The new Democratic president must fix TSA
Posted by mofembot Mon, 04 Feb 2008 11:34:00 GMT
Note: An earlier version of this post can be found at DailyKos.
As an American citizen, an ex-pat who is currently a legal resident of France, I have at least one very specific concern which I hope will be addressed – no, that must be fixed – by the new Democratic president, whoever she or he may be: rolling back the extra-Constitutional powers granted to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). Would that this problem were fixed long before Inauguration Day 2009!
In my guise as “mofembot,” I have been a fairly active participant in a couple of venues besides DailyKos; most notably, I often write comments in response to (comments in response to) editorials and letters to the editor in the Salt Lake Tribune. In one such recent exchange, I was accused of cowardice for using a pseudonym. I replied:
I do not use my real name here nor in most other electronic venues because I genuinely fear that I will be put on the “no-fly” list, and family circumstances are such that I cannot afford to take that risk. Perhaps I will feel safe to do so when habeus corpus and other civil liberties are restored, and when something is done to re-balance the need for security with the need to respect people’s privacy and freedom.
Call me selfish, but one of the very first things I want changed is TSA’s power to detain travelers on a whim. I have read enough stories of babies and young children, famous individuals, and even “common folk” being placed on the no-fly list for completely scurrilous reasons – including publicly criticizing Bush and his minions – to worry about the possibility of one day finding myself on the list. (And I would not be flying to the States, by the way, unless circumstances urgently required my presence there, so being stopped would be intolerable. Whatever my political or social opinions, I am most certainly not a security risk.)
At the very least, I want the “no-fly” list abolished or made public such that any person can challenge the appearance of his or her name on it. I want utter transparency about the procedure by which someone’s name can be placed on it. Who is able to put people’s names on it? What constitutes a valid reason? How can the no-fly list be challenged? Further, I want the back-log of cases being currently appealed to be handled immediately and expeditiously and fairly. I want the presumption of innocence to be the rule again: TSA (et al.) should have to show cause for putting anyone’s name on the list, rather than requiring people to prove their innocence.
I want due process in place for any and all travelers who are pulled aside for whatever reason and denied boarding. I want sane and humane practices in place when dealing with people who are accused of technical or administrative (i.e., visa) infractions.
I want a means of immediate appeal. I want to be able to speak with people who are empowered to overrule the no-fly list. I want to deal with reasonable people who will listen instead of glory in their ability to impose their will upon me. I want to be able to reason with TSA personnel without being thrown in detention for so doing. I want guarantees that any detained person will have the ability to contact a lawyer and family and friends… especially those waiting in vain at the other (arrival) airport. Whims and willfulness should not be the basis for life-changing decisions on the part of TSA nor of any other entity or person granted authority.
While I can live with taking off my coat and even my shoes for security’s sake, I want all useless “safety” rules abolished, high among which would be the ridiculous “no liquids” restriction.
I want the new Democratic president to help us, the battered and cowed traveling sheep, to turn back into people again. I want the new Democratic president to stand up with us against bureaucratic arbitrariness and bullying, particularly in the face of nonsensical rules that add nothing to our travel safety while contributing to frustration and delays.
I wish I didn’t have to wait for January 2009 to hope for any and all such changes, but I frankly don’t have any faith that the current Congress will make things right without true leadership emanating from the White House. And I wish that current circumstances didn’t make me feel so darned paranoid.