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No Fly List Exposed
Another CBS News piece I missed for who knows what reason, but they've got a pretty good summary of what went down in the program. In a very interesting episode of 60 Minutes, correspondent Steve Kroft goes over the very sloppy and inaccurate No Fly government list that can detain fliers for hours and create a ton of unnecessary hassle for the innocent or unlikely terrorist. For starters the "No Fly" list is part of a secret government database compiled after 9/11 to keep all the bad frequent fliers from flying so frequently or at all. In all seriousness, it is supposed to prevent suspected terrorists from boarding planes, but after managing to obtain a copy of the extra, extra secret list - 60 Minutes uncovers and exposes some major flaws. For instance 14 of the 19 9/11 hijackers who have been dead for five years are still on the list. Shocking? Not to some... When Kroft questioned Donna Bucella, who has run the FBI's Terrorist Screening Center since 2003, her response was: "Well, just because a person has died doesn't necessarily mean their identity has died. People sometimes carry the identity of those who have died."
Okay, Bucella has a point with that one, but a good one? I don't think so - what moron would assume the identity of a known terrorist? Moving along, also found on the list is Saddam Hussein, convicted terrorist Zacarias Moussaoui, Francois Genoud (Nazi sympathizer and financier of Arab terrorism, deceased for ten years now), Evo Morales (president of Bolivia) and to make a long list of flaws short last, but not least comes Robert Johnson. Poor, poor Robert Johnson - when 60 Minutes brought in 12 men, all named Robert Johnson to discuss the topic, all had some trouble boarding planes at one point or another. With a name as common like that, I think Jaunted finds the only possible solution to beating the hassle in their No Fly rant. Their solution - change your name to Bobby Johnny. Sounds a lot like Ricky Bobby to me.
As far as I know I'm not on the list, but I'd love to hear some first hand accounts. Any Gadling readers out there wrongly on the rotten No Fly List? Please, share.
Filed under: Activism, Learning, Stories, North America, United States
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
jat Oct 16th 2006 10:39AM
My dad used to get held up every flight. His name is John Thomas. (Yes, yes, unfortunate for so many reasons.) He finally start adding Dr. and his middle name to keep the system from flagging his info.
Adrienne Oct 17th 2006 2:31AM
Jat -
Glad to hear your dad made some minor adjustments to avoid the hassle. What innocent American has the time for such nonsense... Really?
Thanks for sharing!
Anonnoyed reader Oct 21st 2006 4:08PM
Adrienne - Twice you mention innocent Americans should not have to deal with these hassles. How about innocent non-Americans? As a foreign citizen (yes, an Arab) I find that the TSA does not care what my name is or for that matter that I have a degree, a successful career or platinum status due to my frequent business trips.
I am curious to know why you make a ditinction based on citizenship? Maybe you have a mental list of citizenships you think do not deserve to fly?
Rita Thieme Oct 22nd 2006 7:01PM
This poor flyer has skin cancer and his physician recommended that he use a particular kind of over-the-counter sunscreen. He even had bandages on his arms where he'd recently had skin cancers removed.
But the TSA confiscated the sunscreen.
Another poster mentions that he was taking Tylenol 3 (the kind with Codeine) and that the TSA told him it was "hazardous"... that it was "too addictive" and that he "didn't need the medication". Fortunately when it was escalated to a supervisor the TSA was admonished.
There are dozens of stories of the insanity of the TSA. I personally had a computer broken while going through Boston a few years ago. The next time I went through and had to go through secondary training, I told the TSA that I wanted to keep my eye on my laptop because of my previous experience. The TSA yelled at me, "What do you think, I'm stupid or something?"
Yup, our dollars at work.
R.
Adrienne Oct 23rd 2006 8:03AM
Sorry to have ruffled your feathers Annoyed reader. I didn't mean to come off a bit uncaring towards other innocent nationalities and I thought I said innocent American only once. But honestly, I don't care if you're Indian, Arab, Puerto Rican, Somalian or a UFO... If you're innocent from the kinds of so-called terrorism activity that has placed people on these lists then you shouldn't have to be subject to the hassle given during your travels. I do thank you for sharing your comments!
A