WHAT A SURPRISE!
Gee, who'd a thunk that could ever happen?
I mean, just like Britain's compul- er, voluntary ID cards, we all have so much faith in our public servants, that we just KNOW they would NEVER abuse their positions.
</sarcasm>
Arizona's state treasurer is not-so-subtly accusing President Obama's Homeland Security chief of abusing America's "no-fly" list to satisfy a personal vendetta against him. State Treasurer Dean Martin told Arizona CBS affiliate KPHO that his name suddenly appeared on the government's list of those banned from US commercial …
If it's true, she's a tiny little person who needs to be out of Washington ASAP. And a complete bitch, to boot. I thought we left THAT kind of shit behind with the last administration.
OK, I hoped, not thought. I'm a realist.
She's still a tiny little person if true, and needs to be gone.
The clowns at DHS strike again. So using a common name is suspicious eh? What about using an uncommon name? Frequent trips --- you know like weekly round-trips between major airports -- those are suspicious too. Since I travel a lot I have to allow even more time in case I get pulled aside for extra checks. Once my luggage seemed to small(I fold and compress so I can carry-on) that had to be searched as well. Mind you, stuffing it all back in the bag while trying to make the flight was up to me. All this hassling of passengers and they still are not screening all the checked luggage and cargo or actually maintaining secure field perimeters. It is all for show.
THere -- I fell better now.
So the worlds most needed security organisation (most needed because they piss off the greatest number of other nations) can't tell the difference between people with the same name? And they didn't think of this, despite the fact that people have been using the same names for thousands of years?
But what, it's OK you say, you just have to say a frequent flyer number and you can bypass all the holdups?
And they PAID someone for this?
What we need is a lot more high-profile people being targeted by the no-fly list so that at some point there will be a call to abolish it or spend enough money on it to do a proper job and it will attract widespread support. Imagine the fun if you could get "John Smith" added to the list.
Any system that manages to ban a baby nine months old from flying (yes, it happened) is obviously fundamentally broken.
It always was, at all levels, abused for all reasons. That list should be killed. There should be no super-secret blacklist of people without judicial process.
People who are somehow such a threat that they cannot board a plane, even after being searched, yet not such a threat that they can be prosecuted for anything.....
I know Fox will scream if you remove it, but Fox will scream no matter what. They're running some anti-America agenda there.
<ahem/>
I hate to break into your "Faux Noose" moment, but I seriously doubt that The Janet did it. I suspect that it was one of the staffers she brought with her. These staffers can be rabidly loyal, and often pull stuff like this. It is sometimes with the tacit approval of their bosses, but seldom at their orders (unless you were a member of the Cheney Administration).
I'm surprised that you're so pissy about this. It's common knowledge that the DHS terror list was a tool of Republican policy.
Yeah, they are just having fun with each other. BTW I live in Arizona. And I can say that Janet may not have been perfect but the Republican administration that took over is already destroying the state. They've pulled funding for education, so much so there are questions as to whether they have violated laws that require kids to have access to education.
On the plus side, as a concealed weapons permit holder, I can now carry a concealed and loaded handgun into a bar. That was passed Monday. I still can't carry one into a school but they are working on that. On the down side the new Gov. vetoed a bill to legalize fireworks in AZ. She lost my vote with that one.
So, a "frequent flyer number" will allow someone to bypass searches mandated by the super-secret "No Fly" list? What frequent flyer number? Is this the number given to you for customer loyalty from a particular airline? Which one is vetted by the DHS?
Is this the ClearPass system... which doesn't exist anymore because the company went under?
What about the frequent flyer miles that come off my credit card? IS VISA the gateway to travel nirvana?
Or... like everything else about DHS... are we not high enough on the clearance list to know? Oh, I trust you... as far as my boot goes up YOUR butt...
Think about it. You're smarter than the average bear, win the governorship of ... Arizona ... and have to deal with people who may or may not have the brains god gave dog food as part of your day-to-day (including the monkeyshit fight that is the AZ Legislature -- the same "small gubmint" crowd that brought us the right to bring guns into bars also thinks that women can't decide for themselves whether to terminate a pregnancy and that they need a 24-hour "cooling off" period). The opportunity comes to move on to bigger (yes) and better (maybe) things in DC. Would you even waste your time on petty payback to folks not worth the calories spent picking up a phone? Please. Janet's got bigger fish to fry.