Agent booted from flight claims discrimination

Washington Times ^ | 1/4/2 | Ellen Sorokin

[ImphClinton]

Attorneys for an Arab-American Secret Service agent kicked off an American Airlines flight on Christmas Day accused the pilot yesterday of singling out the agent because of his ethnicity.

The agent's attorneys claim the American Airlines pilot refused to verify the agent's credentials, even though the agent tried to give the pilot the names and telephone numbers of his supervisors at the Secret Service and the White House. The agent's name has not been released due to security concerns.

[stainlessbanner]

I would like to know how he was selected for the post,do they select 1 Irish ,1 Hispanic,1 Italian,1 English,1 Black, 1 Arab, this could go on all day.

He's suing for the same reason he was hired. He had no problem using his "arab-looks & features" in getting the job. He just f'd up the assignment, now he's looking for money.

[Right_in_Virginia]

Well, now. I guess terrorists of middle eastern heritage everywhere can now relax and breathe a sigh of relief. Oh,...and they can keep those guns so long as they have a carbon copy of some federal-looking form.

This agent is an embarrassment and should be ashamed of himself.

[JD86]

The pilot was fully within his right and responsibility as commander of the plane. That is the kind of pilot I want when I am flying. If he erred, he erred on the side of caution. A good call.

The ss agent should grow up. From everything I have read, he had an attitude. What is his excuse for filing out paperwork three different ways in three attempts? He was pushing the envelop, trying to create an incident. President Bush has been embarrassed by someone who is supposed to be protecting him. Time to review the assignment. The agent needs to get with the program or be reassigned.

[hcmama]

After several minutes, the pilot asked the agent and four other passengers to leave the plane to undergo further security checks. (All Arabs)

That is what you posted. This is from the actual article:

After several minutes, the pilot asked the agent and four other passengers to leave the plane to undergo further security checks.

Perhaps you could provide the source for your assertion that the four other passengers were "all Arabs." It certainly is not contained within the article you posted.

Thanks in advance.

[carmody]

But I would also like to ask the agent a question: Has the agent ever used racial profiling?

Exactly. If he is in a crowd protecting our President, what makes him more alert: A 30 something soccer mom or a 30 something arab looking man.

[SkyPilot]

OK--You are on post number THREE that I count today attacking this pilot.

Get a life.

[OldFriend]

There is no question that the hiring practices of the secret service have given us a group of people hired on the basis of national origin, gender, sexual orientation, and no doubt other criteria that have NOTHING to do with merit.

[larry h]

Lot's of different ways for sleepers and sympathizers to serve the cause....and making the airlines gun-shy about stopping Arab looking men with pistols, and bad credentials, could be one of them!

[larry h]

But then again, what if the plane was a FAKE and the passengers were FAKE and the whole thng was a set-up designed to catch the shooter on the grassy knoll? Have you reviewed the Zapruder film lately? Look closely at the 118th person down from the corner of Elm and Houston Streets....could be the SS agent we're talking about!

[LADY J]

"Notice who the agent's lawyer is: John Relman. The guy has a track record of lawyering big discrimination cases (ex: Denny's restaurant). I wonder who called whom? And if the agent called Mr. Relman, how did the agent get Relman's name?"

Michael Savage has been hitting this information pretty hard on his radio show.

I think the SS agent is a sympthasizer and planned this to stop the profiling and make some money as well.

I hope that President Bush doesn't cave on this one. He needs to fire this guy and back the pilot that carried out the sensible guidelines that are in place.

[cousair]

The agent should be fired for allowing the incident to go as far as it did. The pilot of the plane was right in doing what he did. His airline has lost THREE major planes in just a couple of months. There aren't many airlines who can handle that and stay in the air. The pilot (Captain) is the last authority on the plane and can call the shots anyway he likes due to the safety of his passengers and plane.

[LADY J]

The President needs to purge ALL the Clinton appointed people from our government. They are working to discredit his administartion in my opinion!!

[LADY J]

"administartion"= administration

Sorry

[browardchad]

how did the agent get Relman's name?

According to the LA Times and other news sources, the agent first contacted the Council on American Islamic Relations (the same people who praise cop-murderer H. Rap Brown for his "moral character"). My guess is that CAIR referred him to Relman's firm, since they also said at the new conference that they were representing some other "Arab-Americans" who were "discriminated against."

A nice, high-profile case to get the media's attention and undermine airline security.

[SMEDLEYBUTLER]

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[weikel]

I don't think they should let Arabs fly at all except on seperate conair jets. Its not PC but...

[willyone]

What is wrong with you? If he really were a armed terrorist how would the captain stop him? It is also not his problem. The flight he was piloting is his job not the terminal. You may think that you are being smart and witty but you are just annoying.

[PUGACHEV]

I agree, I'm with the pilot on this too. I'd rather have 10,000 offended Secret Service agents who missed their flight than one 9/11 type hijacking. It seems to me that the pilot had the right stuff and took his responsibility seriously; I'd be happy to fly on his plane anytime.

What did the agent need his gun on the flight for anyway, was he trained to be a sky marshall? Couldn't he have just checked the gun with the crew? In the end, it appears that the agent has exhibited terribly bad judgment: not only did he distract the crew and the airline security agents, thus creating the oppurtunity for a real terrorist to slip by, he injured the reputation of the Secret Service and also drew a great deal of attention to himself, thereby impairing hisown future usefulness -- remember, it is the "Secret" Service.

The Pilot is the right person in the right job, whereas that Secret Service agent ought to find some other line of work; something where discression isn't required.