Posted on 08/19/2006 5:51:17 AM PDT by conservativecorner
The ACLU attorney was sputtering and raging right from the beginning. I was pretty familiar with the righteous indignation that seems to be a staple of an ACLU shill like Michael Gross. I’ve interviewed him as a guest host on Fox News Channel’s “Hannity and Colmes” and I’ve debated him a few times while we both appeared as guests.
But on this day, his anger came across as soon as the topic of racial profiling in America’s airports was introduced. “It’s obscene!” he said. “Vile!” “Discriminatory!” “Prejudicial!” There was simply no shortage of adjectives he could come up with to condemn the concept of TSA security personnel scrutinizing Middle Eastern men or women who might be potential terrorists.
So when I calmly suggested that there be a “Muslims Only” line at security checkpoints in our airports, Mr. Gross, predictably, almost became unhinged. However, he was probably restrained from losing his senses altogether because of the thunderous applause my suggestion received from the studio audience on Fox’s “Dayside.”
When they’re not suing to remove crosses from public view or fighting for the rights of child molesters, the ACLU loves to complain about “racial profiling.” They don’t like the fact that privately, police officers everywhere admit that profiling is a valuable and effective tool in law enforcement. For example, when I’ve participated in police “ride-alongs” in the past, I observed various stake-outs for drug crimes in predominantly black housing projects. If a young white guy came driving through the projects in a shiny new car, the police immediately knew he was trying to score some drugs. They would watch him closely and arrest him when the inevitable transaction took place. Guess what, ACLU? That’s profiling.
One of the world’s safest airlines does it, too. It’s no secret that El Al, the official state airline of Israel, routinely gives young Arabs a more extensive security screening than the average passenger. And despite the ongoing violence and terror in the Middle East, there hasn’t been a hijacking on an El Al plane in over 30 years.
We should learn a valuable lesson from El Al. Israel isn’t concerned about stepping on toes or ticking off ACLU types. Israel knows that to conquer terrorists, they have to be tough. Racial profiling is a tough tactic that can effectively keep another 9/11 from happening again.
I was furious while reading an editorial written in the Orlando Sentinel by an Operation Iraqi Freedom veteran. Steven Alvarez writes that it is a little known fact that the TSA aggressively and consistently gives American soldiers walking through America’s airports in full military uniform additional security screenings, forcing our brave fighting men and women to “assume the position” and be subjected to body scans, bag checks, and lengthy delays.
So while TSA screeners are profiling military-clad military personnel and forcing little old ladies to take off their orthopaedic shoes and put them through the x-ray machines (a process that Homeland Security confirmed does NOT detect plastic explosives), they are afraid to target young Arabs who are waiting to get onto a flight.
Something is very wrong with this picture.
We dodged a bullet last week when a major plot to blow up airliners over British and American skies was averted. This magnificent effort by terrorism-chasers should be a wake-up call to the United States. Let’s not wait for the next time when a young, hate-filled Muslim fanatic can succeed.
We have VIP lines at airport security checkpoints for first class passengers. We allow pilots and flight attendants to go to the head of the lines in order to make their flights on time. Let’s extend that same convenience to Muslim passengers. After all, percentage-wise, there are fewer Arabs flying than non-Arabs, right? So it stands to reason that a Muslim-only security line would go quickly, even with highly concentrated security efforts.
Let’s stop playing politically correct games and being worried about what the ACLU is going to do. This isn’t some charade, this war is real. The terrorists who want to kill us are looking for every opportunity to pounce. It’s time to formally and officially launch profiling in our nation’s airports.
As I often say, not all Muslims are terrorists. But all the terrorists are Muslims.
Yes, many pilots are now armed. Airport screening might catch a terrorists, although none have been caught by airport screeners yet.
A better way to protect air travelers is to profile. A better way yet is to keep Arabs off the airplane. An even better way is to keep Arabs out of the country.
How can you tell whether someone is Muslim just by looking at him? What are the salient characteristics?
Please list them.
Also, given that a number of Arabs are also Christians, how can you distinguish them? Or should all Arabs be given "the treatment"?
If this is your plan, can you please explain how it will be implimented?
I was using Sarcasm to make my point that we are doing stupid things in the name of political correctness.
All Arabs? Including the Christian ones?
Like, Danny Thomas, Tony Shaloub, Selma Hayek?
I have a better idea...
Grab all of the ACLU lawyers and beat them to death with steel tire bats and let the Islamics we have at Gitmo do it on television...
How droll. You must have them in stitches as you all whittle around the pot-bellied stove.
How can you tell Arabs are Christians by just looking at them if they are not TV personalities? I suggest they must be given "the treatment". If not now, then it will certainly be implemented after the next disaster.
How can you tell if someone is Muslim? Well, there are characteristics that define an overwhelmingly large part of the Muslim population. First, they have Arabic features (please do not pretend that Arabs features are indistinguishable form European features) or Asian (as the British say it) features. The women wear head scarves. I would say that that probably takes care of 90%+ of people who are Muslim.
Given that the rest of the passengers on the plane are probably going to be standing in long lines, would our Muslim brothers and sisters not appreciate being able to stand in a much shorter line?
I find your lame attempt at profiling offensive.
Not all Muslims are Arab- what about black Muslims, like the shoe bomber? Nigeria and Indonesia are full of Muslims that don't fit your profile of what an Arab looks like, nor do all Arab have typical Arab features.
(No more Olmert! No more Kadima! No more Oslo!)
If gray haired grandmotherly types were attempting to blow up planes, I would gladly stand in a line for those like me. I'd be assured of a quick clearance and a short wait to get on board.
Why would muslims scream profiling if they weren't afraid of something?
We must protect ALL passengers and that will require profiling.
As for profiling, why should airport security be so different. Just last week I heard a spokeswoman for NHTSA, the highway nannies, announce a new plan to crack down on drunk drivers. It seems the NHTSA types have their panties all in a bunch because, as she put it, the number of deaths from highway accidents where alchohol is involved is not going down fast enough. So, NHTSA is going to get tough. And how are they going to do this? They are going to target young males, because supposedly (and I wouldn't doubt this) they are disproportionately involved in alchohol-related highway accidents. That, my child, is profiling. It might be perfectly rational profiling, but it is profiling none the less.
Will NHTSA catch all young men who get behind the wheel after having too much to drink? Of course they won't. Will NHTSA and the cops pay no attention to a middle age woman whose car is weaving all over the highway? Of course they won't. Will NHTSA's crack down work? Who knows, but if the statistics really suggest a big problem, it doesn't sound to me like an irrational or offensive way to proceed.
The statistics in the airport security world, on the other hand, are unquestionable. One hundred percent of the American deaths in recent years from terrorist-related airline incidents were caused by young Muslim males. Let's not ignore the rest of the universe, and let's not be closed to new possibilities. But PLEASE let us come to our senses and start paying special attention to the demographic we all know is the main problem.
And, CB, if you and the ACLU types are so mightily offended by this, I have a "suggestion" (a favorite TSA euphanism) for you. "Sir, will you please step over to that area, with all the young Muslim men, take your shoes off, and assume the position."
Best regards.
If younger men are singled out, they'll use older men.
If men are singled out, they'll use women.
If Egyptians and Saudis are singled out, they'll use converted Brits and Americans with names like Johnny.
If America becomes a totalitarian state, then they'll have accomplished their goal.
I, for one, refuse to give in to them.
Profiling is going to happen, whether now or after the next attack, and many will find it extremely offensive.
Once the plane is in the air and the cockpit door impenetrable, I prefer the pilot to remain behind that door, thankyou.
Strange, besides the couple of white people (who still had beards and dressed like Muslims and their wives dressed like Muslims and they were in the company/cahoots with Muslim males), we haven't seen this tactic applied yet. Profiling - done properly - works.
El Al has been successful for lo these many years because they profile. Contrary to what Mike Gallagher says, they DO NOT racially profile - they BEHAVIOR profile. If you've ever been through the process, you would see that the same process is applied to everyone. They ask questions, they study your BEHAVIOR, they try to "trip you up" with repeated questions, they look to see if you are excessively nervous: all things that a terrorist Islamic Jihadist will exhibit. They don't just target "Middle Eastern-appearing young males", they check everyone.
I think you're wrong about the profiling.
This is one of the things that Americans seem to be split pretty close to 50-50 about.
The hatred exposed in the profiling debate is going to cause Christian Arabs, formerly stalwarts of the Republican party, to vote Democrat.
The hatred exposed in the immigration debate is going to change the minds of Latinos who bought the argument the Republican party is for everybody, not just whites.
And we'll likely see Democrat gains this fall, and 2008.
But if all you can see is what you want, and you can't see any other point of view, I am probably wasting my time trying to get you to see that.
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