US teenagers have bagpipes seized at Canada border after competition

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Associated Press

US teenagers have bagpipes seized at Canada border after competition

New Hampshire teens, returning from competition, contact their congressional delegation after customs seize ivory pipes

Associated Press in Concord, New Hampshire
theguardian.com, Tuesday 5 August 2014 16.06 EDT

The skirl of their pipes had barely receded before two New Hampshire teenagers learned a hard lesson in cross-border musical diplomacy: if your bagpipes have ivory in them, leave them at home before traveling to Canada or risk having them seized at the border.

Campbell Webster, of Concord, and his friend Eryk Bean, of Londonderry, were returning from Canada on Sunday after a bagpipe competition that served as a tuneup for the world championships in Glasgow, Scotland. The 17-year-olds, fresh off winning several top prizes in Canada, got to a small border crossing in Vermont when they were told they’d have to relinquish their pipes because they contain ivory.

The US prohibits importing ivory taken after 1976. Even though the boys had certificates showing their ivory is older – Campbell’s pipes date to 1936 – US Customs and Border Protection seized the pipes in Highgate Springs, Vermont. Well, not all of them: the boys took every other part possibly and left the ivory with the Border Patrol so nobody else could make a full set out of the parts.

“This has been an awful headache,” said Lezlie Webster, Campbell’s mother. “At one point at the Canadian border, they said, ‘No way are we going to get our pipes back.’”




Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/aug/05/bagpipes-new-hampshire-canada-customs-seized-ivory

[cloudbase]

1. Any seizure of bagpipes might be considered a good thing.

Now for the banjos and accordions.

[Judi Lynn]

9. Absolutely! They could use the confiscated instruments to create a great, horrifying orchestra. n/t

[demwing]

15. pshaw

All three make beautiful music when played by professionals:

Banjo:

Bagpipe:

Accordion:

C'mon...you know you like it

[The Magistrate]

26. Thank You For That, Sir: Otherwise I Should Have Had To Post Up 'Scotland The Brave'....

Which I shall proceed to listen to now.

I like bag-pipes; they make the hair go up on the back of my neck and my forearms....

[awoke_in_2003]

53. so does finger nails on the blackboard

Just kidding, sir.

[tblue37]

59. I LOVE well-played bagpipes! nt

[theHandpuppet]

65. Count me in!

[ashling]

56. All Beautiful

thank you

[yuiyoshida]

57. The pipes remind me of the music from this fillm

[Lionel Mandrake]

88. That accordion tune is better known as "Dark Eyes".

It sounds okay on accordion, but better as Art Tatum played it on piano. Of course he took some liberties, like changing 3/4 into 4/4 time.

[iandhr]

28. As someone with Sottish heritage I find that statement ignorant and offensive.

Listen to these melodies

[NCarolinawoman]

49. Stirring.

I like it.

[mac56]

52. ^ THIS ^

Thank you. The ignorance on this thread is appalling.

[ThoughtCriminal]

58. More!

With Mike Oldfield

and then there's this guy

[mac56]

60. Bagrock!

[tabasco]

73. Get a grip!

People have different tastes and a right to dislike bagpipe music.

Your branding of someone else's tastes as "ignorant and offensive" is just plain stupid.

[iandhr]

75. Of course is.

So is taking it seriously.

[tabasco]

76. Suuuuuure.

You betcha!

[iandhr]

77. Thats the problem with the internet

You can't tell if someone is joking. Sometimes I pretend to be offended at something as a joke.

[GOLGO 13]

90. Sometimes. Other times it's just people that hate anything that frightens & confuses them.

Like in this case here.

[DocwillCuNow]

51. I absolutely love bagpipe music. Now if I had a splitting headache,

maybe not so much.

[sakabatou]

63. I dissagree as bagpipes can be made cool... and weird

[jberryhill]

2. We should ban the importation of bagpipes anyway

I'm surprised those sonic weapons are allowed on planes in the first place.

[christx30]

21. Why does a piper walk when he plays?

To get away from the sound. <rimshot>

Seriously, I love the sound of bagpipe. I look hispanic, but I tell people I am 3/4 Irish, and 1/4 Scottish. Pity about these kids and their stuff. But we have to take a hard line against ivory traders. Elephants are going extinct.

[JoeyT]

50. These predate the ban, and they had the paperwork to prove it.

I'd guess the BP guys either took an instant dislike to the kids and were going to hassle them however they could, or before the kids raised a stink they were planning on selling them themselves.

[TwilightGardener]

3. And the world sounds a little better today. Thanks, Canada.

[notadmblnd]

10. It was US customs that snagged it at the border, not the Canadians.

Just thought you should know.

[TwilightGardener]

14. Even better.

[TNNurse]

4. How dare you people

Badmouth bagpipes. They are a meaningful tradition in many organizations, schools and colleges in this country.

I am pissed at you people. I think Rap and Hip Hop are crap, but I do not publicly recommend their removal.

I attended a college that claims a Scottish heritage and bagpipes are part of many activities.

If you have not stood in a small church cemetery in East TN and heard Amazing Grace played on bagpipes with the Great Smoky Mountains in the background.... well, ii is hard to explain just how perfect it is.

If you have proof your ivory is old, there should not be a problem.

Shame on you, people, shame.

[AngryAmish]

7. One time a bagpiper decided to hit the pub for a pint after a performance.

He starts drinking his pint when he realizes he left his pipes in the backseat of his car with t h e doors open.

He runs out of the pub and to his car but as soon as he got there he realized he was too late.

Some criminal had put two more bagpipes into the backseat in the few minutes they were left unattended.

[Lochloosa]

8. You owe me a new keyboard

[Bryce Butler]

32. ..

[navarth]

62. ah, a variation on the old accordion joke.

What's the difference between a dead skunk in the road and a dead trombone player in the road?

Answer: the dead skunk was probably on the way to a gig. (badoom)

[smiley]

16. I agree

A beautiful instrument that I absolutely love. But I've known many who loathe it.

[Baltimore]

17. Bravo, TNNurse!

I've loved bagpipes ever since I heard them on a ham radio (from Scotland, I guess) at the age of 7. I was delighted to find out my father's family came from Scotland.

[ChazII]

18. Agree with you 100%.

I enjoy listening to their music. Just wanted to let you know there is at least one other DUer here who shares your opinion.

[postulater]

22. Or the sound of a lone bagpiper echoing for miles through Glencoe Valley as the sun rises over

the tops of the mountains.

That's where they belong.

And it is perfect.

[whathehell]

29. No bagpipe badmouthing here!..I LOVE bagpipes and have since I was a kid..

They're incredibly stirring..There's nothing like them.

[Rebl]

48. I must

agree with you!!!!!

[Javaman]

66. "you people"?

hmmmm.

[TNNurse]

68. yes,

The people who were making derogatory comments about bagpipes. Who did you think?

[Javaman]

71. just the phrase "you people" is very suspect.

that's all.

personally, I like the pipes.

[TNNurse]

87. I am sorry that you are bothered by the term "you people"

Perhaps I should have said "you jerks who badmouth bagpipes". In the future, I will be more precise. I thought I was being clear.

[Javaman]

89. The term "you people" has very negative connotations is all.

good day.

[eppur_se_muova]

67. If playing the bagpipes is a tradition, so is dumping on them.

"A Scottish gentleman is someone who can play the bagpipes, but doesn't."

Lovers of the pipes learn to accept it with wry, self-deprecating humor. See:
http://lowthian.tripod.com/jokes.html

On the subject of noisy neighbors, I heard a story about a student at an English university, called Donald MacDonald from the Isle of Skye (or perhaps it was Neill MacNeill from Barra, but anyway ...), who was living in the hall of residence in his first year there. After he'd been there a month, his mother came to visit, no doubt carrying reinforcements of whiskey and oatmeal.

"And how do you find the English students, Donald?" she asked.

"Mother," he replied. "They're such terrible, noisy people. The one on that side keeps banging his head against the wall, and won't stop. The one on the other side screams and screams and screams, away into the night."

"Oh Donald! How do you manage to put up with these awful noisy English neighbours?"

"Mother, I do nothing. I just ignore them. I just stay here quietly, playing my bagpipes."

[Gore1FL]

5. Sounds like the border agents broke the law...

...if the certificates were ignored.

[TeamPooka]

55. Your papers mean nothing to LEO.

[VA_Jill]

6. Sometimes I think

US border agents are hateful (and sometimes stupid) just because they CAN be! In my past experience, Canadian border agents were generally unfailingly polite, and US ones, no matter how polite WE were, were generally rude and ugly. I don't see any excuse for that behavior.

[notadmblnd]

13. I agree, give an American male a bit of authority

and they think they are Gods. I've never gotten a ration of shit from Canadians, it's always been the Americans causing trouble.

[demwing]

23. Wow, that wasn't broad-brush sexism, not at all

If I said "Give an American female a bit of authority and they think they are Goddesses" it would be demeaning and disrespectful, in addition to being disrespectful and demeaning.

Did I mention that it would be demeaning? What about disrespectful?

Not alert worthy, but pretty lame, especially on a progressive forum.

[whathehell]

30. Yep, broad-brush anti-Americanisn too. n/t

[notadmblnd]

31. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to strike to the deepest, innermost being of your core

I sincerely hope I haven't scarred you for life with my sexist, disrespectful, broad brushed remark in regards to the male gender.

[demwing]

45. Lol, sexism AND snark

with just a hint of mock sincerity.

I bet you're a blast at parties.

[jberryhill]

33. I've had more problems with the Canadians

...on several occasions.

The one time that bothered me the most was driving in on my way to a conference in Vancouver. The subject of the conference was relatively obscure and difficult to explain in a few words and he kept quizzing me about it.

"I thought you said it was a technical conference, but you said you're a lawyer?"

"It's a conference dealing with legal aspects of technical policies."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Does it matter? You can look up the conference. It's being held at the X hotel. Here's my registration for it. Am I allowed to go there?"

"Are you going to be working?"

"I'll be giving a talk. I mean, I'm not getting paid to do that, so I don't know if that's 'working'. I'm not seeking employment in Canada."

"What are you going to be talking about?"

"Trademark law."

"What's 'technical about that'?"

And just on and fucking on. Honestly, I got to the point where I was ready to tell him, "Forget it. It's not worth it. Clearly, you don't want me entering Canada, so I'll just go back to Seattle."

But I think I come up in some Canadian border crossing database from an incident years ago in which I picked up a bunch of furniture a friend of mine had bought on eBay and drove up in a rental truck to meet him at the border crossing in Watertown, NY and take the furniture to his place in Ontario. While he played "name your price" with the duty assessors, I was quizzed about the truck rental.

"Are you allowed to drive that truck into Canada?"

"You know, I didn't ask. Let's have a look at the rental agreement. ... Hmmm... it says I can drive it anywhere in the United States, and it specifically says not to drive it into Mexico, but it doesn't say I can't drive it into Canada."

"But Canada is not the United States."

"I know that, but since there are two countries you can drive to from the contiguous United States, and it says 'don't go to Mexico', then don't you think it would be easy for it to say 'or Canada', if they were going to list the places I can't go?"

"But it doesn't say you can drive it into Canada."

"What if I was driving to Alaska? Figure, I can drive it in the US, and Alaska is in the US, but to get there I'd have to drive across Canada, right? And it only says I can't drive it into Mexico."

"Are you going to Alaska?"

"No. But if I was, I think the rental company understands I'd have to drive across Canada to get there. Look at their brochure, it even has a picture of Alaska on it."

And, what I really couldn't figure out was why did this guy CARE if I was, or was not, violating my agreement with the rental truck company?

But what screwed me was the fact that I had known my friend for about 15 years via Usenet and email lists, and we'd never physically met. This led to a long puzzling discussion over, "So, you are saying you've known this guy for 15 years, but you just said you met him for the first time 15 minutes ago?"

The winner was being detained at immigration at the Vancouver airport. I had just gotten back from a trip abroad where I had lost my passport and had a temporary (1 year) passport issued to me at an embassy in Germany, and then I had a business trip to Vancouver.

The officer sent me to the detention room for problem children after a quick look at my passport. In the room, a couple of agents looked at my passport and said, "This passport is only valid for a year."

"Yes, that's correct. It is a temporary passport that was issued two weeks ago as a replacement for one I lost."

"Well, why didn't you get a regular passport?"

"Because I had to be at a meeting for three days in Vancouver after I got back from the trip to Europe. I promise, I'll go right back to the US and get a regular passport, but I couldn't have gotten one in time for my meeting here. It IS a passport, right?"

"Yes, but it's only valid for one year."

"I thought I could only stay in Canada for six months, right?"

"That's right."

"Then it would still be valid if I stayed the whole six months and left. It's a valid passport for as long as I'm allowed to be in Canada anyway."

"Well how long are you staying?"

"Four days."

"Why?"

"I'm a lawyer and one of my clients is a Canadian company. They are having a planning session and they wanted me here."

NEVER... NEVER... say "I'm going to a meeting in Vancouver". I swear to God there must be some kind of drug cartel that uses it as a passphrase. Instead just say "I'm going to smuggle a shitload of weed out of your country into the US, which probably means 'don't bother this guy'."

"So, you're going to be working?"

"Yes, but I'm not looking for a job in Canada. I have a job. I'm self employed."

"But you are working for a Canadian company?"

"No, I'm not working for a Canadian company as an employee. I do legal work for them in the US."

"But you're not working in the US, you're coming into Canada."

"Well, they like to see me once in a while. Look, are people in Canada allowed to hire lawyers to do things for them in the US?"

"Yes."

"And are those lawyers allowed to come visit them for a couple of days?"

"Yes. But what is it that you are meeting them about?"

"They are making business plans, and they want me to know their plans so I can do what they need done in the US."

"What kind of business plans?"

"Like, generally?"

"No, specifically. What do they want you to do?"

"I don't know if I can really tell you that."

"Why not?"

"I'm their lawyer. They're my client. You know... the whole lawyer/client thing?"

"Oh, okay."

And I thought I had finally made it out of the room to get the stamp to show the guy to go through the gate to get my luggage and be out of the airport, but, nooooooo..... that was just the warm-up. Then the supervisor comes in, looks at my passport and says, "This is only valid for one year..."

Eventually, I was warned not to pick up any new clients while I was in Canada, and I promised not to do so. Funny thing, though. While I was there, I got an email from a guy with a problem and it turned out he was in Vancouver, so I met him for coffee, because I felt like living dangerously.

I love Canada. I love Canadians. I see people going in and out of Canada all of the time and having a wonderful time doing it.

But, and this is God's honest truth, I have on my forehead, marked in some kind of ink only visible to Canadian border agents, the message "THIS ONE IS SUSPICIOUS!"

I have connected through Hong Kong, wasn't asked jack shit. I've been in and out of Beijing and I don't even remember anything other than a cursory look at the camera, scan of the passport, and on my way both in and out. You get fingerprint scanned on the way into Argentina. The customs guy in Morocco "corrected" my entry form by writing my passport number backwards, since they read the other way. I've wandered out of Tijuana drunk into the US.

But, I swear, of all the places I've been to, the idea of crossing into Canada gives me cold sweats, because I get the third degree every single time.

[Diclotican]

36. jberryhill

jberryhill

I have the same issue - coming back to my own country - for some reason I tend to be asked who I am - where I have been - and where I plan to travel... Even if it is back home to my bed After 15 year with it - I tend to be somewhat used to it - and take it with humor - it tend to melt some of the sting off the worst of it.. And the only thing they tend to discover is my dirty underwear - specially my socks who could be classified as dangerous weapons after a few days Some of them are rather polite about it - Others is rather rude - a woman I encountered was rather sure I was traveling with drugs on me - and if not her colleague - a male had not stooped her - I suspect I would have encountered a rather unpleasant part of the border control... He understood that I was not a bad person - just a tired one who had been traveling from my father for many hours - and was rather tired on a bus who was not to comfortable sitting on - next time I drove there - and had no custom bothering me...

But other vice - it have not been so difficult to cross the border - that be by air or by land...

Diclotican

[jberryhill]

40. Being tired is the thing

[Diclotican]

44. jberryhill

jberryhill

Indeed - and I tend to be somewhat cranky when I am tired - and then I tend to have a small fuse to please customs with when they try to probe me for contraband of sorts - that I do not have.... One of my worst experiences was when I was stuck at Copenhagen for 8 hours - because I lost the flight back home as planned - someone outside of my control had screwed up the time difference between UK and Denmark - and then I had to sit there for 8 hours in a really bad mood - I could have killed one if I had been more cranky than I was then... I stared the journey at 4 in the morning - and was back home 2 in the middle of the night, the next day - and was home with the last aircraft home to Norway (Then it was ENFB or Fornebu ) who is now closed and replaced by ENGM (Gardermoen) and then I had to drive for one hour back home - I was not in good mood when the dam customs wanted to check out my bad socks and underwear - and one bottle of red whine I had... He told me the red wine was an excellent choice to meat And it was later one - but at the moment I was not in mood to tell... But with the last rest of my "politeness" I was able to let him do his job - and get out of the customs area - and out to my car for the rest of the trip...

Diclotican

[jberryhill]

46. D'jever think about

...maybe just leaving the socks and underwear behind?

[jtuck004]

38. "Why not?" "I'm their lawyer. They're my client. You know... the whole lawyer/client thing?" <

I so wish I had waterproofed my keyboard when I had the chance.

[jberryhill]

43. I get asked that one all of the time

...coming back to the US. I've gotten so I just prepare something bland to say. I used to get a little freaked when I was coming back from visiting a client and the US border agent wanted to know details about that. I say I do patent and trademark work, but every now and then one will ask something along the lines of "like what?"

The one time I got secondaried in the US was was when I just sort of looked at the guy and said, "I'm a lawyer" with one of those raised eyebrow "you know" expressions on my face. He, like many law enforcement officers, was not fond of lawyers, and I'm sympathetic to that. Lawyers are the folks who they see as nuisances who get in the way of them doing what they think is their job [1]. But he marked me for secondary inspection. The absolutely lovely lady from APHIS went through my bag with me and finally said, "Do you know why they sent you over here? Do you have any food or plants?" And I said, "I have no idea why they sent me over here" and she muttered something about the folks at the entry point and let me go.

It's a really weird moment when you are standing there in front of a guy in uniform who wants to ask you who is your client, what do they do, why was I meeting with them, and so on. Part of you would just as soon go through it in boring detail, but the other part of you says, "Start down this road and you are going to break a rule."

[1] Although the really cringeworthy moment when I have to confess my occupation is when any medical professional on the verge of treating me asks. As soon as I say it, they stiffen up and give me a look like they are sizing up a boxing opponent. Although, once in a while, on the followup "Oh yeah, what sort of law?" I do say "medical malpractice" just for shits and giggles. But if I say "patents", the visit will be extended due to them having to tell me about this thing they invented...

[hedgehog]

74. For some reason, German security guards think I look suspicious -

I always get pulled aside for extra testing. It may be that as a older female with a motherly look, I either look too innocent or else I look too gullible ( as in I might be doing a favor for someone and carrying their package).

For everyone who thinks our security has holes, try this one on for size:

So, the guard takes me out of the secure area, back through the airport to a room where my computer is wiped down and tested for explosives. Then, I put the computer back in the backpack, put the backpack on, and follow the guard back through the crowd and around the security gate to the boarding area. Anyone who has ever watched a spy movie knows that it's during the walk back though the crowd that someone slipped me the secret microdot.......

[CreekDog]

34. the ones in Blaine have almost all been jerks

i hate to say it.

that said, the agents in Sumac, and in Haines, AK were fine.

i know Blaine is busy and i know they caught the terrorist headed for LAX before the 2000 celebrations.

but that checkpoint is by far the most obnoxious one i've ever been through and i've crossed more than a dozen times.

[TygrBright]

11. GOOD WORK, US Customs!! n/t (& thanks for the chuckle...)

[PoliticAverse]

12. Can you really bring weapons of mass repulsion into the US? n/t

[ChazII]

19. You might have found a way to solve

our border problems. Don't send the National Guard or troops just send those who play bag pipes.

[ManiacJoe]

20. Sometimes I am very thankful that I don't meet with

authority figures who are that stupid. I know it would not end well for me.

[postulater]

25. You too?

I'm not a violent person, it's just my mouth that makes my family shut me up. And I don't even swear.

[Garthem]

24. Weapons of Mass Annoyance

[Igel]

27. Guitarists have some of the same problems with some hardwoods.

It's a bit worse in some ways. Not only is crossing an international border a problem, but some US cities have banned the woods.

I'd hate to think what the back of my mandolin's made out of. Looks like Brazilian rosewood to me, but there's no chain of custody or real way of proving that the wood was imported before the cut-off date.

[IcyPeas]

35. Scottish tribal pipes and drums - Clanadonia

A-W-E-S-O-M-E

Clanadonia

?list=UUVzEqGEvo24uCdJs-7SqScg

[DFW]

37. ALWAYS register musical instruments if you leave some country and plan to return

Just get customs to stamp a form showing a "temporary export" and you should be good when you return.

I say you SHOULD be, because ignorant assholes work for CBP as well as intelligent people who care about doing their job more than they care about making people's lives difficult because they feel like it.

I brought some of my guitars, mostly made of rosewood, to Europe in the 1980s. Most of them are still there. The year they were built is on the sticker inside, but no one can force a CBP agent to look. In Germany, a customs agent seized a Stradivari violin from a professional concert violinist from the Orient living in Belgium who was returning from a concert. The idiot stuck the confiscated instrument in a dry, non-temperature-controlled room. It took months to even get consideration for the instrument's return, so this is not limited to American officials.

My wife has a friend who lives in Vermont on the Canadian border. Sometimes, they go up to Canada for lunch. My wife invariably gets harassed when they return to Vermont because the CBP idiots at the border can never find her entry stamp from Boston or Dallas or Washington, or wherever it is she entered the country.

[elleng]

39. DAMN!

[IcyPeas]

47. double plus DAMN!

[IDemo]

64. Wonderful

Thanks for that!

[elleng]

70. You're welcome, IDemo.

I'm glad for any reminders of this one, which I love for itself AND for memories of visiting Scotland, a lovely place.

[Glorfindel]

78. Thank you! I remember the first time I ever heard Mull of Kintyre.

I was driving and had to pull off the road to finish listening to it. A very, very powerful piece of music.

[elleng]

79. Yes it is, Glorfindel.

I've almost done the same thing, when hearing it on the car radio!

[derby378]

41. Yes, America, apparently we're too impotent to prosecute Bush and his cronies for torture...

...but we do have enough time on our hands to hassle a couple of teenage bagpipe players.

What's worse in the eyes of the law, a few ivory bagpipe rings or a prisoner struggling against his restraints while being waterboarded?

[Historic NY]

42. Even e-bay has some bizarre rules which they don't seem to follow...

relative the sale of ivory...There needs to be training for the zealots at the border.

[jwirr]

54. The history of the bagpipes in Scotland is so rich. And it is not the first time they were taken

away. I think the most famous date was in 1745. That these boys have learned to play and have old instruments is fantastic. And I am sure they know all of this since they took all the parts that they could to preserve their instruments. I hope when they get home they sue the border patrol.

I love the pipes and Scottish history as you can probably tell.

[oneshooter]

84. I believe that both Scot and Irish pipes were declared as"Weapons of War"

From the early 1700 till around 1900 pipers were considered the same as a rifleman.

[Joe Shlabotnik]

61. ...And thus ended DU's epic gender wars, and let loose the horrors of the DU Bagpipe war...

[Arugula Latte]

91. I'm trying to think of a way to escalate this so it rises to the level of The Great Olive Garden War

We thought that was the war to end all wars, but nooo, peace did not reign in DUland ...

[happyslug]

69. They have the bagpipes back.

http://abcnews.go.com/Weird/wireStory/teens-bagpipes-seized-us-border-ivory-24853793

After contacting New Hampshire's congressional delegation and gathering more than 3,000 signatures on an online petition, the boys are getting their pipes back and were set to fly from Boston to Scotland on Tuesday. But the hassle is lingering like a sour note: Lezlie Webster said the boys had to shell out $576 in extra fees because they took the pipes across the border at a "non-designated crossing."

http://boston.cbslocal.com/2014/08/05/nh-teens-recover-prized-bagpipes-seized-at-canadian-border/

http://www.unionleader.com/article/20140805/NEWHAMPSHIRE09/140809614&template=mobileart

The piper's Facebook Page:

https://www.facebook.com/CampbellWebsterMusician?sk=info

[KamaAina]

72. A "non-designated crossing"?

You're only allowed to bring bagpipes into the country at certain places? Too bad Aberdeen and Glen Burnie, Md. aren't on the border.

[happyslug]

85. I believe the reference are to crossing when the USDA and USFWS keep agents.,

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) only keep agents at certain border crossing. These agencies, NOT customs, issue the regulations as to what can and can NOT be imported. These agencies also maintain the exemptions to any bans, including ivory made before the ban. In simple terms, if you want to avoid a problem go to a crossing which have agents from USDA and USFWS. Such agents, NOT custom agents, can determined that the Ivory is legal and leave you through. Custom Agents are trained to see Ivory and confiscate such ivory and hold the Ivory TILL THE IVORY CAN BE CONFIRMED BY THE USDA AND THE USFWS THAT IT IS EXEMPT IVORY.

In simple terms, if you have Ivory, go to a border crossing with USDA and USFWS Agents, who can confirm that the Ivory is exempt. At other crossing, Customs still must take the Ivory, and hold it till you can show that it is exempt (and that is by getting the paperwork from the USDA and USFWS which also often needs someone to visualize the ivory. Ivory does age, and attempts have been made to make new ivory look like old ivory. Custom Agents do NOT have the training to see the age of the Ivory, the USDA and USFWS agents DO get that training. Thus it is NOT only a review of paperwork, but a visual check to make sure it is the same ivory.

For more on how Muscians handle this situation see:

http://internationalmusician.org/getting-musical-instruments-across-borders/

[Coventina]

80. True story:

I told my sister that I was going to buy her daughter a child-size set of bagpipes for Christmas.

My sister started crying and begged me not to do it.

It was hilarious and guilt-inducing at the same time.

[Crabby Appleton]

81. Guidance from American Federation of Musicians

on crossing borders with musical instruments:

http://internationalmusician.org/getting-musical-instruments-across-borders/

This year the US has gotten more strict about ivory in particular:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/new-rules-will-ban-import-and-export-of-ivory-and-make-it-harder-than-ever-to-sell/2014/02/11/de666c5a-934e-11e3-84e1-27626c5ef5fb_story.html

[yurbud]

82. But did the haggis arrive safely?

[yurbud]

83. I think that's also illegal. Our government is clearly anti-Scotitic.

Next they'll outlaw men wearing skirts with nay a stitch of cloth under to cover their banger n stones..

[Arkana]

86. They're playing "Amazing Grace"! SEIZE THEM!

[nolabels]

92. And some wonder why there is so little faith in government world wide

Heck, next thing you know they will be closing down the museums because they contain some form of contraband item