amtrak is making, is you may have heard something called operational profitability. What that means is Amtrak is on is on schedule to achieve that by fiscal year 28. And that means taking in enough money to cover operating expenses. No. It doesn't cover their uh need to fund their liabilities for their pensions. No, it doesn't cover capital expenditure needs. But for the first time, they're on track to cover variable operating costs for the first time ever. Here's an aside you may not realize. Amtrak runs all kinds of trains during holidays, is people going home? From now through the end of the year, all those trains, all those tickets are sold. They are sold out. If you want to catch an Amtrak train home, if you haven't bought your ticket by now, you won't be able to. They are sold out. Think about that for a minute. In a world of increasing inflation, in a world where the average automobile new vehicle price for a new vehicle is$50,000 for an atmosphere where airfare is back on the upswing, and by the time you add for luggage and fool with kids and get to the airport, park your car, it gets to be a lot of money. But here's Amtrak. Better than the bus, obviously nowhere near as fast as the airlines, but more convenient. People are turning back to the railroads. What that means long term, if Amtrak is able to keep the good times flowing, it's a possibility they could look to expand the network. No, we're never gonna get high-speed rail all over the country. The numbers are astronomical, even if the federal government wanted to fund it, you're looking at billions, if not trillions, of dollars. But to get a good, reliable, working, dependable schedule of intercity, interstate trains as another choice that's not clogging the roads or clogging the air, Amtrak's your choice. Let me give you another example. Amtrak is concentrated on improving the customer experience. That's where they're at right now. One of the little things that you might not think about is clean trains. I mean clean on the outside, getting rid of the dirt, the grime, and things. Amtrak just they're spending millions of dollars now to upgrade or replace train washing structures in multiple locations across the country. Some I would have never thought about. Who wants to ride something greamy, gricey, dirty, filthy, no? But because of years of neglect, they didn't have the funding to do it. It takes money to make money, folks. Now that they've got the money to do it, they've been upgrading these facilities all over the country. Things have gotten so bad by 2020, they only had one operating train washing facility in the entire United States. So you could only imagine how dirty and gritty the trains had become. They laid plans then. And they've been building some cases upgrading structures, other cases completely replacing them. They have built new structures in four cities, Chicago being one of them. Because you have a lot of trains that come and leave Chicago. They've also done full replacements in New Orleans and Seattle and an upgrade in Boston. Amtrak is serious about getting people back to the rails. And it's very, very efficient. Not to mention, gives you a chance to kick back, take a breath, relax a little bit. We hurry too much and it adds to stress. The song used to say, see the country. Take the train and just lean back, signseless. Easy come and easy go is how you get there. When you go, Amtrak. It's named Pivotal, a privately owned solo piloted aircraft and promises to change personal transportation. You are listening to the Tech Mobility Show.

SPEAKER_00: 10:21

In business, opportunity doesn't wait, and neither should you. At Playbook Investors Network, we connect visionary entrepreneurs with the strategies, resources, and capital they need to win. Whether you're launching, scaling, or reimagining your business, our network turns ambition into measurable success. Your vision deserves more than a plan, it deserves a playbook that works. Playbook Investors Network, where bold ideas meet bold results. Visit pincommunity.org today.

SPEAKER_02: 10:53

Are you tired of jumping up for apps and platforms for meetings, webinars, and staying connected? Look no further than AONmeetings.com. The all in one process based platform that does it all. With AON meetings, you can effortlessly communicate with clients, post virtual meetings and webinars, and stay in touch with family and friends. All in one place and for one place. This is the best part. You can enjoy a three-day free trial. It's time to simplify your life and boost your productivity. AON Meetings.com, where innovation meets connection. Get started today and revolutionize the way you communicate.

SPEAKER_03: 11:25

To learn more about the Tech Mobility Show, start by visiting our website. I'm Ken Chester, host of the Tech Mobility Show. The website is a treasure trove of information about me and the show, as well as where to find it on the radio across the country. Keep up with the happenings at the Tech Mobility Show by visiting Techmobility.show. You can also drop us a line at talk at Techmobility.show.

SPEAKER_00: 11:51

Every great business starts with a spark, but taking it to the next level takes strategy, connections, and capital. That's where Playbook Investors Network comes in. We're your strategic partner for accelerating growth, navigating challenges, and capturing market opportunities before your competition does. Your business is more than an idea. Let's make it an impact. Playbook Investors Network. Your future starts here. Learn more at pincommunity.org.

SPEAKER_01: 12:25

The 1975 Mercury Grand Marquee. Last August, the 74 Marquee was compared to models of its three leading competitors in 29 areas, 87 specific tests, and 150 components. They rated the Mercury superior in almost every single test. They compared rating company. They rated the marquee superior. They tested happy ability. Virtually noble in the Mercury. In every measure of quality testing, they rated the marquee superior. And 122 out of 150 rated the marquee superior overall. Now you do the testing. See your mercury dealer for complete details. He'll give you all the help you need. Test any car against our 75 Mercury Marquee. At the sign of the cap.

SPEAKER_03: 13:21

The Mercury Marquee. Today you could make two cars out of how big that one was. And notice they didn't tell you anything about performance. They talked about testing. For all we know, those 150 folks might have been current Lincoln, I mean current Mercury owners. He didn't say. He didn't say they're from competing makes, which would have been more impressive. But they said 150 folks, and they judged it all. But we don't know if those folks were Ford Motor Company owners. Heck, they could have been Ford Motor Company employees, for all we know. But 150 people, though. Yeah, that was a big car. And the big deal that he had was on this body on frame car. Watch me slam the door, and there's hardly any wiggle. As much as that thing weighs, oh my goodness. It says a lot about the lack of body integrity and what the way they were building cars in the 1970s. This car was massive. In fact, that car would have had a V8 engine and a three-speed automatic guaranteed. Guaranteed. Would have taken that much to move it. But I digress. Mercury Marquee, a different car for a different time. For over 60 years, and probably longer, Americans have been dreaming about flying cars. The Jetsons, a primetime cartoon that was produced in the early to mid-1960s, followed the day-to-day comedic antics of a modern-day space age family, which included George Jetson's flying car that folded neatly into his briefcase once he arrived at work. Could we finally be seeing a practical rendition of Mr. Jetson's Daily Commuter? Hmm. This is topic A. In doing my research, I found vehicles going all the way back to 1937. And what we're talking about, may have taken a little liberty with the word car. What we're really talking about is an electric virtual takeoff and landing vehicle. A vehicle that can fly, land anywhere, take off from anywhere, standing still, you don't need a runway. And because they fly at low altitudes, get around most of the FAA's requirements at this time. Today's electric virtual takeoff and landing craft are considered to be ultralights. And the one I'm talking about right now, and you can't buy it because it's already out of production, is called the Pivotal Black Fly. And according to the company, it's the first series-produced ultralight electric virtual takeoff and landing vehicle to reach the consumer market. Doesn't even have wheels. The Black Fly takes off and lands on its curved keel. Doesn't have wheels, and it's surprisingly easy to operate. And it hit the market two years ago. And because it qualifies as an ultralight aircraft, and the definition of that, by the way, is 254 pounds or less, the FAA does not require pilots to pass any kind of medical test. Fun fact the oldest person that has flown this with no problems was 88 years old. 88. And although the Black Fly production ended last year, Pivotal is now taking orders for an upgraded version it calls the Helix. It has a sticker price of$190,000. As far as flying craft that's dirt cheap, think of it as a low to mid-range RV in cost or an extremely high-end automotive EV. At that price, you can also buy a Cadillac Escalade IQ, right around$180,000. Case you were wondering. Despite how easy the company alleges to operate a black fly, they're unlikely to become popular for urban commuting anytime soon. And I'm sure you can guess why. Two words federal regulations. They forbid ultralights and experimental aircraft from flying over populated areas at night or in bad weather. Let's think about this for a minute. Right now, today, cities and towns are hard pressed to spend any more to broaden roads. There's a lot of pushback on public transportation, whether it's rail or bus or whatever. And people don't want to give up their cars. Yet, if you live anywhere near Boston, it went from bad when I lived there to much worse now last time I went. And Boston is just one of many cities where transportation is only getting progressively worse. There's only so many lanes you can add. What are we gonna do? I don't think that these craft the VTOL craft are going to stay unregulated and experimental for long. Particularly if they're like the black fly. I want to explain a little bit more about it. To operate this thing, you've got two joysticks, but you only use they've got two joysticks for righties or lefties, but you only use one to fly. The rocker switch on the top pushes or pulls for climb or descend. The joystick controls speed and turn and bank angle. The trigger switches between flight modes, hover and cruise. In hover mode, the joystick provides fine-grained yaw control, allowing the black fly to execute its surreal pilouette. The takeoff, simply hold the toggle switch forward. The props turn slowly in unison. Calibrating, calibrating, this pull furiously, a squadron of lawnmowers on deck. The machine vaults into the air, nose first, throwing you on your back, looking at the sky. It will just hang like that until you push the joystick forward. About a hundred feet, pilots transition to cruise mode. Click the trigger, and the black fly noses down, bringing the pilot to a position more like a gaming chair than an ejection seat. As the wings begin to generate lift, the rotor's pace slackens. The droning drops an octave. You can let go of the joystick if you like. The black fly goes where it's pointed. In other words, it's easy. What makes the black fly disruptively like an automobile isn't the range, you got about 20 minutes worth of range. A top speed, 55 knots per FAA rules, it's the accessibility. By virtue of its human factors, engineering, and flight control automation. May I add this again, flight control automation. That automation is controlled through the guidance, navigation and control software, which maintains stability and altitude by manipulating differences in thrust amongst the eight motors. In other words, it does the thinking for you and keeps you safe. You can't crash this thing unless you super try. And even then, they've got a way out for you that makes the thing inherently safe. And that's the most important thing. And it still requires somebody to fly it because folks don't like no pilot automation. When confronted with the twin challenges of drought and sustainability, farmers get creative. Welcome to the world of subsurface irrigation. This is the Tech Mobility Show.

SPEAKER_00: 21:24

Now you need the right partner to make it happen. At Playbook Investors Network, we power ambitious leaders with the tools, insight, and investment connections to move faster, grow stronger, and lead markets. We're more than advisors, we're your co-pilots in success. Because in business, standing still is not an option. Playbook Investors Network, fueling ambition, delivering results. Visit pincommunity.org.

SPEAKER_03: 21:54

Did you know that Tech Mobility has a YouTube channel? Hi, I'm Ken Chester, host of the Tech Mobility Show. Each week, I upload a few short videos of some of the hot topics that I cover during my weekly radio program. I've designed these videos to be informative and entertaining. It's another way to keep up on current mobility and technology news and information. Be sure to watch, like, and subscribe to my channel. That's the Tech Mobility Show on YouTube. Check it out. When a 150-year-old farm in West Central Indiana went up for auction earlier this year, bidders found out quick that it was no ordinary farm. The family that owned the farm had adopted a technology called controlled drainage, otherwise known as subsurface irrigation. For those of you who know, it's a game changer when it comes to planting row crops. The final price of the farm went for much higher than average, and it reflected that reality. Could this be something other people can adopt? This is topic B. Right now in Iowa, there's a conversation raging about the degradation of water quality, surface water quality. Part of that problem has been the runoff from fields of insecticides and herbicides and fertilizer into our waterways and phosphorus that have fouled our waterways, made them undrinkable or unusable for anything else. The other challenge in that is with the ever-increasing cost of inputs for farmers, the last thing they really want, be honest with you, is to watch the application of whether it is fertilizer, herbicide, insecticide, or whatever chemical application they are applying to the field for the field to yield. The last thing they want it is in the surface water because it means it ain't in the ground. And that's a problem. Precision farming helps with some of that. We talked about precision farming last week. But what also helps is something called control drainage. Many farmers across the Midwest have tiled drainage to control water flow. This takes it to the next level. It's not enough to control water flow from the acreage. But what this subground irrigation system does is it saves and collects that water to be redeployed in situations of drought or of low water so that one, they don't have to irrigate with additional water, which is additional cost. Two, it controls runoff because now they're taking water that they've already collected to reapply into the field when it's needed, reducing the cost of input, reducing the amount of runoff, generally making everything more sustainable. Let me give you the definition of the controlled drainage, drainage water management system as defined by the Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Service Sciences. I'm sorry. Control drainage is the process of adjusting the elevation of a drainage system outlet. This is done to control the volume of water, leaving the field and reduce nutrient losses. Control drainage is considered an in-field practice. Here's where it's used. Controlled drainage structures are best suited to fields with very flat topography, less than 1% slope. Central Illinois, Central Iowa, West Central Indiana, I guess. They are placed on the edge of fields that have systematic drainage, consisting of a main drain and laterals that empty into the main. These structures can be implemented on fields with greater slope, but more control structures or alternative inline structure and management time are required. So why do it? Control drainage is installed to reduce nutrient export through the drains. Let me put that in English for you. It keeps the inputs that they meant for the ground from going into drains and ending up in the water system. That's wasted money. That's dead money right there. If nutrients are being leached out of the system, getting into the water and being drained into the local creek, into the local river, it causes a lot of problems downstream and costs the farmer, in the end, more money. Because, like I said, if the nutrients ain't in the ground doing their job and leached out, he's got to apply more. And that's more cost because then he's not getting the value out of the applications that he made or she made, if you will, to that field. Control drainage allows adjustment of field of the field water table to allow free-flowing drainage to accommodate field trafficking with equipment or water storage for crop use. Meaning that if I have it, number one, being underground makes it less likely to evaporate. So I've collected it and I can redeploy it in the same field or fields that I collected it from at the time it needs it. Kind of common sense. If I can reduce runoff from my field, if I can control nutrient loss from my field, my cost of inputs are going to be less. My success in crops are going to be more. They estimate using a system like this will increase yield by 10 to 20 percent per field. 10 to 20 percent. It's not pennies. It's taking tile drainage to the next level. And a lot of farms here in the central Midwest already have tile controlled drainage systems. Been putting them in for years. This takes that and elevates it now to also collect water. Not just to drain water, but to collect it and redeploy it as needed in the field. The effectiveness. Nutrient load reductions vary based on soil properties, topography, and management practices. They quote some of the studies in Ohio. Elevating the outlet during the non-growing season reduced, quote, the annual discharge by 20 to 40 percent, annual nitrogen loads by as much as 22 pounds an acre. Think about that. They're putting nitrogen into the ground as fertilizer. If I can save 22 pounds an acre, 220 pounds for every 100 acres, that adds up fast. Dissolve phosphorus loads by four-tenths of a pound per acre. You're putting in nitrogen, ammonia, phosphorus, condition the soil for growth. I want it working in the soil, I don't want it leaching out through the water. If I can control this and keep it, then I can redeploy it. And think about this. If it's already in the water I've collected, then the water I'm reapplying is even better than water falling from the sky because it already has the nutrients that I applied earlier. Because I've saved it, I've collected it, I've got it. It didn't go into the streams, it didn't go into the watershed, causing a whole bunch of problems there for me and other folk. Some considerations farmers should consider. When thinking about doing this, they need a minimum of 20 feet of non-perforated tubing to adjust the drainage system outlet elevation, something called an anti-seep collar on the field side of the structure to avoid flow that bypasses the structure, and a number of structures of various design and materials that are commercially available. They have proven that this works. So what's it cost? Well, they're site-specific, but they generally range from$600 to$3,000, which is basically$30 to$100 per acre. Annualized cost versus installation cost should also be compared. By the way, that farm in Indiana, 1,420 acres, it went for$20.82 million. That is unheard of per acre. Total thing, over$20 million because of this system. Could your travel patterns be considered suspicious? If so, the U.S. Border Patrol would like a word. That's next. We are the Tech Mobility Show.

SPEAKER_02: 31:20

Are you tired of juggling multiple apps and platforms for meetings, webinars, and staying connected? Look no further than AON Meetings.com, the all-in-one browser-based platform that does it all. With AON Meetings, you can effortlessly communicate with clients, post virtual meetings and webinars, and stay in touch with family and friends, all in one place and for one price. Here's the best part. You can enjoy a 30-day free trial. It's time to simplify your life and boost your productivity. AON Meetings.com, where innovation meets connection. Get started today and revolutionize the way you communicate.

SPEAKER_03: 31:52

To learn more about the Tech Mobility Show, start by visiting our website. Hi, I'm Ken Chester, host of the Tech Mobility Show. The website is a treasure trove of information about me and the show, as well as where to find it on the radio across the country. Keep up with the happenings at the Tech Mobility Show by visiting Techmobility.show. That's Techmobility.show. You can also drop us a line at talk at Techmobility.show.

SPEAKER_00: 32:23

In business, opportunity doesn't wait, and neither should you. At Playbook Investors Network, we connect visionary entrepreneurs with the strategies, resources, and capital they need to win. Whether you're launching, scaling, or reimagining your business, our network turns ambition into measurable success. Your vision deserves more than a plan. It deserves a playbook that works. Playbook Investors Network, where bold ideas meet bold results. Visit pincommunity.org today.

SPEAKER_03: 32:54

Did you know that Tech Mobility has a YouTube channel? Hi, I'm Ken Chester, host of the Tech Mobility Show. Each week, I upload a few short videos of some of the hot topics that I cover during my weekly radio program. I've designed these videos to be informative and entertaining. It's another way to keep up on current mobility and technology news and information. Be sure to watch, like, and subscribe to my channel. That's the Tech Mobility Show on YouTube. Check it out. The Boston Globe reports that U.S. Border Patrol is monitoring millions of American drivers nationwide through a secretive program. The purpose of the program is to identify and detain people whose travel patterns it deems suspicious. My question: what could they possibly mean by that? This is topic C. I really don't care what side of the spectrum you're on right now. I just want to talk to you person to person, citizen to citizen, for a minute. We have a big, beautiful, large country. And it used to be that we could travel where we wanted to go when we wanted to go at will. And really, as long as we were law-abiding, it was nobody's business where we were going, where we had been, and where we're planning to go. But the Boston Globe reported a big project that the Associated Press did. And the headline this is recent. This is real recent, like this month. Border Patrol is monitoring U.S. drivers and detaining those with suspicious travel patterns. They're not just looking at the bad guys. They are looking at the driving habits of every single American citizen. Now, to be clear, the original portfolio for the U.S. Border Patrol is U.S. lands within 100 miles of a border, whether it's the border with Mexico or the border with Canada. The Associated Press has found the Border Patrol being a lot further away, 160, 200 miles. Basically, the Border Patrol said they can go wherever they want to go. What makes this very uh uncomfortable for me is in reading and doing the research for this piece, they talked about how the Border Patrols petitioned states to put license monitoring equipment, plate monitoring equipment, and other surveillance equipment, and hide it in plain sight, in construction equipment, in uh various innocent-looking things that they are hiding, monitoring things. They're monitoring you in secret. And in some cases, they are paying local law enforcement to do the spying for them. They're covering overtime. They're providing money for additional equipment. I'm real uncomfortable with all of that. Here's a thing. They got something that they call patterns of life. What they mean by that is apparently they have figured out, in the scheme of things over a wide variety of time, that people make typical movements. I guess typical to them. And that if you're making movements that aren't typical, you could be suspect. And they got this other thing called whisper stops. In other words, this is how this works Border Patrol in their uh surveillance figures your car is suspicious for some reason. Not you're you're not necessarily speeding or doing anything illegal, just driving along. But they've pinged you for some reason. They will use local law enforcement to pull you over on a false premise. Maybe you were going five miles an hour at the speed limit. Maybe you had, I don't know, a burnt-out light or something. They pull you over that pretense and then start asking you lots of specific questions. This particular piece even talked about they asked a motorist, an American citizen, that it turned out wasn't doing anything wrong, by the way. How they met the people in the car. Even got personal with one of the people's, you know, sexual partners, and asked questions like that. No warrant, no permission, and the driver had no idea that what they were really being stopped for because they were flagged, had nothing to do with a traffic stop. They used that as a premise, they call that a whisper stop. Whisper because there was no warrant, there was no probable cause. Our courts have held up the right of law enforcement to utilize license place readers. What's starting to happen now is the courts are beginning to see that because of falling rates of issues along the borders, Border Patrol is being redeployed into the middle of the country. And they're not just looking for just anybody, they're looking at everybody. So, God forbid that you needed to make a quick trip someplace, and for whatever reason, you needed to carry cash. Because maybe they didn't take a credit card, maybe they didn't take checks, and you had to solve a problem. So maybe you got three or four thousand dollars on you because you're going to solve a problem and you're gonna go up there, handle your business, come back. But because the Border Patrol and their surveillance that you had no idea deemed that your travel was suspicious to them. County sheriff, a local law enforcement officer pulls you over on a premise, starts asking a lot of detailed questions that had nothing to do with the stop. My question to you, are you okay with this? I'm not talking about criminals. I'm not talking about people looking to deceive or otherwise outrun law enforcement. I'm talking about regular, everyday American citizens, regardless of color, regardless of stripe, going about their business, minding their business, loving their families, and trying to go to work and do like we all do, because your travel was deemed outside of what they call quote unquote pattern of life. I don't even know what that means. And the problem is a lot of this is not being monitored. They say that, oh yeah, we we monitor this, but the AP found that what they said wasn't true. And I'm sorry, I have been on my soapbox for the longest when it comes to data and surveillance and things of that nature. It's not okay. What rights? Who's protecting my rights as an American citizen? That's my question. I'm not okay when I read stuff like this. I'm not looking to do anything dishonest, crooked, or illegal. I just mind my business and do like everybody else does. I go to work, I go home. Why isn't that enough? Why do I have to be looking now over my shoulder, worried about being pulled over for something that has nothing to do with anything in my life? Because they think that my travel is suspicious. It could happen to anybody, that's the problem. Who's sticking up for your rights? Who's making sure your American rights are protected under the Constitution? To make sure that you are not subject to unlawful search and seizure. That's the Fourth Amendment, by the way. In case you were wondering. And I read it. I read it for this article. I read it. We need to be careful because more than now than ever before, we have become a society being surveilled all over the place.

SPEAKER_02: 41:45

This is the Tech Mobility Podcast.

SPEAKER_00: 41:50

Every great business starts with a spark, but taking it to the next level takes strategy, connections, and capital. That's where Playbook Investors Network comes in. We're your strategic partner for accelerating growth, navigating challenges, and capturing market opportunities before your competition does. Your business is more than an idea. Let's make it an impact. Playbook Investors Network. Your future starts here. Learn more at pincommunity.org.

SPEAKER_03: 42:22

To learn more about the Tech Mobility Show, start by visiting our website. I'm Ken Chester, host of the Tech Mobility Show. The website is a treasure trove of information about me and the show, as well as where to find it on the radio across the country. Keep up with the happenings at the Tech Mobility Show by visiting Techmobility.show. You can also drop us a line and talk at Techmobility.show.

SPEAKER_02: 42:47

Are you tired of juggling multiple apps and platforms for meetings, webinars, and staying connected? Look no further than AON Meetings.com, the all-in-one browser-based platform that does it all. With AON Meetings, you can effortlessly communicate with clients, post virtual meetings and webinars, and stay in touch with family and friends. All in one place and for one price. Here's the best part. You can enjoy a 30-day free trial. It's time to simplify your life and boost your productivity. AON Meetings.com, where innovation meets connection. Get started today and revolutionize the way you communicate.

SPEAKER_00: 43:21

You've got the drive. Now you need the right partner to make it happen. At Playbook Investors Network, we power ambitious leaders with the tools, insight, and investment connections to move faster, grow stronger, and lead markets. We're more than advisors, we're your co pilots in success. Because in business, standing still is not an option. Playbook Investors Network, fueling ambition and delivering results. Visit pincommunity.org.