
The FBI of the National Park Service - rmason
https://www.outsideonline.com/2353856/national-park-service-investigative-services-branch?src=longreads
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notJim
I had to get my car towed while out hiking a few months back. As I was chit-
chatting with the tow truck driver, we got on the subject of work. I thought
he was joking when he told me his time working as a park ranger was the most
stressful period of his life. This was after him telling me that being a tow
truck driver meant being woken up in the early morning hours to go on a multi-
hour driver multiple times per week, especially when the conditions were bad.

It turned out he'd been a park ranger at a state park in a rougher, rural part
of the state. He told me me that large groups of teenagers would hang out in
the park in the summer. They'd get drunk and start these massive brawls with
each other out in the woods, and my tow truck driver would be the only person
around to respond, often in the early hours of the morning. Budget cuts meant
he was the only one of course, and local police weren't going to bother
driving way out to the park. He seemed like a genuinely compassionate person,
but he said a lot of the time, he'd just have to let the fights happen because
he was so outnumbered he couldn't break them up. He told me he only lasted a
few months.

~~~
r00fus
A classic case of defunding the public good. Another related problem was the
change in policy to allow guns in public parks - a very perverse
interpretation of the 2nd amendment that just made park rangers' life more
dangerous without any real benefit to 99% of the population.

~~~
tonyztan
I think the right to self defense is especially important in places where law
enforcement cannot respond quickly and effectively. Whereas the police can
respond in minutes in a densely populated city, the same cannot be said in the
middle of a rural park. A person should be allowed to defend themself, with a
firearm if necessary, when faced with a deadly threat.

The policy you mentioned only allows people to carry a firearm if they are
otherwise allowed to carry a gun in public according to state law. This means
they cannot be a convicted felon or otherwise disqualified, and in most states
they are also required to have a concealed carry permit:
[https://www.nps.gov/articles/firearms-in-national-
parks.htm](https://www.nps.gov/articles/firearms-in-national-parks.htm)

~~~
r00fus
How did we ever exist prior to this policy change? Clearly people were dying
in droves to wolves/bears... or not?

Aside from natural events, humans are the biggest threat to other humans in
parks, and now they can pack guns legally.

~~~
tonyztan
Along the same lines, it is important to note that death (whether of park
rangers or the general public) did not notably increase after this policy
change, either, so it is not a particularly dangerous policy as you suggested.

Unless you set up security checkpoints around the parks, how would banning
guns in parks prevent people who intend to harm park rangers (which is a
serious crime) from bringing in guns? I don't believe that a person who
intends to commit murder will be deterred because committing murder requires
them to break an additional weapons possession law that cannot be well-
enforced given the nature of rural parks.

As sneak said in another comment, "People who would shoot at park rangers
would not be deterred by such a prohibition, so the change does not make them
any less safe. It does, however, make normal park-goers a lot safer."

~~~
r00fus
Normal park goers don't carry guns. Seriously. So it's a minority that's
making everyone else feel less safe. Show me stats otherwise.

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dangoor
Coincidentally, I just learned of the existence of this organization yesterday
via CGP Grey's new video about federal land:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LruaD7XhQ50](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LruaD7XhQ50)

~~~
jimmaswell
I was going to ask if that was the motivation for the post.

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runjake
In a similar vein, NASA has its own SWAT/special operations groups, such as:

[https://www.nasa.gov/returntoflight/main/swat_feature.html](https://www.nasa.gov/returntoflight/main/swat_feature.html)

[https://www.wearethemighty.com/news/nasa-has-a-swat-team-
and...](https://www.wearethemighty.com/news/nasa-has-a-swat-team-and-theyre-
good)

~~~
tomohawk
So many federal agencies have their own SWAT teams that they have a hard time
keeping the teams qualified due to limited access to suitable firing ranges
around DC. Agencies like EPA, USDA, and Dept of Education have SWAT.

Seems like only FBI should have SWAT.

~~~
jfoutz
Eh, domain specific knowledge can be a huge win. I’d guess space swat team
would be worried about rocket fuel, but usda might be worried about herbicide.
I would be on board with an fbi run certification system. Organizations send
agents for extra training.

I sorta like consistency though.

~~~
figgis
You don't call in SWAT for their domain specific knowledge though. You call
them in to clear/pacify/etc a location.

~~~
wongarsu
If there's an active shooter hiding behind a hydrazine tank I would prefer a
SWAT team trained in recognizing and handling different types of rocket fuel.

~~~
scarejunba
In the military system, this is handled differently, right? We don’t have
National Park Service Army who are uniquely prepared to handle the terrain of
National Parks. Or Treasury Air Force who protect the movement of large
amounts of money.

Why can’t it be federal SWAT w/ Space Proficiency instead of NASA SWAT? Having
a bunch of local agencies means they’ll have widely varying levels of
training, rules of engagement, and abilities. That’s how you get cops playing
dress-up flashbanging babies.

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tjr225
Once I get my student loans paid off I'd really like to fuck off and work for
the park service.

I wonder how difficult it is to get a job with the ISB...

~~~
ghaff
Given that there are 33 of them in the country, I would imagine quite
difficult. I also wouldn't assume that working for the park service generally
is an especially easy job. I've know people who were semi-retired who worked
in parks on a part-time basis but I assume you have a lot more flexibility
under those circumstances but don't get paid much, if anything.

I'm sure it's a job that many would prefer compared to sitting in an office
all day but that doesn't mean it's easy.

~~~
tjr225
Easiness isn't really why I am interested.

~~~
ghaff
You did write "I'd really like to fuck off" which usually means you'd like to
not work very hard. Of course, there are many jobs that get you involved in
outdoor recreational activities but don't pay very well or offer a lot of
financial security but do get you outside a lot.

~~~
matthewwiese
Even though the parent already replied to you, I'd like to clarify a mistake
in your reading for others to learn from: "to fuck off" _does not_ mean to
slack or goof off. It refers to leaving some place (generally with an attitude
of getting the hell out of Dodge).

You most likely have misconstrued "to fuck off" with "to fuck around."
Although the former may be used interchangeably with the latter, it was fairly
obvious from the original comment that that is not how it was being used.

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blattimwind
Is it just a criminal investigation branch or an actual secret police for
parks?

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coleca
Am I the only one thinking this would be the perfect job for Burt Macklin?

[http://parksandrecreation.wikia.com/wiki/Burt_Macklin](http://parksandrecreation.wikia.com/wiki/Burt_Macklin)

