Daniel

Hi. College grad in New York, B.A. in Mid-East Studies and Poli Sci, 3.5 GPA. No criminal record. Looking for something entry level in law enforcement, to no avail. Aced the NYPD exam a year and a half ago, but still in line to even begin the hiring process. Took the city's "Special Officer" Exam (for security jobs not covered by the NYPD) when it was last offered in April. No local agencies seem to be hiring, and as much as I keep reading about how desperate the federal government is to fill law enforcement and security jobs, there never almost seem to be any entry level openings, not on USAjobs, nor on the sites of excepted service agencies.

Tried USAjobs, tried officer.com, tried The Blue Line, and all that. And still nothing. The news reports all say that these jobs are on the rise, but despite searching high and low, I can't see them. At least not in the Northeast. At the moment, the military is not a viable option.

Any advice or suggestions? Places I might have overlooked? Routes to law enforcement careers that don't involve sending my resume into some internet black hole?

Not interested in paying for "police training." An employer pays you, not the other way around.

It seems that the majority of federal jobs can now be found on the OPM website, but I know that ICE, for example, hires entry-level criminal investigators through its own recruiters, and uses USAjobs to fill other positions (as opposed to, say, the FBI, which seems to be moving towards integration with USAjobs). What other agencies, if any, do this? What about other law enforcement positions? And lastly, where are the best sites to find job vacancies in state, county, and/or municipal law enforcement? Thanks!

Is the job of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement IEA mainly that of a corrections officer for illegal aliens, or is there more to it? What does the job entail? Can anyone recommend any resources *other* than the ICE website, the OPM jobs website, and the IEA Forum on delphiforums.com?

Also, is it true that IEAs personally escort illegals back to their countries of origin? I imagine there's some good overtime in that, but exactly how does this take place? Are there agents flying with people from New York, for example, or does this just refer to IEAs in the southwest driving people across the border into Mexico?

And lastly, do a lot of ICE Criminal Investigators (1811s) start out as Immigration Enforcement Agents?

Answers from current and former DHS employees with some knowledge on this subject would be greatly appreciated. Random guesses from people who have no clue about this stuff NOT appreciated. Seriously, get your two points somewhere else. Thanks.

I have a question about reinstatement in the Federal service:

Say someone was a Federal employee only very briefly, and they found that the particular position to which they had been hired was simply not for them. Now, supposing that person was still interested in government service, perhaps they even have in mind a different job within the same department, more suited towards their abilities and interests. What is their eligibility vis-a-vis noncompetitive reinstatement? Does reinstatement refer specifically to the position from which they resigned, or Federal Service in general? How would such a person go about applying for noncompetitive appointment?

I'm going to be going to Artesia, New Mexico sometime soon for job training. The problem is that I'm an orthodox Jew, and Artesia is in the middle of nowhere (when the nearest "major city" is Roswell, you know you're talking about a remote location). The nearest religious communities I've been able to find (by which I mean, Chabad outposts) are in like, Albuquerque, and El Paso, Texas. Both of these are like, four-hour drives from Artesia.

Are there any orthodox shuls (or Jewish communities at all), that are less than four hours from Artesia? Shabbos is going to be pretty rough, not having any other Jews within a 250 mile radius.

Any helpful suggestions out there? ("Stop keeping Shabbos" does not qualify as a helpful suggestion.) Thanks.

(PS: I realize there are probably better categories in which to place this question - but the browser on this computer is all screwy and won't let me choose differently - I'll probably re-ask later in a Judaism-related section.)

So I was reading Wikipedia's piece on Ethiopian Jews, and after their discussion of the Ethiopian Jewish biblical canon, it says:

"The Beta Israel possess several other books, including the Arde'et, Acts of Moses, Apocalypse of Gorgorios, Meddrash Abba Elija, and biographies of the nation's forebears: Gadla Adam, Gadla Avraham, Gadla Ishak, Gadla Ya'kov, Gadla Moshe, Gadla Aaron, Nagara Musye, Mota Musye."

It goes on to list several other seforim that I'm not familiar with, such as:

"Te'ezaza Sanbat"

"Sefer Cahen"

"Sefer Sa'atat"

"Abu Shaker"

...and it talks about numerous religious observances unique to Ethiopian Jewry.

Does anyone know where I can find translations of these books in English? Or for that matter, any books that explore the observances of the Beta Israel, and how they relate to normative Jewish tradition?

Serious answers only, please.

Lots of questions:

What's a good way to get into a career in counterterrorism work? So the military is an obvious route, but is there a preferable way to go in the civilian world?

Where are the jobs? There are the JTTFs the FBI coordinates with local law enforcement agencies, then there are analytical positions in the intelligence community. What else is out there that I might not have heard of?

Lots of these jobs require specialized experience (for example, to get an 1811 position with the FBI you need like, a JD, CPA, or other critical skills or experience).

Is joining the Border Patrol a good move for a recent college grad who eventually wants to go into counter-terrorism - since they teach you basic law enforcement techniques along with immigration/nationality law)? Is a degree in Near Eastern Studies useful in CT, or did I just waste 4.5 years? What else is out there? FBI, CBP, ICE, DEA, NCIS - I feeling like I'm swimming in a giant bowl of alphabet soup!

Okay, so, I'm kind of a religious person (I prefer "observant," as I'm an orthodox Jew but lack the zeal that I think really makes a person "religious"), but I don't find the idea that complex species of plants and animals evolved from simpler ones to be mutually exclusive with the idea that the universe has a Creator.

But I have a question that I'm sure has been asked a million times before, but I can't recall any satisfactory answers to it. I realize that Yahoo Answers is the last place to go for an informed answer on anything, but I figured what the heck, I'm bored. So my question is about the concept of natural selection. I understand the idea that certain mutations will occur within a species at random, and those mutations that provide some sort of material benefit to the creature, those mutations are more likely to survive, and spread, and ultimately affect the entire species. But how does science explain the emergence of complex organic structures?

Okay, so this comes from a conversation I had with a good friend of mine, who happens to be a Reform rabbi and a scholar. We don't see eye to eye on a lot of things, but I respect him as a scholar, and like I said, as a friend.

Basically we were talking about modern Jewish observance, and he commented in passing something about how religious Jews preserving Ashkenazi pronunciation of their Hebrew was, to him, a conceit. I have my own thoughts on the subject, but I thought I would submit the issue to the broad range of Jewish minds here on YA. What do you guys think? Is it conceited of Ashkenazi Jews to keep reading Hebrew in their ancestors' "funny accent," when Modern Israeli Hebrew is becoming the standard? Should Ashkenazi Hebrew be phased out for the sake of unity? Or is it alright for Ashkenazim to use one dialect for liturgical purposes, and Israeli standard for secular purposes and social interaction? Nu? Would you reckon the disappearance of Ashkenazi Hebrew as a loss?

If you're not, please don't waste our time. Nothing personal - it's just a Jewish question is all. I can't help but notice that the missionaries on here address questions to Jews, and when they receive an overwhelming number of Jewish replies (most of them decent, some of them excellent - mine always are), they go and select one of the answers that bears no connection to Judaism, written by a fellow evangelist who's basically saying "amen, brother!"

Okay, so my question is, what do you think of this?: I'm Jewish, and visibly so. ...on account of my kipah. Yeah, so anyone who can identify a yarmulke will know I'm Jewish the first time they see me. Still, many will wish me a Merry X-Mas. I'm not bothered by it (clueless goodwill beats "educated" hatred), but sometimes I want to come back with "Io, Saturnalia!" as a joke. Should I be worried about avodah zara issues, even though no one today worships Saturn? I figure "Merry Christmas" is technically more problematic. No?

Has anyone else had their recent answers to questions deleted for no apparent reason? I just lost some really good ones. Is this part of the "upgrade" to Yahoo Answers? (When Yahoo mail "upgraded," I lost five years of saved e-mails, and all tech support could do was ask me if I deleted them myself - you know, because I might have spent an hour or two deleting e-mails that I had been saving intentionally, and forgotten all about it. Or maybe somebody hacked my password and deleted all my e-mails just to piss me off. But am I bitter about it? Of course not!)

Wait, what was my question? Oh yeah - have any of you guys had any of your answers deleted recently, or is it just me?

I need someone to help me settle a dispute, about those goofy TV court shows, the kind where people bring their civil disputes before a TV "judge" who usually mocks both litigants, gives a lecture, and then arbitrates their case.

I know that these TV courts are not technically courts -the person I'm arguing with does not dispute this - and in fact are nothing like real courts. Rather, what takes place on the show is a binding arbitration that both parties agree to beforehand. Here's the point of contention between us:

She maintains that the judge is bound to all applicable federal/state/local laws, which is why they cite legal precedent before arbitrating. I hold that, regardless of whatever precedents or principles they cite, the judge has the right under the arbitration agreement, to judge as they see fit, regardless of the laws. So if Mr. X rips off Mr. Y in an unethical but technically legal way, the judge could, if they wished, find for Mr. Y.

So, who's right?

I'll be interviewing very soon for a job as a Border Patrol Agent. Originally, I had intended to wear a suit and tie to my interview, as I do for any job interview. A friend of mine, however, says he interviewed recently, and recommends a dress shirt and slacks; no coat, no tie. He claims that a full suit is inappropriate, and that he was told as much by the chief agent of the Border Patrol's Puerto Rico Sector!

The letter giving me the when and where of my interview recommends business attire.

Yet another suggestion I received was that I wear a shirt and tie, but no jacket, since one isn't expected to wear one here in Arizona, where daytime temperatures are often in the 100's.

Any BPAs out there who can give me the facts?

Has anyone noticed how so many of the questions on Yahoo Answers, especially the ones on controversial issues, aren't really questions at all?

Do you answer those type of questions, even knowing it will probably hurt your "best answer" percentage?

Is there any value to asking rhetorical questions on Yahoo, or do these people just have too much free time on their hands? And no, that wasn't a rhetorical question.

Your thoughts on the subject? Ten points to the wittiest observation.

What is an average day like for a U.S. Border Patrol Agent? While in the Academy? Fresh out of the Academy? As a journeyman agent?

All the materials I've found about the USBP seem to claim that its primary mission is now preventing terrorists and their weapons from getting into the U.S., implying that their traditional mission of stopping the flow of illegal immigrants and drugs, while still important, is somehow secondary. Is there any truth to this, or is it just PR? What kind of duties does today's Border Patrol Agent perform, and how, if at all, is it different now from how it was before 9/11? What is CBP's role vis-a-vis the Global War on Terror?

Also, is there a place I can get more info on the various assignments open to journeyman agents (anti-smuggling operations, SRT, BORTAC, BORSTAR, etc.), beyond what's available in the recruitment fliers and CBP's website?

Hi. I just recently passed my pre-employment fitness test for CBP, but I had a question about the Physical Efficiency Battery one has to pass to graduate from the Border Patrol Academy.

I know that the PEB includes push-ups, sit-ups, the 1.5 mile run, and the confidence course, but does anyone know how these tests are scored? I've found score charts for all kinds of military and law enforcement fitness tests, but I can't find those for the Border Patrol PEB anywhere. I was wondering what the requirements are to pass, and what the standards are for the various available special assignments, like local SRTs, BORTAC, etc.

Anyone know where I can get this info?

I have a few 1976 two-dollar bills from San Francisco. They're star notes, and two of them have consecutive serial numbers. Assume they can be rated as "uncirculated" (not totally sure this is the case, but they're clean and crisp, with no visible tears or creases). I've called a few places, and the estimates range from worthless to upwards of $30. Can anyone out there give me an accurate estimate as to what I could get for them, and how much a dealer would sell them for?

What advice would you give someone preparing for a CLEP exam?