frightening flight experience

[lookout123]

Originally Posted by jane_says

I As I also said before, we have zero terrorist incidents as a result of the policy. You know the old adage that begins "if it ain't broke..."

we also used to allow cockpit doors to stand open in flight, the policy used to be for pilots to comply with terrorist demands if immediate landing wasn't available... those practices never had negative results, until...

sometimes you can't wait for bad shit to happen before you open your eyes. "brown people" are not being targeted. the current intel suggests that there are going to be further attempts at hijacking from muslim terrorists, who are generally, from arab descent. certain things raise red flags. if there are enough red flags then further scrutiny is required.
14 syrians - check against data base for terrorist affiliation, if none found clear for travel
14 syrians on one way tickets, pay closer attention
14 syrians who do not sit together but take items into a restroom and pass it off to each other pay very close attention.
anything other than this and the air marshalls, DHS, who ever is responsible, would have been remiss in their duties.

the 14 syrians were not denied access to flights, they were not harassed in the air, they were not detained on the ground. they were watched, as they should have been.

[Carbonated_Brains]

As we exited the jetway and entered the airport, we saw many, many men in dark suits. A few yards further out into the terminal, LAPD agents ran past us, heading for the gate. I have since learned that the representatives of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), the Federal Air Marshals (FAM), and the Transportation Security Association (TSA) met our plane as it landed. Several men -- who I presume were the federal air marshals on board -- hurried off the plane and directed the 14 men over to the side.

Not detained my ass.

[vsp]

Originally Posted by lookout123

the 14 syrians were not denied access to flights, they were not harassed in the air, they were not detained on the ground. they were watched, as they should have been.

If they were watched, investigated and cleared and went on to play their concert without incident, that'd be one thing.

If they were watched, investigated and cleared and went on to play their concert, oblivious to the fact that their mere presence and innocuous behavior creeped out a skittish white fellow passenger with 9/11 on the brain (they didn't SMILE BACK at her! The horror!), who then posted a paranoid rant about her flight experience online, lighting up the Internet and talk radio with debate as to whether they were REALLY sinister Syrian terrorists testing out methods of blowing up American airplanes in the name of Allah, making them minor celebrities of an unwelcome variety, that's quite another.

I thought Driving While Black was a bit much, but Flying While Arabic takes it to a whole new level.

BTW, the lead picture on this <a href="http://www.salon.com/tech/col/smith/2004/07/21/askthepilot95/">Salon article</a> is hysterically appropriate.

[Carbonated_Brains]

And the "policy" has nothing to do with arabic people. The fine is for ANY 2 visible minority members detained for secondary questioning, not "we'll fine you as per the Too Many Brown People clause".

I personally completely disagree with any sort of hard-fast guideline such as this, but you damn well better have excellent watchdogs keeping an eye on the errant stupid fuck who wants to harass all the black people, or brown people, or something.

It may make statistical sense in light of recent events to place enormous scrutiny on arabs. But as soon as you take away all the guidelines that PROTECT the innocent arabs just trying to make a flight, a lot of them are going to get exploited.

With the amount of people in here acting the way they are, I'm willing to bet at least a couple of the airport security personnel currently employed (especially those employed since 9/11) are just itching to catch some "dirty arab" ready to bomb a plane.

Once an ethnicity is put under the magnifying glass on account of a bunch of assholes from that ethnicity, it is IMPERATIVE we make sure that the vast majority of innocent arabs aren't targeted.

And I don't give a shit about how uncomfortable white people are at the moment. Think about how insanely uncomfortable regular-Joe arabs are right now, knowing that every time they go outside, someone thinks they're going to set off a bomb, and if they look at somebody the wrong way, they're a terrorist.

[Carbonated_Brains]

Never trust a man with an accordian.

[jane_says]

That white chick in the front freaking out looks like Beth Littleford. Beth Little ford is hot. That is all.

[Carbonated_Brains]

I'd be all worried that she'd pull that face during coitus.

[jane_says]

As an aside, has anyone seen any mainstream media coverage of this episode? I know it's been all over the internet, and my husband is the producer of a local radio talk show and the rednecks have been burning it up there, but has CNN or any "reliable" news source had anything to say?

[bluesdave]

Originally Posted by jane_says

As an aside, has anyone seen any mainstream media coverage of this episode? I know it's been all over the internet, and my husband is the producer of a local radio talk show and the rednecks have been burning it up there, but has CNN or any "reliable" news source had anything to say?

Here is a NYTimes article on the story.

Even so, he said, he had no doubt that "most of the stuff did happen" as Ms. Jacobsen described it.

[jane_says]

If she did, I'd assume I'd done something very, very right or very, very, wrong.

[tw]

How to get you to support the current president. It's an old old trick. Promote fear. Only question remaining is who really is the source of this speculative article. He looked Arabic and did not smile back. Dear god. The world is going to end. Did I mention the Arabic looking character driving slowly through my neighborhood looking at front doors?

I believe the guy wrote a book called "Give me a Break". Promote fear and suddenly enemies are everywhere.

Last time Ashcroft tried to promote fear, the centrist Tom Ridge instead said it was nonsense (chatter was not unusual) and refused to raise the Warning to Orange. This must have infuriated the extremists who needed that threat warning for that week's approval numbers.

[DanaC]

"I thought Driving While Black was a bit much, but Flying While Arabic takes it to a whole new level."
*chuckles* well said

[lookout123]

ok, no body questions the fact that this woman is an idiot just trying for her 15 minutes of fame. the debate was whether the 14 syrians should have been a subject of interest or not.
her article was foolish and serves no purpose except to stir people up. it shouldn't have been published. that does not change the fact that the 14 raised a lot of little flags and LE has learned that you have to pay more attention.

Not detained my ass.

how long were they in prison? did they have cuffs put on? or were they merely questioned? i have been questioned in airports before because of my flight patterns and some items i used to carry. answer the questions; if you have valid, answers carry on with your life. i don't really give a shit about hurting feelings, i don't really give a shit what color they are. if they were 14 white guys in the exact same situation, they should also be questioned.

[Undertoad]

Already there's a problem... they claim to be musicians, but one of them admitted he was a drummer.

[xoxoxoBruce]

And yet another point of view.