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The danger with this sort of approach isn't so much the conscious abuse of it, but the way it can be informed by an individual's own prejudices and fears. And that isn't to say I think cops are racist...probably some are, likely many aren't: but we all have some prejudices. Even if we don't hold a particular set of views, our instinctive responses may not always make us proud of ourselves :P
I notice islamic dress in a way I never did before. It was always there; I just didn't really pay it any attention. Now, I notice a group of asian lads in islamic clothes and I feel a kind of tension. If a police officer on the beat notices more as well, and is particularly focused on the anti-extremism agenda, then the addition of arbitrary stop and search powers becomes a dangerous thing. Not because the police officer is necessarily racist, or even anti-Islam: just aware and with the power to stop anyone who looks 'suspicious'.
If the police in Arizona are particularly focusing on the immigration issue; how are they deciding who to stop?
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