Posted on 08/21/2006 9:39:58 AM PDT by knighthawk
In July 2001, Richard Reid tried to board an El Al flight to Israel. The 28-year-old Briton, who later became known as the "shoe bomber" for trying to ignite explosives in his sneakers on an American Airlines flight from Paris to Miami, was stopped before he could get on the Israeli plane. His answers to routine questions from El Al security officials made them suspicious. He was detained and searched because they determined his behavior was erratic. He fit the profile of a would-be terrorist.
Americans who cherish their civil liberties are reluctant to allow the type of psychological profiling used by the Israelis to be employed at U.S. airports; they are nervous about the balance between personal freedom and public safety. So a security rule has to apply equally. "Here at an airport, my 2-year-old son has to take his shoes off before screening," says Andy David, deputy consul general at the Israeli Consulate in Chicago. "In Israel, he doesn't have to do that. Here there is a huge amount of energy invested in screening populations which pose no threat. A child or an old woman traveling with her husband should be differently screened from everyone else."
David is right. The latest incident of potential airline disaster, the alleged bomb plot in Britain using liquid explosives, necessitates a rethinking of airport security. Searching bags for hair gel and X-raying shoes and handbags don't go far enough. Israeli security has managed to make the airport at Tel Aviv and El Al airline safe by asking passengers simple questions.
"Israeli security agents try to understand who is standing in front of them," says David. Earlier this year, the Transportation Security Administration said it would use more psychological means to uncover terrorists -- but little has been done so far. At Dulles Airport in Washington a few years ago, security agents began to ask passengers questions to determine if they seemed tense or evasive. And those who acted suspiciously were pulled aside. But it didn't always work well. In one case, the national coordinator of the American Civil Liberties Union's Campaign Against Racial Profiling was pulled aside. He is now suing. This doesn't mean, however, the method was flawed; it just means the security agents needed better training. We can't, as David says, treat everyone the same. Grandma isn't the problem.
And simply checking bags isn't good enough anymore. Nor is scanning faces to determine strange behavior. Simple questions -- like "What did you think of the Sox game?" or "How was your trip to the airport?" -- would suffice. Anything to tip off security personnel that the traveler is nervous or has something to hide and should be further investigated. Sometimes civil liberties have to be balanced with the interests of protecting lives.
Ping
"Americans who cherish their civil liberties are reluctant to allow the type of psychological profiling used by the Israelis to be employed at U.S. airports; they are nervous about the balance between personal freedom and public safety."
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The ones who won't agree to profiling are the ACLU, the ultra liberal socialist Democrats and other enemies of this country. I think for most rational Americans, the choice is clear. Our safety is far more important than these so-called infringements on freedom.
Twaddle.
I cherish my civil liberties, and think they include the right to bring my toothpaste along with me when I am traveling to or from an airport convenient to my home where I have lived for over 20 years. Answering reasonable questions is much less of an imposition on those liberties.
ML/NJ
I cherish my civil liberties as much as anyone, more than many.
Flying isn't a civil liberty. Neither is driving.
The airlines are not government agencies. They may impose any restrictions they want in order to have their passengers feel safe and be safe.
I fly rather a lot and have no problem with the restrictions. I don't use toothpaste on a 2 hour flight or even a 6 hour flight.
It would not surprise me if a liberal extremist were acting strangely or irrationally in an airport (or anywhere else, for that matter)... For that matter, it would not surprise me if such a person were intentionally acting strangely in order to provoke such a reaction.
I hate to burst your bubble, but Arabs and Muslims do fly on El Al. I have no doubt the Israelis know exactly who they are in every instance, and I don't blame them for scrutinizing this group closely.
I hate to burst your bubble, but Arabs and Muslims do fly on El Al. I have no doubt the Israelis know exactly who they are in every instance, and I don't blame them for scrutinizing these groups closely.
>>> they are nervous about the balance between personal freedom and public safety.
I'm guessing they are more concerned about their time than they are about their civil liberties if we are talking about the average American.
How long a conversation is required for Israeli security agents to understand who is standing in front of them and what would this mean for average wait lines at airports?
Will Americans be willing to arrive more than two hours before departure for their domestic flights or at that point will they find alternatives?
How many flights does El Al have and how many people do they have to train to meet that demand? I would guess that their volume is considerably less than that of most US airlines since most El Al flights are international. I find people are prepared to expect more review when flying internationally than they are domestically.
I saw a short soundbite on the news the other night from an Israeli security professional who said the U.S. and other western nations focus too much on finding weapons/bombs instead of the slime who are going to use the weapons/bombs.
There can be careful profiling using psychological techniques and still not get the PC crowd's panties twisted into a knot.
Cheers,
SZ
I'm guessing they are more concerned about their time than they are about their civil liberties if we are talking about the average American.
How long a conversation is required for Israeli security agents to understand who is standing in front of them and what would this mean for average wait lines at airports?
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Once, well before 9/11, when I arrived in Winnipeg, I was pulled aside and questioned at length...had my belongings searched. It was maybe a matter of minutes. The customs guys were very thorough and efficient -- asking their questions as they went through my stuff. What cracked me up was they called a woman officer over to put my belongings back in the suitcase (guess men don't know how to pack or repack...or maybe they think it's women's work). LOL
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"In one case, the national coordinator of the American Civil Liberties Union's Campaign Against Racial Profiling was pulled aside."
It occurs to me that the national coordinator was looking for exactly that outcome.
Sorry, but flying and driving are both rights. Unenumerated rights of the constitution. Also, they fall under the heading of "pursuit of happiness". Governments who tell you driving is a priviledge not a right are full of sh** and just trying to dupe you. Pity you fall for that junk.
"Flying isn't a civil liberty. Neither is driving."
I must register my disagreement. Are rowing a boat, riding a bicycle, and just plain old walking around also privileges?
Warning! This is a high-volume ping list.
Freedom of movement, which includes the use of various forms of transportation, is a civil liberty.
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