TSA threatens airlines who tell people they’re on watchlists
Let’s see. You’re hassled mercilessly by airline employees, who won’t let you check luggage, won’t let you print a boarding pass, won’t let you check in, and bring cops and airport security people to confront you when you appear to resolve the situation. But under a new plan by TSA, the airline risks a $25,000 fine if they tell you WHY they are hassling you.
USA Today reports that TSA’s upset when airlines explain the hassle by telling people they’re on a TSA watch list. TSA will not tell people when they are on such a list. TSA won’t tell people when they ARE NOT on such a list. They want the airlines to do the same — keep mum, but keep harassing the public.
TSA and the DoJ counterterrorism center twice barred a Malaysian woman from flying, ordered her arrested, kept her in custody for hours, and eventually allowed her to fly out of the US only long enough for them to permanently cancel her US visa without notice, so she could not return to Stanford to finish her PhD. The victim, Rahinah Ibrahim, sued them. Even in court, TSA refuses to confirm or deny whether she was on the watch list. Idiots!
TSA’s lists are secret, just as in all good government institutions. TSA’s regulations are secret, just as in all good government institutions. Let’s hope TSA doesn’t propose new regulations next month with $25,000 fines against web sites or the press if they tell people that secret watch lists exist and that you’re being hassled at the airport because TSA suspects you of being a terrorist without a shred of evidence.
(Of course, airlines have been known to screw up, and they love to blame government regulations when it’s their own damn fault. But despite the airlines’ eagerness to check IDs so that their customers can’t resell unused tickets, it was the government that imposed the current system of harassment, and put 400,000 to 1,000,000 alleged communists — oops, wrong bogeyman, it’s not the 50’s any more — I meant “terrorists” — on these secret blacklists.)
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Welome to the USSA!
Airlines are in the people moving business. That is what they do. The more they hassle people while doing their business, the less business they are going to do. That should be simple enough for even TSA agents to understand. Well maybe not but the airlines should definitely try to make them understand. The TSA cannot be increasing the security of the U.S. if it has a watch list with this many names on it. That is not looking for the hardline terrorists that is just a make work project that can go on indefinitely with no viable results. Another word for it is stupidity.
My wife was placed on that watch list. She wore a button saying “Daddy’s little war criminal” with a picture of the Führer George W. Bush.
So we changed her business id so she uses her maiden name and they don’t hassle her any more.
Of course terrorist do not have access to such business ID making equipment because…?
These laws are to control Americans and have NOTHING to do with terrorists except that the REAL terrorists are the ones checking your ids.
Listen to yourselves… This is America. Land Of The Free. America is such an open country that anyone, including terrorists, can get into this country and do us harm. “They” come to our country, and they get an education or a job or what ever, and that is what they are supposed to do. Then, when the time is right, they strike? How long were the 9/11 terrorists here before they struck?
In America, we live in an open society where anyone can walk down the street and not even be noticed. We have to do this. Even if we don’t like it, we have to do it. I don’t like it either but I went and registered in the Trusted Traveler Program and now I am on the Fly List. No Problems.
You can do it as well: http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/trusted_traveler/
It’s not that bad if you just work the system to your advantage.