There are over 1 million records covering 400,000 names on the US Government’s terrorist watch list, according to this Reuters article, U.S. terrorism watch list tops 1 million.
How in the name of good common sense can this list be effective? That’s what the ACLU would like to know, and I agree with them.
According to a survey by the Association of Corporate Travel Executives, 7 percent of the respondents had at least one electronic device seized for inspection while traveling. As the New York Times points out in this op-ed piece, The Government and Your Laptop, searching a computer or cell phone can involve much more information than a simple luggage search might reveal.
Whatever happened to the Fourth Amendment? I know the US Senate, including Senators Inouye (D-HI) and Obama (D-IL) tossed it under the bus last week when they extended the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and Daniel Akaka (D-HI) voted no, while John McCain (R-AZ) did not vote on the measure - see the roll call.
At least the ACLU has filed a suit to halt FISA - see this Wired article called Bush Signs Spy Bill, ACLU Sues for details.
Tags: airline, airport, Federal, government, Hawaii, privacy, reliability, safety, security, senate, travel, USA
