Posted on 05/31/2002 6:38:35 PM PDT by TLBSHOW
Folks, an Israeli expert on the airline security subject said that the basic difference between the way Israelis and Americans screen passengers is that the Israelis look for terrorists, and the Americans look for weapons. He said we're focusing on the wrong thing - but that means we have to look for Muslim-Arab men, and once you start doing that, then all sorts of grief descends upon you as a racial profiler.
You've heard stories about nuns being pulled out of lines while waiting to go through a metal detector because there's "suspicion" she might be carrying a pair of deadly knitting needles or something. What are the odds a nun is going to hijack an airplane? Has one ever hijacked or tried to hijack an airplane?
Now, what are the odds that a young, Muslim-Arab male is going to hijack an airplane? They're pretty good, within the universe of those who do the hijackings. But we can't publicly use that criteria in America because that would be racial profiling. In fact, there is an excellent column related to this by an admitted leftist, Nicholas Kristof, in The New York Times. He writes as a liberal, saying that we're going to have to change some of our views on this racial profiling stuff.
Here's another outrage: the AP reported on Friday that American Airlines chief executive, Donald Carty, said another terrorist attack against commercial airlines was unlikely and urged that some security measures be dropped. There's an amazing companion story to this about a decorated war hero from Texas who ran into a security problem at San Francisco International Airport because he was carrying a tiny pair of wire cutters - which he needed to cut his wired jaw in case he vomited from in-air bumpiness.
This guy, who was shot in the face while fighting the enemy in Afghanistan, had to surrender the wire cutters and take the risk of flying home without them. This is a classic example of what the Israelis said about how we look for weapons, and they look for terrorists. It also illustrates what Carty said about how we're going overboard.
We were originally told we'd have about 30,000 federalized security workers, now the number has almost tripled. The doors to the treasury in this country are wide open. We are hiring more people and spending more money, and all we're doing is confounding the air travel system - and adding more dues-paying union members for the liberals to exploit. I hear horror story after horror story after horror story these days.
I ran into Jim Gray when I went to play golf at Joe Buck's golf tournament a couple of weeks ago, and he said he had a three-and-a-half hour wait at Las Vegas airport just to get through the metal detectors. He had no other way to go because there was only one entry into the terminal that day. Three-and-a-half hours just to get through the metal detectors! That's going a little bit too far.
1. Most people have more Dollar$ than sense
2. Get the terrorists & you get the weapons
Did you know that Mueller was a Clinton apointee? He was one of the few US attorneys who kept his job after C asked for a mass resignation.
i Heard on the radio today that the FBI has no agents in NJ who speak Arabic--a full 8.5 mos. after 9/11. AND THEY ARE CONDUCTING THE SEARCH FOR CANDIDATES IN MUSLIM COMMUNITIES.
:-(
Plus, when I drive in selected states, I can take my Glock. :^)
I didn't believe what I was hearing, and then he repeated it two more times! He didn't give the source of that info, tho.
Not long ago, a Muslim FBI agent refused to wear a wire on a mission because he didn't want to "rat" on another Muslim!!
g
this should clearly demonstrate that muslims can be a security risk
I know that. You know that. Everybody on FreeRepublic and their dog knows that.
When will the Politically Correct Democrats figure it out?
My prediction: After many more Americans have died.
A top-secret report warned the director of the FBI last August that the bureau had failed to penetrate Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network effectively, even as it described the organization as the most dangerous terrorist threat facing the United States, the NY TIMES is planning to report on Saturday... MORE... The internal assessment, one of the most closely held documents in the FBI, found virtually every major field office deficient in evaluating and dealing with the threat posed by al-Qaida, publishing sources tell DRUDGE...
Front page headline at drudge now!
There is a subtle truth here that it hard to explain to moderates. What would happen if we allowed ethnic profiling? Well, the truth is that any Muslim highjacking cells would put forward the least Arab-looking cell members to front the operation. Or they might even try to get their girlfriends to do it.
So pure ethnic profiling is not what is needed. Instead what is needed is subtle profiling based partly on ethnic appearance but mostly on dress, nature of luggage, demeanor, and behavior.
One additional thing. If we are really serious, any person who is who is suspected of being on a terrorist scouting mission will be carefully searched, seated between plainclothes air marshals, and THEN ALLOWED TO FLY. Serious security requires serious intelligence, and serious intelligence only comes from taking intelligent risks.
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