if you read nothing else today, read this.

[sophiaserpentia]

lady_babalon, I might be joining you in that boycott of air travel. Thanks to ravenia for the link.

Data provided by the U.S. Census Bureau came from respondents to the 1990 census and included "information on both households and individuals," the NASA study said. The NASA experiment used 5 million census records from each of two data sets it created, "one that stores household records and another that stores person records."

... However, Mr. Steinhardt, who sits on the Census Advisory Committee, said releasing information on households and individuals is "a major breach of trust." "The advisory board specifically asked this question, whether they were providing data to any other government agency, and the answer was 'no,' " Mr. Steinhardt said. "We will have to look carefully at what they provided NASA and why."

.... The Computer Assisted Passenger Pre-Screening (CAPPS II) system under development by the Homeland Security Department will use passenger records that include name, address, phone number and date of birth. The information will be used to confirm the passenger's identity and will be compared with criminal and terrorist watch lists. A color-coded threat assessment will be assigned to each passenger: green for standard security, yellow for additional screening and red to prevent the passenger from boarding a plane. Security officials estimate the error rate at 4 percent to 8 percent, which Mr. Steinhardt said "means 4 [million] to 8 million Americans will mistakenly be labeled as terrorists."

from Study used census information for terror profile

Comments

[alobar.livejournal.com]

I sent a letter of non-cooperation to the census bureau comments@census.gov telling them I would no longer cooperate with the census takers & I would be suggesting others do likewise. I urge you to drop them a note telling them of your feelings.

[sophiaserpentia.livejournal.com]

This is *precisely* the sort of thing has been promised for 200 years would never happen with Census data. This is a betrayal of the most fundamental sort of trust between American citizens and (what was once) their government.

what's it all about, Alfie?

[brigid-shine.livejournal.com]

oh god. shoot me now.

[azaz-al.livejournal.com]

The worst thing for me is having to fly for my job, which I really can't afford to lose right now. It is all I can do not to start screaming at these people who demand invasive searches of me and everyone else - removing clothing such as shoes and jackets and even sweaters and sweatshirts - checking ID not once, but 3-5 times - searching my bag without consent and giving me notes that tell me if I don't want my personal things to be touch *I* need to put them in clear plastic bags - making sneering, insinuating remarks if I make the mildest protest of any kind or even ask why - and all under the watchful eye of uniformed military personnel with very large machine guns in hand. And ye gods, I'm a rather mild-mannered quiet white woman - what kind of experience are people who are foreign in appearance having?
I'm taking the bus to NOLA for Mardi Gras. The airlines have lost my personal income until they cease incorporating with these totalitarian tactics.

[ovary.livejournal.com]

Machine guns? In the airport???

It's been a long time since I've been in an airport (pre 9/11). I had no idea.

[azaz-al.livejournal.com]

Oh yes, right at the security gate in Providence (at least last time I flew from there.) Tends to dampen any urge to stand up for oneself.

[sophiaserpentia.livejournal.com]

Security folks in Boston are still touchy because two of the 9-11 planes left from there.

[johns-life.livejournal.com]

Yup, for a long time now. In most airports I have been to, though definately more prevalent in 6 mos after 9/11 than now.

[johns-life.livejournal.com]

Also some airports just have pistols, not machine guns. I asked the jackass with the machine gun why once and he replied "because it's so much more intimidating".

Yeah well, not to me, but I am not a bad guy :).

The pistol carrying people were far nicer overall too. (different states, different govenors)

[ovary.livejournal.com]

I wonder what kind of machine gun they use...

However, it also makes me wonder, just when are they going to use one? If a would-be terrorist takes off running out of the airport, I don't think the military can just open fire on him. Or so I think.

[johns-life.livejournal.com]

The ones in Atlanta were M16s.

Kansas City was pistols.

I can't remember what Raleigh-Durham had .... maybe I didn't see them there if they didn't make an impression .... hrm ...

[pooperman.livejournal.com]

If it makes you feel better, the guns were probably not loaded...

(Normally the M16's are just there for show, and the ammunition is held by a supervisor. Ammunition is hard to track, and its expensive. Much easier to give it to a senior NCO or commissioned officer who can run to the seen after it's too late.)

[discoflamingo.livejournal.com]

In Italy, it was just kind of assumed that you would be greeted by police officers with automatic rifles or Uzi's as you got off the plane.

[johns-life.livejournal.com]

I've only flown once post 9/11 for personal travel. I've flown 2-3 times total since then.

I've logged around 10K miles on my car that probably would have been via plane otherwise.

I refuse to put up with it ... so I don't fly. Take that airline bottom lines!

[sophiaserpentia.livejournal.com]

It comes out of their bottom lines -- unless Congress props them up again with another bailout.

[johns-life.livejournal.com]

I know.

The last bailout (or the one I am thinking about anyhow) wasn't really blatant. The reason most airlines didn't go for it was due to the extreme conditions like giving up control of X amount of the airline, etc.

Of course you may be thinking about other things ...

[discoflamingo.livejournal.com]

Anothe bailout is unlikely, given what most of the airlines were able to accomplish with the previous bailout (and they have been told as much by the Appropriations committee). The smaller airlines have managed to turn a profit (or go out of business), while the larger airlines are holding out their hands for more. From a business perspective, it has been nothing but good for the industry - from a consumer's perspective, we have to wait til the retrofitted cockpits on existing planes (and new planes like the 7E7 and A380) come out before a "secure" plane is considered standard - probably around '07 at the earliest.

Chances are better than average that foreign airlines will expand service through the US if the major airlines fold. They have experienced very little of the economic backlash post-9/11, since restrictions on flying anywhere outside the US were relatively unaffected by the administration's scare-mongering.