Phoenix....they exist, but they are pretty far away Hobby....those chairs are for the individual screenings LAX...didnt see em, but I wore some canvas vans so I didnt take my shoes off
FWIW I believe that racial profiling is ok when it comes to terrorism. I would preface this by saying that I support the thorough invasive search of every human on every flight into, out of, or within our borders. I don't give two turds about time delays or hurt feelings. women, infants, children, elderly nuns, I don't give a crap. I am utterly against every effort to speed up the process.
I'm right there with you. The War on Terror means that we will all have to make small sacrifices in order to protect the rest of us. The liberals have launched a campaign to complain about these sacrifices. They do so at the security risk of us all.
\ wrong as usual increased secuirty at airports FOR ALL - okay and needed increased security at airports for certain races - wrong and xenophobic
Yup. The same is true for any event, as thoughts are that an event could occur on the ground next (dirty bombs and all that "24" stuff). People talk a good game, but will people REALLY come to the airport/game/etc. earlier to deal with security? I highly doubt it. After a few weeks the arguments would go back to "Why should I be searched? It's Arabs who need to be checked." What do people think about that validated flyer program the government is thinking about implementing?
Certain groups of people are more likely to do certain things. If you were trying to organize a Passover Sader you would probably start by asking Jews. If you were looking for the jockey that goes to your school, you wouldn't start at basketball practice. If you wanted to find couples that weren't blood relatives you would avoid Alabama . All of these are examples of profiling, but they are also examples of using common sense. If you want to find airline hijackers, then looking at middle easterners first is not a bad idea.
Those who haven't learned from the past are doomed to repeat it. This kind of profiling has been done before and it has FAILED. It used to be that hispanics, Columbians, South AMericans etc. were often profiled for drug searches. Then it turned out that they learned to get around this and had blonde caucasions and others mule the drugs in for them. Profiling was a failure. There was also the case of a blonde girl carrying a bomb in a backpack. She didn't know the bomb was there it was placed there by her Palestinian boyfriend who knew that she wouldn't be profiled. The shoe bomber wasn't middle eastern. Profiling would have done nothing to stop him. Whether it's racist or not doesn't matter when it just doesn't work. I'd rather be safe than rely on profiling.
Hell! I'd rather be unsafe than rely on profiling. That's why I live in New York! And some people call libs anti-american.
I fly two times per week, usually in first class, and am always looking out for suspicious behavior. If I saw a group of arabs passing stuff around and congregating around the bathrooms, I would act. There would be a beat-down of bigtexxx-sized proportions. If that story in the original post is true, I can't believe the other passengers didn't mob those guys. I certainly would have done something, and whether that's profiling or not I don't care. I'm sick of all this feel good garbage in an attempt to keep people from feeling "victimized". When all the hijackers from 9/11 are arab, the rest of the arab community better expect to get some looks and I don't want to hear them complaining about it. Let's ask the 3000 families of the dead from Sept 11 if they wished somebody would have done something.
That's your opinion. I'd rather be around dead, rotting liberals than living, breathing conservatives any day. And since when is protecting peoples' rights exclusively liberal? As has been stated, racial profiling is not only wrong, it is futile. Either increase security measures for all airline passengers, or leave the situation as it is. For all of the non-Muslim people (myself included), it's very easy to say "Go ahead and check me. I don't mind." This is because we know that any checks directed towards us would be mostly obligatory and not serious. The other passengers (this would be Muslims) know why they are being searched. They are being searched because there is a widespread paranoia being directed towards people of their races and faiths. The "extra security" is a little offensive to them. And rightfully so. I don't understand the fear of Muslims. I have no choice but to see it as typical American close-mindedness and idiocy. Why don't we hate Yao Ming for the attacks on Pearl Harbor? If you're thinking to yourself, "But Yao Ming is Chinese. The Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor," then you are absolutely correct. These are the blanket sentiments that are making the lives of our Muslim and Middle Eastern citizens ridiculously difficult. No one takes into account the difference between Syrians, Libyans, Saudis, Iraqis, or Iranians. All that matters is that they're towel-headed, plane-hijacking Muslims, and they need to be searched so I can be certain that my rights are protected. It makes me sick.
I know you're a young man, but do you remember what happened on September 11, 2001? 19 Muslims hijacked planes and started a war on the United States. Maybe you're old enough to remember Richard Reid, the Muslim who tried to light his shoes on fire and kill hundreds of innocent passengers on a trans-atlantic flight. Do you remember Al Queda (a "Muslim" organization) plotting to blow up several trans-pacific flights back in the 90s? Perhaps these things have something to do with Americans' fear of Muslims on flights. Just a guess. Ok now you're just talking in broad generalities that don't make sense. In case you didn't notice, the 9/11 hijackers were from a variety of middle-eastern, Muslim countries. Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, and Lebanon. I didn't realize that their lives would be made "ridiculously difficult", as you put it, by having to endure a few extra security checks every now and then. Get a perspective on reality, man.
Oh please. I think what you just said is actually an indictment against the author of the article. Don't you think others feel this way? Why wouldn't someone else have said anything on the plane? Maybe because this woman was paranoid - I don't know. Let's see if anyone else comes forward to corroborate this story. Yes, you are right about the Arab comment. That's true. However, to act as if that is the only place a threat can come from is foolish. If a threat comes from Europe, will you stop all Europeans? If not, then that is exactly the generalization you're making when you say "Arab". Arab refers to people of a large region. Perhaps it would be easier to target Libyans, Sudanese, or, gasp, Saudis. That makes sense, not just all brown-skinned people who speak Arabic, are named Mohammed, blahblahblah. I assume you're white. Otherwise, you wouldn't brashly discount the feeling of victimization.
Interesting comment. I have indeed felt some degree of victimization as I have spent a good amount of time living and working in central Mexico. I stuck out like a sore thumb and was routinely charged higher prices on things like taxi cabs, food and other goods and services due to my skin color and country of origin. Mexico has a history of kidnappings, and believe me I was cognizant of this threat while there. Americans are not generally well liked there from the impression I got, and I got my fair share of looks. They didn't bother me and I went about my business. With Al Queda's history of airplane threats and hijackings, arabs are going to get looks and arouse suspicion in people. That is not unreasonable in my opinion.
