EDITORIAL - ICE or not ICE

News network CNN recently posted a video of U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents reportedly trying to grab a man off a street in Chicago.

The man resists and the agents gang up on him. They struggle for about four minutes before bystanders step in to interfere and the agents give up and go, leaving the intended target shaken and the bystanders confounded.

This may have been a legit ICE operation, or this may not have been.

We have already said that U.S. President Donald Trump has a point when it comes to unbridled immigration. We agree that there are now too many people in the U.S. who don’t really deserve to be there and that they have to be deported.

But the methods of ICE in grabbing alleged unwanted or illegal aliens border on what can be unlawful or even dangerous.

The fact that they’re allowed to wear masks during their operations and the fact that they don’t have a standard uniform and are allowed wear whatever tactical gear they want to, and bring whatever weapons they have, is concerning because it can be prone to abuse.

We don’t even have to mention that they can operate in unmarked cars.

Sure, ICE usually later confirms that they have conducted and operation and arrested someone. But what if those people weren’t ICE?

Can you see what we’re getting at? This means anyone, even outside of ICE, can put on a mask, grab a weapon, wear tactical gear, then snatch just about anyone from the street or his or her school, workplace, or even home, then shove them into a vehicle and drive away with them to who-knows-where.

Criminal gangs, kidnappers for ransom, or anyone with a grudge against someone can just easily pose as ICE agents to get to whomever they want and no one is supposed to question why.

Which was what could have been happening in Chicago had bystanders not stepped in to help.

Every nation has the right to deal with threats to its internal security however they see fit; we just didn’t see such dastardly moves happening in the U.S., the supposed bastion of freedom.