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TSA Punts on Security

By Larry Johnson on January 4, 2010 at 9:41 AM in Current Affairs

Today’s news that TSA is imposing new security procedures on fliers from just 14 countries should scare the hell out of you if you are flying on international flights. USA Today reports:

Travelers flying to the U.S. through or from 14 countries with terrorism problems will now face additional security screenings, the Transportation Security Administration announced Sunday. The new regulations go into effect today.

TSA also named 10 “countries of interest” — Afghanistan, Algeria, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia and Yemen — as well as four nations known to be sponsors of terrorism — Cuba, Iran, Sudan and Syria.

This is the kind of psuedo-security that will get Americans and others killed. In fact, this bonehead move likely increases the chance that terrorists will succeed in putting a bomb onboard an in-bound commercial airliner.

Why?

What TSA is not telling you is that the Islamic extremists we label “Al Qaeda” have had success recruiting people from other countries. Such as? Mali, Niger and Egypt, just to mention three. They are not on the list so they won’t get the “extra” attention. And do you remember 9-11? Most of the hijackers started their trips from Europe, which under the new security rules would not have subjected them to added screening.

This is half-assed security and will get people killed. You’ve been warned. You cannot have a security system based on “threat” because there is no such thing as perfect, timely threat information. If Al Qaeda adopts a new method tomorrow it is highly unlikely that our intelligence community will immediately discover this innovation and report it in time to prevent an attack. It is not because the intel community is incompetent. It is just the nature of how information is gathered and assembled into finished intel.

When you have a “security” based system you are making a huge bet that the intelligence community will be able to alert you when the threat changes. So if Al Qaeda decides to put an underwear bomb on a recruit from Georgia or Uzbekistan or Mali we probably will not find out about the “new” threat until the bomb wearer sets his bollocks on fire or the bomb actually goes off.

Do you know that if you fly from Bogota and Egypt–both countries that have had serious terrorist activity in the past involving airplanes (a Pablo Escobar thug put a bomb on a 1989 Avianca flight)–you are not required to remove your shoes? I know this firsthand having flown from both countries in the last thirty days. While shoe removal is not a guaranteed procedure for identifying an explosive, it certainly gives you a better chance of preventing a bombing than not inspecting shoes. Remember, the last guy who tried to blow up his shoes came on a flight that originated in London. And what do we do? We inspect shoes only inside the United States.

This is not security. This is a joke. Except it is not funny. The failure of TSA to impose genuine, uniform security procedures and practices is criminal negligence. The new measures announced yesterday amount to nothing more than cosmetic gestures that will do little to keep air passengers safe. Enjoy your next trip.

I’m a Linda too

YES, thank you Larry.

When I heard this, this morning, the first thing I thought of after saying “OMG”, Al Qa’da and Osama Bin Forgotten are cracking up laughing at Obama and his adminstration right now.

2nd, this is reactionary, not proactive. And final, as you well stated, it is merely cosmetic, trying to help Obama politically as saying “see, we’re responding to this threat”. No, no you are not.

And I too was just thinking, what about our friends in London? Also as you noted our first known attempted shoe Bomber, their underground has been swelling, besides just capabilities for flight connections. France, Germany, Canada…(et al) …hellloooo!
creeper

Oh, for chrissake! This is insane!

Say I’m a terrorist. I live in Lebanon and I want to bomb a US airliner. I buy two separate tickets…one from Beirut to Paris and a another one from Paris to New York. Unless the TSA has some method of connecting these two dots (and so far they’re doing a lousy job of connecting ANY dots) I’m home free once I get to Paris. I won’t face extra scrutiny when I board the plane at Charles deGaulle.

This is window-dressing and, frankly, I’ve seen better decorating in the trailer park up on the highway.

It’s beyond a joke, Larry. It’s clear proof that these idiots haven’t a clue what they’re doing.
timmy

Larry. You just pinned it perfectly again. We now have a country and it’s security so laughable that you actually feel safe flying a Pakistan Airline. And the Joker- in- Chief is still recovering from a golfing vacation. What a joke our great country has become.

Given how airport security has sucked since the shoe stupid-removal- security- joke, now we going to be subjected to underwear- removal and soon to come ass-swaping. It’s sick.
Guest

Do you know that if you fly from Bogota and Egypt–both countries that have had serious terrorist activity in the past involving airplanes (a Pablo Escobar thug put a bomb on a 1989 Avianca flight)–you are not required to remove your shoes?

__________________________________________________________
Are you sure they still aren’t ? I travel to Japan every few months and while it has always been official policy to do a shoe check at Tokyo Narita Airport, the directive was never enforced until this latest incident.

“A senior government official, not authorized to speak on the record, provided CNN with the full list of 14 countries that fall under the TSA’s “countries of interest” label — which will automatically trigger the enhanced screening.

Also, below is how the story was reported on CNN. Was it a deliberate leak ? I don’t get at all why State/TSA are interested in having this information publicly available.

The State Department lists four countries as those that sponsor terror: Cuba, Sudan, Syria and Iran. The other 10 countries of interest are Afghanistan, Algeria, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia and Yemen, the government official said.

Another source, a senior State Department official who could not speak on the record due to the sensitive nature of the material, said the countries on the list are places “where we have concerns, particularly about al Qaeda affiliates.”Arabia, Somalia and Yemen, the government official said.
I’m a Linda too

What dots? I see only straight lines.
helenk

Now Joe Lieberman wants them to be in charge of passports instead of the State dept. Their fearless leader Janet Napoliano claimed the system worked during this latest threat. If that is how it is working we are all in deep doo doo

WOMEN WITH INTELLIGENCE AND EXPERIENCE,MEN WHO SUPPORT THEM AND COUNTRY BEFORE PARTY ALWAYS

PUMAS,BUBBAS,EQUALISTS AND THOSE PEOPLE RULE
SJ

Oh well all tourist will say now its too much hassel to fly to the USA, time for another holiday resort like the Caribbean, Canada or Europe, seem like Florida is going to be taking another hit for their hotels and resorts. I sure as hell would not want to fly to a country where I will be patted down, stripped by bags opened and checked, too much for me at this point air travel seems to be getting to the pits once again.
sowsear

I’d say this is window dressing, another BO Look-At-Me answer.
Rabble Rouser Rev. Amy

Say, whaaaa??? He said WHAT? After Napolitano has more than demonstrated what a poor leader she is, he wants passports to go to HER deparment?

Holy smokes.
lark

Aaark. A mosquito flew in through the door. It could carry a disease. Everyone run for their life. Abandon the house.
Rabble Rouser Rev. Amy

Funny, IALT.

Creeper, you raise a great point. Wow. Window dressing, indeed.

Timmy, ya know, here is the guy whose followers ALL attacked us for not seeing how he was going to make America so much better than Hillary ever could. I wonder how they feel now, when they aren’t making excuses for his boneheaded moves?
sowsear

As Larry said above, if we are reactive instead of proactive, we’ll be looking for “crotch bombers” and they’ll be putting something into the air or water-after they get here.
I’m a Linda too

lol YEP. We need more common sense unafraid take action folks apparently. Like my Mom. Only in Florida was more a problem with roaches. (sorry) And, like my Mom, “Damn these roaches”(takes thumb and smashes roach) OOOHHHHH! (but true) No more roach!.
Tricia

Larry–this is so scary. Because I know little about security matters I thought this was an OK idea when I first read about it. But you have certainly demonstrated with good logic how stupid this plan is…Problem is probably most people are like me and will think they are now safer.
Portia Elizabeth

Just out of curiosity, how many of the terrorist flights actually originated in one of those 14 countries?
sowsear

When you have people who are willing to blow themselves up/whatever for their cause, most of us have a hard time even thinking about what they could do.
It does seem to me that they are now tending to use non-mideastern followers to do the terror work, They also seem more intent upon getting into this country.
Is it only oil that keeps us from saying “to hell with you” and cutting them off entirely?
lark

So Cuba is a sponsor of terrorism. Oookaaaay.
creeper

Tricia, that’s the whole idea here. They’re creating the illusion that they’re actually doing something when, in fact, this move is totally useless. We will throw even more money at a “solution” that does nothing.

From FOX news: “The Transportation Security Administration said those heightened security measures would include full-body pat-downs…” Great. Just great. Now travelers will be subjected to groping by total strangers. Mind-boggling.

Dog help us if terrorists ever abandon their compulsion to launch spectacular attacks on airliners and start focusing on the mundane–ports, bridges, dams, buildings. We’re so vulnerable on so many levels it’s frightening.
EllenD

Given that attacks seem to have happened from the leg of a trip that took place inside a “safe” country (including the U.S.), isn’t this new procedure backwards?
sowsear

In 1991 when our son was married in Jamaica, we had someone on our bus to the airport switch the luggage tag on my husband’s bag. We did not notice it until we were going through security and the agent asked if we had had our luggage in our possession at all times. When I said no someone on the bus was seen messing around with the luggage in the back of the bus at the reststop, she said you’d better check your luggage. You are responsible.
To make a long story short, when we got back, we gave the new tag to our friend in the Secret Service. He said that is how they got drugs through. The bag was “ticketed” so someone on the tarmac would know which bag to use and then in NYC, someone on the tarmac would take it out.
It seems we have been lax about who we hire at airports, not only for security but for the more mundane like food service and air support in general.
Guest

Also, the memo that travelers from a dozen countries including Cuba, North Korea, Somalia and Yemen are always subjected to extra screening had already been leaked, so this could have been intended to reassure airlines or business travelers that it was still only in effect for select passangers. Leisure travelers are extremely compliant with any new regulations — but businesspeople are really make or break for the industry since they hate spending extra time in airports.
timmy

Rev. Amy… It just makes me so mad…… I mean how mindless can anyone be to make Bush looks like a brainer in less than one year. And we have three more years to put up with Obama…. ?! Why don’t he just resign. Say the job is too hard for him…… He just can’t do it. Obamae can’t. So, sickening.
jangles

Larry: My understanding of this announcement was that these additional security procedures would be applied RANDOMLY at all airports generating flights to the US. The listed countries would simply be places where this additional security would not be random but apply to all. Frankly, if these procedures were applied at every airport to all travelers I think it would just shut down any reasonable travel to and from the US internationally. I would hope that the “random” checks would be guided by intelligence and well thought out profiling. I had friends coming in from Switzerland via Toronto over the holidays and these new procedures were applied to all passengers. It took them 9 hours to clear security and customs. If this became SOP, I will be on my own “no fly” list.
sowsear

My son’s firm is based overseas (Switzerland). When they want to come to the US, they fly their own jet here. Who checks on them and others who own their own fleets?.
Doc99

Face it … the US is just not being serious about this. I pray the butcher’s bill will not be prohibitive.
trinity

This is indeed very frightening to find out, Larry. We are fortunate that you have such expertise in these matters, so that you can alert us to what is really going on.
Docelder

So, homeland security who just said we need to watch out for our returning military veterans will be in charge of passports? Meanwhile the President is going to roll out the “War on a Far-reaching Network of Violence and Hatred”, which doesn’t quite sound like it’s about just foreign terrorists… does it? The whole thing that would have upset me, now just creeps me out. Just who is homeland security protecting against anyway?
Ladydawnelle

This is where I would normally go “rut roh” but have decided that Obambam is truly teflon and nothing sticks. I mean he could be some ALIEN with a school VISA from some “sore toes” island muslim nation and he’d STILL be allowed to pretend to be Prezeldent! Doesn’t matter. The lemmings have taken over the 3rd rock from the sun. duck and cover
AnnieCarmel

Maybe we should all fly El Al from now on.
Guest

I don’t know if the enhanced measures going to be random outside flights originating from the “countries of interest,” or persons with passports from those countries, as much as unpredictable as possible, so different airports will have different guidelines, all under constant evaluation and subject to change on a moment notice.
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Guest

http://www.lebanese-forces.org/world/Lebanese-Passengers-Among-Citizens-of-14-Nations-to-Face-Tougher-Checks-on-U-S–bound-Flights1003827.shtml

U.S. government officials have reportedly said that Lebanon is among 14 “terror linked” nations whose citizens will undergo mandatory enhanced screening at U.S. airports.
U.S. officials Sunday toughened security measures for all U.S.-bound airline passengers, and warned those traveling from or via the 14 “state sponsors of terrorism” and “countries of interest” will undergo the screening.

“Passengers holding passports from those nations, or taking flights that originated or passed through any of them, will be required to undergo full-body pat downs and will face extra scrutiny of their carry-on bags before they can board planes to the United States,” The New York Times said.

You certainly should face extra screening in Paris under these new rules.
sowsear

Crotch bomber either had a passport, no passport, or one from Italy. depending upon which report/which day you hear about it.
Anonymous

Larry,

So you are saying that the TSA should not do extra screening for people from these countries or who have visited these countries????

Or are you saying they should do more? How do you know they are and will not do more? There is a TSA team visiting foreign aiports as we speak.

Not clear on what your critism is other than critizing just for the sake of critizing.
lark

I would rather say which government agency the report is supporting and enabling.
lark

Criticizing for the sake of criticizing sounds heavenly to me.

No, he wants every airport in the world to be a tyranical dictatorial zone where citizens of all nations try out what future living under one world ruler will be like.
Anonymous

Larry,

what exactly do you recommend for airport screening outside the country? Easy to critize, but what are your recommendations that will not put a huge financial burden on the airlines and completely disrupt passengers and travel (4-5 hours in a security line, which is happening in Toronto right now, is not realistic).

Do you suggest more screening technology? Are you sure it works? Do you know the EU currently restricts the full body scan as being against civil liberities. How do you suggest the US, if we ourselves want to go down that road of full body scans, will be able to force the EU to change their law? If they do not, what do you expect the US to do, restrict all flights from Europe?

Or maybe you suggest better no-fly passenger lists or profiling at the check-in desk, although you seem to be arguing against that above. Profiling would not have caught Richard Reid.

Easy to sit here and critize, but what are your solutions for a very very difficult problem?
Guest

Wasn’t Richard Reid identified via profiling as a possible threat on 21st December 2001 and refused boarding but returned the next day and managed to board ??
Anonymous

Airlines have been about as safe as they ever have been regarding terrorism. In fact, the 2000s, where about as safe as they ever have been in terms of your probablity of dying from a terrorist attack.

“By this measure, the 2000s tied the 1990s for being the safest on record, each of which were about six times safer than any previous decade. About 22 passengers per one billion enplanements were killed as the result of Violent Passenger Incidents (VPIs) during the 2000s; this compares with a rate of about 191 deaths per billion enplanements during the 1960s.”
See:

http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/2010/01/skies-are-as-friendly-as-ever-911-al.html
Jazzman

All persons entering the US from abroad need to go through tighter security at foreign airports…..meaning mags and explosive detectors no matter the nationality…… Forget profiling anyone set of folk …. Just do everyone….
Anonymous

Richard Reid was questioned, but they gave him the ticket anyway. It was not really profiling per se, it was more like he looked like a maniac and was incoherent. They did not go, here is a guy who is from England of a certain age and we will therefore not let him board the plane or put him through more screening. They just looked at him and heard his answer sto straight forward normal airport questions and got a little worry, but they gave him the ticket anyway.

“On December 21, 2001, he attempted to board a flight from Paris to Miami but his boarding was delayed because his disheveled physical appearance was suspicious to screeners. He also did not answer all of their questions, and had not checked any luggage for the transatlantic flight. Additional screening resulted in his being re-issued a ticket for a flight on the following day.[10] He returned to the airport on December 22, 2001 and boarded American Airlines Flight 63 from Paris to Miami, wearing his special shoes packed with plastic explosives in the hollowed out bottoms.”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Reid_(shoe_bomber)
Anonymous

Do we have that technology that works? How do we force all foreign airports to buy the technology? And what will the cost be to the airlines and the passengers? Are you talking about full body scans? Do you know those are banned by the EU? What do we do if the EU will not change their law? Ban all flights from the EU. Unrealistic.
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Jackie

May I reminds us…Al Quaida has recruited from the USA as well. THe TSA SUX.

We need to screen ALL persons FLYING anywhere.
Retired

Airline security is a difficult problem. The reason that its solution is only attracting back benchers is due to the lack of confidence in our national leadership by the first stringers. The smartest solution that I have heard to solving the airline security problem is to put our national laboratory system to work solving it. Of course, this would require us to admit not only that we have a problem, but the scope of it. I don’t either heppening any time soon, I am very sorry to say.
Jazzman

Guest… Try …..49 USC 44907 – Sec. 44907. Security standards at foreign airports
Jazzman

What do we do if the EU says no? Tough political decision to be made… Its called a ban on flights… But the body scanners are not the big issue we can work the privacy issues out…. Ff all person go through the sniffer and the mags priro to boarding thats a big addition. We will not stop all of it, but until we have the technology its better than nothing…………
Larry Johnson

Guest,
Your ignorance and stupidity on this matter are just not worthy of comment. US has enough market control to dictate the standards for security. Some in the outside might scream but, if they want to fly to the US, will have to comply.
Larry Johnson

Gee Janet, I know you are stretched thin running the Department of Homeland Security and making lame excuses for the failures of the organization you now run, but you need to stop posting under the name “GUEST” come clean and use your real name. I know you think things with aviation security are swell but they are not.
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I’m a Linda too

Yes, really. Why do Democrats always want to put on a pedestal things they want to copy from Europe, but not the things that work or that and are smart to adopt. UK does a pretty good job with security and terrorism. They pick and choose poorly, and seem to want to copy the countries where the terrorists are safe. hello Pretty funny that we make so many demands, but we can’t seem to do much right.

Maybe Joe Wilson could head this up at LANL.
Jazzman

Guest,,, How many Americans need to die before unrealistic becomes realisitc? Besdesi we have banned Nations before as in Nigeria between 93 to 99 for unrealistic security or lack thereof. So if we can ban prior to 911 then we ssure as hell can ban now.

Like Larry says we have the market share and we at times use the threat of pulling our foreign aid from a country to get our way. And that pure politices… This is for security of our citizens…. Besides we can force the airlines to comply as well… And its easier for us to ban an airline….
Jazzman

Guest….

And we took what action against that airline and airport for breach of our security rules? ZERO! We did nothing!
Jazzman

Guest

Your correct flying is still safe, but all it take is one bomb on one aircraft. Though we can’t stop all attacks. We are however behind the curve with the technology and the consistency in security even before we can claim a curved false alarm rate in safe flying from terrorism…….

By the way Guest… So tell us really why TSA curved the false alarm rates on the mags at the Cat I and II’s rather than stick to USSS Standards? By the way, tell Mike Jackson he owes one contractor a nickle……
Anonymous

The US has lots of market power? Yeah right! That is a joke. Do you know that right now many European countries have not adopted the new standards the U.S. has just handed down over the last few days or wants. Their reply in the last day ihas been ”we will think about it”. Frankly, there is not a whole lot the U.S. can do if the EU says that they will not be dictated what their safety and civil liberties policies will be. There is no way the U.S. can not allow flights from the EU or for that matter from many other countries. There is no easy fix here as you seem to suggest in your critisms.

Larry your insults really do not advance the discussion. Or do you just run a blog on here for some self satisfaction from the congratulations you receive from your fans on here or do you actually provide a blog in which to discuss the issues that you bring up.

By the way what particular expertise do you have in airline security. I thought you spent your time in the CIA in Houdras.
Anonymous

We all know the US can cut off flights from countries that do not meet satisfactory security standards, but the reality is the US cannot dictate policy to the EU and there is no way in hell the US can afford to cut off air travel to the EU.

Not so black and white and no easy answer, especially when civil liberites are become more at stake.
Anonymous

good luck with taking action against France. no way the US could have afforded to pick a fight with the EU. The US needed the EU more than the EU needed the US in the fight on terror.
Anonymous

Cost trade-offs? We do this kind of thing all the time in the law-of-torts, like weighing cancer deaths against the cost of eliminating carcinogens. But it’s just a fantasy to think human beings will ever see airline bombings the same as airplane crashes, statistically.

That’s what bugged me about Napolitano, she was talking as if this were an airplane crash.

Why do people need any carry-ons? Netbooks are so cheap, what’s the cost of providing a netbook and wi-fi for every passenger, plus toiletries? A camera in the restroom monitored by a nurse?
I’m a Linda too

Yes, how soon some forget. Hassan? Bueller?
Jazzman

Guest…

LJ knows more than he is letting on… I for one know LJ’s background with airline security, who he has worked with before. You my friend best not draw that six shooter.And you are way of base. While LJ has his fans here he also has his friends and associates who are not afraid to tell him to get a better hair cut or when he is wrong.

Of course the same question you asked can apply to you as well… So I will ask it. Whats your background in airline security?
Jazzman

Guest…

LJ knows more than he is letting on… I for one know LJ’s background with airline security, who he has worked with before. You my friend best not draw that six shooter.And you are way off base. While LJ has his fans here he also has his friends and associates who are not afraid to tell him to get a better hair cut or when he is wrong.

Of course the same question you asked can apply to you as well… So I will ask it. Whats your background in airline security?
hokma

I flew from Israel’s Ben-Gurion Airport to Madrid four days ago and flew from Madrid to the USA today. Both were after the 9/25 incident.

At Ben-Gurion there was thorough security questioning as well as scanning of baggage. But I was never asked to take off my belt or my shoes going through security.

At Madrid besides the usual security check, there was a large contingent of professional security people AT the gate. Men and women were separated and waited on line to be thoroughly patted down – from head to toe – and around the waist and crotch. We then had to go through another group of security people who took apart all carry on baggage.

The difference between Israel and Madrid is that Israel knows who is supposed to be showing up at their airport before they ever get there. It is called profiling, but at what point are we going to run out of clothing to take off at security checks?

About Obama. First Napolitano says that the system worked. Then Gibbs states that the incident was isolated and not part of any terror organization. Then Brennan says that this was not the same as 9/11. And during this crisis Obama remains in Hawaii taking in a movie and playing golf.
Jazzman

Hey Guest…. We can do and have done many thing with the EU and I am sure that the EU does not want any bad press and law suits if an airliner goes down because they REFUSED to cooperate with the US…. Besides this my friend is what Treaties are suppose to be about……
Anonymous

great we can ban flights from Nigeria. Who cares? We have no market power against the EU? We cannot dictate what they do and not do? good luck with that. This is crossing into the realm of civil liberities. Will not be easy to find an easy solution here. The issues is an international airport security issue.

Again I say how are you going to force all countries to spend the millions on unproven technologies and to enforce U.S. dictated policies? If the EU says no full body scans, what are you going to do?
Anonymous

EU not on board with full body scans.

http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9595_22-243670.html

what are you going to do if the bomber sticks the bomb up his/her ass? just like prisoners sneek dope and weapons around. What is next full x-rays of humans to search their anal cavity?
hokma

I don’t know what the cost is and I think neither do you.

What I do know for a fact is that 11.5 million people fly in and out of Israel every year and their security is the tightest and most professional in the world. I was thoroughly questioned when I first got into the Ben-Gurion Airport terminal and had my luggage x-rayed before I ever got to a ticket counter. When I went through the normal security gate scanner I was not asked to take off my shoes or my belt. However at several points I was questioned as if they knew what to ask. The entire process took only about 30 minutes.

When I flew out of Madrid yesterday, no one asked me any questions at all but they x-rayed me and my carry-on baggage like in the USA. But when I got to the gate they separated into men and women to be thoroughly searched (head to toe including waist and crotch). Then another phalanx of security agents had everyone take apart the entire carry-on luggage. The entire process took 75 minutes.

The difference? Israel knows who everyone is before they ever get to Ben-Gurion Airport. In Spain and in the USA we do not until the passengers actually get into the terminal.

Do I feel violated that Israel may have had private and confidential information on me? No. That is a small price to pay for the freedom of travel and the knowledge of impeccable safety. Air travel is not a civil right. It is a privilege and for those who are afraid of civil rights violation then there is always the bus.

We are losing this battle with radical Islam because we are too afraid to see these people and their supporters as they are and profile them.
Anonymous

How possibly could Israel know who everyone is before they ever get on a plane. That seems like BS and impossible. So if I book a ticket from NY to Israel today for flighing their tomorrow, how is Israel going to know who I am before I get on the flight? Please explain.

The studies on profiling are mixed. Not clear that it works and some have even proven that it makes thing worse. You end wasting your time looking for people who are not any real threat and distract from the real terrorists. Richard Reid would not have been caught. He was a English citizen, a male and of a young age. That seems to fit several tens of millions of Brits. That really narrows it down. They had no way of knowing his religion, his name did not bring suspicion, etc. etc. What experts have suggested is rather than profiling you look at people’s actions. ie. do they buy a one way ticket, do they have not luggage, etc. etc. However, any smart terrorist like the 9-11 guys will just better melt in.
hokma

There are database information on everyone and if there is not they will find out information they need. They also have a high rejection rate of travelers. Depending on who you are they may not let you in.

There are no studies on Israeli profiling because they will not release confidential information. Richard Reid had a history we did not know. At the time we were still developing databases on suspected individuals but the USA is stymied because of civil rights advocates who are opposed to any form of profiling and intrusion of privacy.

In the case of Israel, if they cannot confirm the background of someone it is unlikely they will be allowed to enter Israel at all, let alone by air.

You will be shocked by what information our government already has or can compile on you and I.

My son lives in Tel Aviv. On his first trip from the USA he was heavily questioned. On his second and third trip from the USA he is escorted ahead of the line of passengers because they already know who he is and where he lives and what he is doing there. I was extremely impressed at the questions I was being asked, how they were making eye contact, and they seemed to be checking on some sort of hand held computer – maybe on information about me.

Welcome to 1984.
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Anonymous

If I believe the Israeli entire tracks all it passengers, that is easy to do for a small country like Israel which no one travels to.

No way you would be able to do this with the U.S. were there are billions of passenger trips every year.

Good luck.

Richard Reid had a history we did not know is precisely the point. Profiling only gets you so far.

Profiling is largely likely to be a waste of time. There is no proof that it works. Terrorist will always find a way around it. It usually results in us looking in the wrong places and wasting our time.
Anonymous

”that is easy to do for a small country like Israel which no one travels to. ”

11.5 million people fly in and out of Israel every year. Relative to their population it is far greater than people flying in the U.S. and they have been in a state of war since their inception – the U.S. has not.

“There is no proof that it works. Terrorist will always find a way around it.”

Israel proves that intelligent profiling does work. Period. Terrorists canot find a way around it. You should first get some information correct before bloviating. And if you don’t like your rights being violated then you can always take the bus.
Jazzman

Guest….

We have yet to push the EU and watch and see what happens here. There is movement on Capitol Hill but we need to see how far both Senate and House Internatioal Relations Committes go…..

Besides your missing he point. fully body scanners would be nice, but as long as they are providing a multi-layer security screen using the mags and explosive detection devises as well as profiling (and yeah we DO profile) piror to boarding and that means ALL passenagers, the riskd should be manageable…..