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It is only a couple of days into the crackdown against air travelers and already it looks like the TSA is backing down. The late word today (Monday, 12.28.09) is that the TSA is telling the airlines that the pilot may, at his or her discretion, impose the new rules on passengers or may choose to ignore some of them, like no blankets or coats during the last hour of flight..
This back down comes, in part, as Air Canada started to cancel flights to the US, saying that there were just too many delays in boarding passengers to make its schedule work. One Air France flight attendant also told the New York Times that passengers were not allowed to stand, touch their carry-on bags or go to the restroom during the whole flight from Europe (in the restroom case, they could presumably call for an escort).
Here’s the deal, short and to the point: you can’t have eight, nine and ten hour flights across the oceans and force people to stay in their seats, unless there is an actual, known emergency situation. Some people have to go to the bathroom more frequently than others. Some people get fed up with a seat mate who won’t shut up or who has bad breath and just want to get away. Some people want to talk to family or friends taking the same flight.. Whatever. You have to walk around, moreover, to prevent vein problems that can lead to....death. Turning the cabin into Cell Block 34 just won’t work.
Right now, the Obama administration looks about as clueless as the Bushies on dealing with this situation. They appear to be following the lead of those far below the executive and cabinet levels, the so called “experts” who stand to profit by making the system more difficult and unresponsive, because they get more work and responsibility in that process.
Hey, do you need some recommendations, folks?
1. When you get a straight on tip from a reliable source that someone is about to go jihadist, and that person has a multiple entry visa to the US, investigate it, pronto. If you can’t check on the names being put forward, then why can you check every little old lady boarding a flight to visit her grandchildren?
2. Fix your freaking computer systems so they can crosscheck names.
3. Rate the value and reliability of tips based on the sources of information (in this case it was the father, who happened to be a respected banker in Nigeria) and push those tips to the top. This is not like some random guy overheard something in a hooka bar talking about maybe this or maybe that.
4. When someone buys a ticket under the known guidelines for terrorists (cash), check that name against all known data bases for terrorists or possible terrorists. Why didn’t that information move up the chain of interest? THIS SYSTEM IS NOT WORKING. It probably isn’t even a system.
5. Station active agents in all Muslim countries and have those agents busy as worker bees investigating any leads at all of people who want to travel to the US.
6. Subject all Muslims from outside the US to whatever amount of extra checking possible before allowing them to board US bound aircraft. Yes, bend this at times if there aren’t enough people to do the checking, because we don’t want to exclude innocent people from coming and going, but don’t worry about “profiling” any more than we would if we were at war with Germany. Were German’s allowed to travel freely to the US during our involvement in the war? No. (They were before the US entered, which was probably a big mistake.)
7. Concentrate 80 to 90% of all efforts and interest in going over potential terrorists rather than subjecting millions of Americans to prison like treatment at the airports. Look for terrorists, good heavens, not nail clippers or sewing kits carried on board by 80 year old grandmothers.
8. Wake up. Realize that most of the game is hitting the target, not showing how well you can miss it while still looking busy.
9. Don’t worry about being wrong some of the time, try to be right all of the time in the most important line of defense against air terrorism: before the would-be terrorist ever gets on an aircraft. Checking everyone’s bag from Topeka to Dallas is baloney. You’d probably have to check bags for the next five thousand years to find one real terrorist. Put your time, money and effort where it is more likely to pay off.
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