> The Federal officials broke no law in asking for the data without a warrant. It was the hotels which broke the law.

I really don't understand this. How can it be legal for a government to ask its citizens to break the law?

It’s okay for Federal Officials to demand crap and expect a random citizen to know refusing what demands is a Felony and what isn’t?

I don’t even know how to differentiate between a real Federal Officer and a fake one.

What does a real court order look vs a fake one ?

If I cheat on my taxes, it’s my fault. If the federal officers do something knowingly they shouldn’t do. They should get sacked and fined.

The concept that all people should be aware of all laws from all levels of government, and that the government is not the responsible one is so pompous to me. To expect a low wage employee, who is probably not well educated to rebuff people with badges in the moment who have the power to threaten you and disrupt your whole life is rich.

That's why the company was fined, not the poor desk clerk.

Police try to get citizens to incriminate themselves all the time: “Do you know why I pulled you over?” Posing as a drug buyer. And so forth. At the end of the day, it falls upon citizens to know their rights and the law. Ignorance of the law is not a valid defense.

I’m not saying whether I agree or disagree, just stating my understanding of how it works.

And yes, the imbalance of power is ridiculous.

Aside, if the Motel 6 employees had asked the ICE agents: “is it legal for me to give this to you without a warrant?” and the ICE agents had answered in the affirmative, then Motel 6 may have had an entrapment defense[1], but I’m not certain and IANAL.

1. http://www.uscivilliberties.org/themes/3750-entrapment-by-es...

>And btw, since when has the law ever been enforced fairly, really?

We gotta keep trying our best, even though we're never gonna get it 100% right.