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Oh TSA....
Bahamut.Kara
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By Bahamut.Kara 2015-01-24 06:55:08
Student detained at airport for having Arabic flashcards settles lawsuit from 2009 incident
Authorities said cards were "suspicious" because Osama bin Laden spoke Arabic.
Quote: After a half-hour delay at the security line, the supervisor showed up, and things turned from annoying to surreal. After looking at the book and flashcards, the supervisor asked me: "Do you know who did 9/11?" Taken totally aback, I answered: "Osama Bin Laden." Then she asked me if I knew what language Osama Bin Laden spoke. "Arabic," I replied. "So do you see why these cards are suspicious?" she finished.
Imagine going from being in line at the airport to having a TSA supervisor imply you had some connection with the worst act of terrorism ever committed against your country—all over the course of a few minutes.
Older stories which indicate a pattern of bad judgement calls:
Brief overview of TSA employees and baggage handlers stealing from passengers since 9/11
Quote: Just last week I flew into JFK airport's terminal 4, and thankfully I only had carry-on luggage, because this morning I read that seven baggage handlers from JFK -- working in terminals 4 and 7 -- have been arrested for stealing stuff from people's luggage. And doing so without much fear of getting caught (even if they were, eventually).
Now, if this were a one time thing, it might not even be that noteworthy. But this seems like fairly common practice at airports. A few years ago, we wrote about TSA agents stealing iPads and stories of TSA agents and baggage handlers stealing stuff from luggage are not at all hard to find. In fact, reports from a few years ago noted that over 400 TSA employees have been fired for stealing from passnegers in the past decade.
And related stories are all over the place. Hell, back in March, another group of JFK baggage handlers were arrested. On nearly the same day, it looks like a similar theft ring involving baggage handlers at LAX was broken up. Even more recently, a similar theft ring at New Orleans' Louis Armstrong International Airport. Amateur sleuths were needed to bust up a baggage handler theft ring in Charleston, South Carolina. A WSJ article from a few years ago details a long list of baggage handler thefts from a wide range of airports.
And it's not just baggage handlers, but the TSA itself, who (we're told) is supposed to be protecting us from bad people. Here's $8,500 stolen from a bag. Here's a TSA officer stealing a computer. Here's a TSA agent swiping $36 from a passenger. A few years ago, a convicted TSA agent, who admitted to stealing $800,000 from passengers at Newark Airport in New Jersey, spoke out about just how common theft was among the TSA.
Federal Judge rules in favor of defendant under the First Amendment, TSA fines man anyway
Quote: A couple years ago, we wrote about a guy named John Brennan (who, we're pretty damn sure is not the John Brennan who is now director of the CIA) who decided to strip naked at a TSA screening area in an airport to protest the screening process. As we noted, a federal judge acquitted Brennan on First Amendment grounds, noting that he was engaged in a public protest, and that the nudity was a form of protected expression, not subject to indecent exposure laws.
No matter, apparently, for the TSA, who just went ahead and fined Brennan anyway claiming Brennan "interfered with screening personnel in the performance of their duties" (a violation of this rather broad law).
Fox news contributor put on Terrorist watchlist
Quote: As for how Hayes ended up on the list, he claims it's because he recently booked a one-way flight to Istanbul for a cruise, returning to the US from Athens a few weeks later. Indeed, that seems likely. Marcy Wheeler has been pointing out for a while that one of the criteria to be put on the watchlist is merely "travel... to a locus of TERRORIST ACTIVITY" and apparently Istanbul counts.
In fact, Spencer Ackerman, at the Guardian, actually got US officials to quietly admit that those reports you've heard of 100 Americans "fighting for ISIS" is an almost entirely bogus claim based entirely on Americans who "travelled to Syria or attempted to travel to Syria over the past 18 months." In other words, if you're an American and you happened to travel to or near Syria, the US government claims you're fighting for ISIS -- even if, say, you went to provide humanitarian aid or to fight against ISIS. The US government doesn't care. Onto the "terrorist" list you go.
Man given a full pat down again after his flight because TSA thought they had forgotten to do it before the flight
Quote: Yes, after he's already flown from Minneapolis (where he claims he was groped, though the TSA claims it was missed) to Denver, the TSA wishes to grope him (and search through his bags again). Apparently, they believe that he might magically reverse time and go back in time to blow up the plane or something.
The TSA agent, Andrew Grossman, first demands Nygard's boarding pass. Nygard points out that he no longer has it (you don't need it after you board), which stumps Grossman, leading him to have to make a phone call -- where he helpfully tells whoever he's talking to at the other end that Nygard is "pretty objectionable, filming me." Nygard keeps asking why they need to search him, and the TSA has no good answer, other than saying they need to do so. Nygard asks if he's being detained, and they don't answer. He asks if it's an order or a request, and the TSA's Grossman again doesn't really answer (other than to say that he's following orders). Finally, Nygard just walks away, saying that if he's not being detained, he's leaving. The TSA claims it's calling the Denver police, who apparently did not do anything to stop Nygard, who walked out of the airport without any further problems.
By Jetackuu 2015-01-24 08:52:13
I love when people look at me weird when I tell them the creation of the TSA was unnecessary.
I mean people look at me weird anyway, but that's beside the point.
But yes, there is an issue when you give morons power, and especially when those same morons think they're profilers.
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By Grumpy Cat 2015-01-24 09:26:53
I love when people look at me weird when I tell them the creation of the TSA was unnecessary.
I mean people look at me weird anyway, but that's beside the point.
But yes, there is an issue when you give morons power, and especially when those same morons think they're profilers. You know how hard I want to quote this and replace TSA with something else related to this site right now? Perfect *** fit.
By Jetackuu 2015-01-24 09:49:34
lol
Fenrir.Camiie
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By Fenrir.Camiie 2015-01-24 10:30:50
You mean giving the dregs of society uniforms and allowing them to fondle the buxom, the elderly, and the prepubescent isn't protecting us from hijackers and suicide bombers? I'm shocked... shocked I tell you!
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By Shiva.Onorgul 2015-01-24 17:00:37
Define what you mean by this. My admittedly limited experience of the TSA has been of people with a high school education and frequently non-white, but I know they have to do silly things like pass criminal background checks. I'd figure the actual dregs would be a crack-addicted rapist at bare minimum.
Also, if Jonah Falcon, a man who shares similar attributes to Ron Jeremy in terms of crotch endowment and looking uglier than a sick donkey's anus, can get hassled by TSA, I don't think they're focusing on getting their jollies off with hot chicks and GILFs.
I'm rather disgusted it took 5 years to settle a lawsuit that anyone with half a brain could see was only going to end one way. But, hey, we're the country that fired most of our Arabic translators just before going to war with Iraq and Afghanistan because it turned out they were mostly gay. So, yeah... we've got a history of smart ideas.
By Blazed1979 2015-01-24 17:18:52
Poor training. But the article does mention that they found the words "terrorist" and "bomb" on the flashdisks.
Its not a detailed enough article. But, with no training to validate this, I would probably look into someone's luggage if there was "bomb" or "terrorist" mentioned anywhere in their soft or hard copy material.
Bahamut.Milamber
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By Bahamut.Milamber 2015-01-25 00:48:57
Poor training. But the article does mention that they found the words "terrorist" and "bomb" on the flashdisks.
Its not a detailed enough article. But, with no training to validate this, I would probably look into someone's luggage if there was "bomb" or "terrorist" mentioned anywhere in their soft or hard copy material. Yes, because those words never show up anywhere whatsoever these days.
If he had a piece of paper that said "I am a terrorist, and have a bomb", then you might have a point.
Flashcards are a common tool for memorization (e.g. vocabulary for languages).
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Bahamut.Kara
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By Bahamut.Kara 2015-01-25 00:52:29
Poor training. But the article does mention that they found the words "terrorist" and "bomb" on the flashdisks.
Its not a detailed enough article. But, with no training to validate this, I would probably look into someone's luggage if there was "bomb" or "terrorist" mentioned anywhere in their soft or hard copy material. Some of the first words I learned in Russian was bomb, tank, and gun from my high school textbook.
Your criteria would create a lot of unneccessary searches if people carried any recent magazines, newpapers, or any crime/mystery novels.
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By Shiva.Onorgul 2015-01-25 01:49:43
Some of the first words I learned in Russian was bomb, tank, and gun from my high school textbook. Any idea why?
The first words I learned after basic greetings and "My name is..." while studying French and Spanish were for things like book, pen, and school. The context seems obvious. When I studied Japanese... (running to go grab my old JP book) our first "nouns" were telephone and language words. Japanese being so context-dependent, we actually learned a whole lot of "adjectives" first, since whole conversations can be carried out in fluent Japanese without ever naming what the hell you're talking about.
I find it depressing that someone engaged in Arabic studies would have time to learn the words "terrorist" and "bomb." I know them in other languages mostly as a result of reading news in those languages, so... I guess it makes sense.
Bahamut.Kara
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By Bahamut.Kara 2015-01-25 01:59:37
Some of the first words I learned in Russian was bomb, tank, and gun from my high school textbook. Any idea why?
The first words I learned after basic greetings and "My name is..." while studying French and Spanish were for things like book, pen, and school. The context seems obvious. When I studied Japanese... (running to go grab my old JP book) our first "nouns" were telephone and language words. Japanese being so context-dependent, we actually learned a whole lot of "adjectives" first, since whole conversations can be carried out in fluent Japanese without ever naming what the hell you're talking about.
I find it depressing that someone engaged in Arabic studies would have time to learn the words "terrorist" and "bomb." I know them in other languages mostly as a result of reading news in those languages, so... I guess it makes sense.
This was in 96-99, shortly (relatively) after the USSR fell. My textbook still had comrade and other soviet words.
I took French and Japanese in high school too, those words weren't taught.
We (US) have a more adversarial relationship with certain countries and the vocabulary taught reflects that. Depending on the time period involved.
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By Shiva.Onorgul 2015-01-25 02:14:12
It still strikes me as weird to have in a high school textbook. It'd be like cracking open a Spanish textbook today and having "drugs" and "murder" be among the first words taught.
Bahamut.Kara
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By Bahamut.Kara 2015-01-25 02:36:18
It still strikes me as weird to have in a high school textbook. It'd be like cracking open a Spanish textbook today and having "drugs" and "murder" be among the first words taught. For the life of me I can't remember the full title of that book. Google is not helping. Ooh idoit (дурак) was also a vocab word in the russian book
It is weird. Language affects perception of yourself and others around you. It's very interesting how another language is taught and how people view that culture/people from that.
Here is an article written about textbooks used to teach Afghan fifth graders the Pashto language during the Soviet era published by the University of Nebraska.
Quote: In one story, the fictional friends see a group of Afghan mujahedeen cleaning their weapons as they prepare to fight the Soviet army.
Maqbool tells Basheer they should help the rebel fighters ready their machine guns. Basheer concurs. Soon they are meeting with a mujahedeen commander.
“We want you to help clean the weapons and fight the Russians in jihad,” he tells Maqbool and Basheer.
The youngsters agree. Now, presumably, they are soldiers themselves.
The story, and many like it, appear in the millions of textbooks written, printed and distributed during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. The books taught reading and math and sought to turn children against the Red Army and the Afghan communist government.
The textbooks’ publisher: The University of Nebraska at Omaha’s Center for Afghanistan Studies, operating inside Pakistan on a U.S. government grant.
The books we had to read in my Danish class almost always dealt with some sort of criminal behaviour: bus driver beat up, 2 danish girls traveling and getting raped, a young girl having her bike stolen, etc. Even though Denmark has one of the lowest crime rates in the world. I'm not sure why the books mostly dealt with these subjects, unless they felt immigrants would be better able to relate to them or something.
Jan drives a Bus lists the exercises, learning objectives, and vocab
Edited link
By Nazrious 2015-01-25 02:43:39
It still strikes me as weird to have in a high school textbook. It'd be like cracking open a Spanish textbook today and having "drugs" and "murder" be among the first words taught.
Wait you mean walking around Colombia asking for drugs and murder for hire is not appropriate? DAMN YOU MRS. PEREZ.... DAMN YOU!
seriously though I took french and Mrs. Perez taught maths and not Spanish. I did learn a crap ton of words for food stuffs lol.
By Blazed1979 2015-01-25 03:42:35
Poor training. But the article does mention that they found the words "terrorist" and "bomb" on the flashdisks.
Its not a detailed enough article. But, with no training to validate this, I would probably look into someone's luggage if there was "bomb" or "terrorist" mentioned anywhere in their soft or hard copy material. Yes, because those words never show up anywhere whatsoever these days.
If he had a piece of paper that said "I am a terrorist, and have a bomb", then you might have a point.
Flashcards are a common tool for memorization (e.g. vocabulary for languages). Poor training. But the article does mention that they found the words "terrorist" and "bomb" on the flashdisks.
Its not a detailed enough article. But, with no training to validate this, I would probably look into someone's luggage if there was "bomb" or "terrorist" mentioned anywhere in their soft or hard copy material. Some of the first words I learned in Russian was bomb, tank, and gun from my high school textbook.
Your criteria would create a lot of unneccessary searches if people carried any recent magazines, newpapers, or any crime/mystery novels.
As I said, lack of proper training. How many people are oblivious enough of air travel sensitivities to travel with any content of any kind that might be considered suspicious.
You can be arrested for just saying the word "bomb" on a flight.
I'm not saying it was the right move. There aren't enough details to make an educated decision. "Bomb" and "Terrorist" were available somewhere in some form. What I am saying is it is pretty understandable how the security employees might have been thinking. I highly doubt they just randomly decided to detain the guy without any, what they perceived to be, reasonable cause.
If he had turned out to be a terrorist or intended harm, think how ridiculous the news headlines would be "Terrorist had the words "Bomb" and "Terrorist" on flashcards but security failed to act".
Its not a black or white situation.
By Blazed1979 2015-01-25 03:46:21
Quote: It is weird. Language affects perception of yourself and others around you. It's very interesting how another language is taught and how people view that culture/people from that.
http://www.economist.com/blogs/prospero/2014/10/johnson-bilingual-brains
Quote: FOR years, researchers in bilingualism have been touting striking findings about how bilingualism affects the brain. Two of the most memorable involve “executive control” and delayed dementia. With the first, bilinguals have shown that they are better able to focus on demanding mental tasks despite distractions. In other studies, it has been estimated that bilinguals see the onset of dementia, on average, about five years later than monolinguals do.
This week comes new evidence* for the pile: researchers led by Roberto Filippi of Anglia Ruskin University have found that young bilingual pupils did a better job answering tricky questions with a noisy voice in the background than a monolingual control group did. The study was small (just 40 pupils, only 20 in each group). But its robustness is helped by the diversity of the bilinguals, who spoke Italian, Spanish, Bengali, Polish, Russian and others in addition to English. The experimenters tried to distract the pupils with random unrelated recordings in English (which all the pupils spoke) and Greek (which none of them did). The bilinguals did significantly better at ignoring the Greek distraction. (They did just a bit better with the English one.)
The researchers in this line of inquiry tend to share a common hypothesis: that being bilingual is a kind of constant inhibitory mental exercise. With two languages in the mind, nearly everything has two labels (words) and nearly everything can be expressed in two different kinds of sentences (grammar). Every time a thing is named, an alternative must be suppressed. Every time a sentence is constructed, the other way of constructing it must be suppressed. Blocking out distracting information is exactly what researchers find that bilinguals do well. And as for dementia, the effect seems to be a kind of analogue to physical activity over the course of a lifetime keeping a body fit. Mental exercise keeps the brain fit, and bilingualism is just that kind of exercise. (Crucially, the most striking findings relate to native bilinguals. The effects are weak to nonexistent for those who merely have a passable ability, infrequently used, in a second language.)
Why bilinguals seem to do better in quite a few differently designed studies does, however, need more research. Another paper published earlier this year** failed to replicate a cornerstone 2004*** study of the bilingual-advantage research. The new study, using elderly participants, found that Asian-language-plus-English bilinguals in Scotland, as well as Gaelic-English bilinguals, did no better than monolinguals on a task that required ignoring a visual distraction. The authors of the 2014 study speculate that the 2004 study used a crucially different kind of bilingual. Those studied in 2014 in Scotland were not frequently required to switch between their languages. The Gaelic-English bilinguals had not been educated in Gaelic, and presumably spoke it to a small group of friends and family, and only in certain settings. The Asian-language speakers had been educated earlier in their Asian tongues, but in Scotland spoke their heritage language only at home, and used English more outside home and family circles. The researchers in the 2004 study tested pupils educated in both languages, those more likely to have two ready labels for a wide range of vocabulary, and who were forced to switch often.
If the advantage accrues to those who switch more often—and especially those who use more than one language with the same people (like Puerto Rican New Yorkers who rapidly switch back and forth between Spanish and English in the same two-person conversation)—then we are left with a refined version of the “fitness” analogy. Just as recent exercise trends stress variety over repetition, moving between languages, not just knowledge of two of them, may be a key part of the bilingual advantage. Amazingly, some parents still think bilingualism might harm a child's development. Perhaps selling bilingualism as an elite, varied exercise—a kind of Crossfit of the mind—might convince more parents to give it a try.
* Filippi, R., Morris, J., Richardson, F., Bright, P., Thomas, M.S.C, Karmiloff-Smith, A., and Marian, V., “Bilingual children show an advantage in controlling verbal interference during spoken language comprehension”, Bilingualism: Language & Cognition 2014.
** Kirk, N., Fiala, L., Scott-Brown, K.C. and Kempe, V., “No evidence for reduced Simon cost in elderly bilinguals and bidialectals”, Journal of Cognitive Psychology 2014.
*** Bialystok, E., Craik, F.I.M., Klein, R., and Viswanathan, M., "Bilignualism, aging and cognitive control: evidence from the Simon task", Psychology & Aging, 2004.
Bahamut.Kara
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By Bahamut.Kara 2015-01-25 03:59:48
It still strikes me as weird to have in a high school textbook. It'd be like cracking open a Spanish textbook today and having "drugs" and "murder" be among the first words taught. For the life of me I can't remember the full title of that book. Google is not helping. Ooh idoit (дурак) was also a vocab word in the russian book
Ha found it! Weird memory remembering the copyright date, but not title
Bahamut.Kara
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By Bahamut.Kara 2015-01-25 04:08:47
As I said, lack of proper training. How many people are oblivious enough of air travel sensitivities to travel with any content of any kind that might be considered suspicious.
You can be arrested for just saying the word "bomb" on a flight.
I'm not saying it was the right move. There aren't enough details to make an educated decision. "Bomb" and "Terrorist" were available somewhere in some form. What I am saying is it is pretty understandable how the security employees might have been thinking. I highly doubt they just randomly decided to detain the guy without any, what they perceived to be, reasonable cause.
If he had turned out to be a terrorist or intended harm, think how ridiculous the news headlines would be "Terrorist had the words "Bomb" and "Terrorist" on flashcards but security failed to act".
Its not a black or white situation.
They settled and part of the settlement is that the police officers cannot use TSA's assumption to make an arrest (court document is linked in text).
You have to have probable cause. A student who is minoring in Middle Eastern Affairs having Arabic flashcards where some words are the same words used to discuss current events is not probable cause for an arrest.
Saying bomb on a plane can lead to a wrongful arrest (depending on context). Over resction is not a good default and this reaction was not justified.
Bahamut.Kara
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By Bahamut.Kara 2015-01-25 04:38:08
While that is interesting, that's not what I was referring to.
Yes, switching between languages means you are labelling things in your mind but it also means you are learning about another cultures labelling habits.
Language greatly affects how you perceive the world around you.
Danish requires you to understand the context of a conversation because of how many words which are spelled and sound the same have very different meanings.
Number one example is the verbs to marry and to poison. They are both gift in Danish. I was watching a news story 5-6 years ago with Danish subtitles at the gym about horses in Belgium. At first I thought they said the horses had been married. No, the horses had been poisoned.
There are also sayings (common in many lamguages) which when the words are individually translated sound like gibberish.
Example:
"bury the hatchet" means to settle differences. Directly translating that people might think you literally need to bury a hatchet in the ground and that is where the meaning orginally came from (from some Native Americans who did this), but that is not what we do today.
"I'll ride shotgun" means to ride in the front passanger seat of a car. During the expansion of the West this literally meant the person who carried a shotgun.
Danes also have many sayings (so many) such as "going to stick a branch in my ear" which means going to get drunk/out to party. I have idea where that came from. The Danes who said it had no idea where it came from, just that it meant that.
So, (in my opinion) while switching between to languages might limit a person to "labelling" words it also expands their thought process on the culture involved
Edit:
Not even getting into languages that don't have an alphabet (e.g. Cantonese) and so how they learn and communicate is different
By Blazed1979 2015-01-25 10:23:17
While that is interesting, that's not what I was referring to.
Yes, switching between languages means you are labelling things in your mind but it also means you are learning about another cultures labelling habits.
Language greatly affects how you perceive the world around you.
Danish requires you to understand the context of a conversation because of how many words which are spelled and sound the same have very different meanings.
Number one example is the verbs to marry and to poison. They are both gift in Danish. I was watching a news story 5-6 years ago with Danish subtitles at the gym about horses in Belgium. At first I thought they said the horses had been married. No, the horses had been poisoned.
There are also sayings (common in many lamguages) which when the words are individually translated sound like gibberish.
Example:
"bury the hatchet" means to settle differences. Directly translating that people might think you literally need to bury a hatchet in the ground and that is where the meaning orginally came from (from some Native Americans who did this), but that is not what we do today.
"I'll ride shotgun" means to ride in the front passanger seat of a car. During the expansion of the West this literally meant the person who carried a shotgun.
Danes also have many sayings (so many) such as "going to stick a branch in my ear" which means going to get drunk/out to party. I have idea where that came from. The Danes who said it had no idea where it came from, just that it meant that.
So, (in my opinion) while switching between to languages might limit a person to "labelling" words it also expands their thought process on the culture involved
Edit:
Not even getting into languages that don't have an alphabet (e.g. Cantonese) and so how they learn and communicate is different
I posted that article because I read it recently and thought it might add/expand on the topic.
As someone someone who speaks more than 1 language, I definitely know what you're talking about when it comes to having to know the context in Danish. There are times (I can't think of any atm) when English is the same, although on a much more limited basis from the sounds of it (I don't know any of the scandinavian & north european languages).
Further off topic, local climate effects on language have also been observed, as well as on general demeanor and culture. But there are opposing theories that argue several cultures within a region with access to one another will develop a single culture based on compromise.
Student detained at airport for having Arabic flashcards settles lawsuit from 2009 incident
Authorities said cards were "suspicious" because Osama bin Laden spoke Arabic.
Quote: After a half-hour delay at the security line, the supervisor showed up, and things turned from annoying to surreal. After looking at the book and flashcards, the supervisor asked me: "Do you know who did 9/11?" Taken totally aback, I answered: "Osama Bin Laden." Then she asked me if I knew what language Osama Bin Laden spoke. "Arabic," I replied. "So do you see why these cards are suspicious?" she finished.
Imagine going from being in line at the airport to having a TSA supervisor imply you had some connection with the worst act of terrorism ever committed against your country—all over the course of a few minutes.
Older stories which indicate a pattern of bad judgement calls:
Brief overview of TSA employees and baggage handlers stealing from passengers since 9/11
Quote: Just last week I flew into JFK airport's terminal 4, and thankfully I only had carry-on luggage, because this morning I read that seven baggage handlers from JFK -- working in terminals 4 and 7 -- have been arrested for stealing stuff from people's luggage. And doing so without much fear of getting caught (even if they were, eventually).
Now, if this were a one time thing, it might not even be that noteworthy. But this seems like fairly common practice at airports. A few years ago, we wrote about TSA agents stealing iPads and stories of TSA agents and baggage handlers stealing stuff from luggage are not at all hard to find. In fact, reports from a few years ago noted that over 400 TSA employees have been fired for stealing from passnegers in the past decade.
And related stories are all over the place. Hell, back in March, another group of JFK baggage handlers were arrested. On nearly the same day, it looks like a similar theft ring involving baggage handlers at LAX was broken up. Even more recently, a similar theft ring at New Orleans' Louis Armstrong International Airport. Amateur sleuths were needed to bust up a baggage handler theft ring in Charleston, South Carolina. A WSJ article from a few years ago details a long list of baggage handler thefts from a wide range of airports.
And it's not just baggage handlers, but the TSA itself, who (we're told) is supposed to be protecting us from bad people. Here's $8,500 stolen from a bag. Here's a TSA officer stealing a computer. Here's a TSA agent swiping $36 from a passenger. A few years ago, a convicted TSA agent, who admitted to stealing $800,000 from passengers at Newark Airport in New Jersey, spoke out about just how common theft was among the TSA.
Federal Judge rules in favor of defendant under the First Amendment, TSA fines man anyway
Quote: A couple years ago, we wrote about a guy named John Brennan (who, we're pretty damn sure is not the John Brennan who is now director of the CIA) who decided to strip naked at a TSA screening area in an airport to protest the screening process. As we noted, a federal judge acquitted Brennan on First Amendment grounds, noting that he was engaged in a public protest, and that the nudity was a form of protected expression, not subject to indecent exposure laws.
No matter, apparently, for the TSA, who just went ahead and fined Brennan anyway claiming Brennan "interfered with screening personnel in the performance of their duties" (a violation of this rather broad law).
Fox news contributor put on Terrorist watchlist
Quote: As for how Hayes ended up on the list, he claims it's because he recently booked a one-way flight to Istanbul for a cruise, returning to the US from Athens a few weeks later. Indeed, that seems likely. Marcy Wheeler has been pointing out for a while that one of the criteria to be put on the watchlist is merely "travel... to a locus of TERRORIST ACTIVITY" and apparently Istanbul counts.
In fact, Spencer Ackerman, at the Guardian, actually got US officials to quietly admit that those reports you've heard of 100 Americans "fighting for ISIS" is an almost entirely bogus claim based entirely on Americans who "travelled to Syria or attempted to travel to Syria over the past 18 months." In other words, if you're an American and you happened to travel to or near Syria, the US government claims you're fighting for ISIS -- even if, say, you went to provide humanitarian aid or to fight against ISIS. The US government doesn't care. Onto the "terrorist" list you go.
Man given a full pat down again after his flight because TSA thought they had forgotten to do it before the flight
Quote: Yes, after he's already flown from Minneapolis (where he claims he was groped, though the TSA claims it was missed) to Denver, the TSA wishes to grope him (and search through his bags again). Apparently, they believe that he might magically reverse time and go back in time to blow up the plane or something.
The TSA agent, Andrew Grossman, first demands Nygard's boarding pass. Nygard points out that he no longer has it (you don't need it after you board), which stumps Grossman, leading him to have to make a phone call -- where he helpfully tells whoever he's talking to at the other end that Nygard is "pretty objectionable, filming me." Nygard keeps asking why they need to search him, and the TSA has no good answer, other than saying they need to do so. Nygard asks if he's being detained, and they don't answer. He asks if it's an order or a request, and the TSA's Grossman again doesn't really answer (other than to say that he's following orders). Finally, Nygard just walks away, saying that if he's not being detained, he's leaving. The TSA claims it's calling the Denver police, who apparently did not do anything to stop Nygard, who walked out of the airport without any further problems.
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