One tip enough to put name on watch list

[The Straight Story]

One tip enough to put name on watch list

A year after a Nigerian man allegedly tried to blow up a Detroit-bound airliner, officials say they have made it easier to add individuals' names to a terrorist watch list and improved the government's ability to thwart an attack in the United States.

The failure to put Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab on the watch list last year renewed concerns that the government's system to screen out potential terrorists was flawed. Even though Abdulmutallab's father had told U.S. officials of his son's radicalization in Yemen, government rules dictated that a single-source tip was insufficient to include a person's name on the watch list.

Since then, senior counterterrorism officials say they have altered their criteria so that a single-source tip, as long as it is deemed credible, can lead to a name being placed on the watch list.

The government's master watch list is one of roughly a dozen lists, or databases, used by counterterrorism officials. Officials have periodically adjusted the criteria used to maintain it.

But civil liberties groups argue that the government's new criteria, which went into effect over the summer, have made it even more likely that individuals who pose no threat will be swept up in the nation's security apparatus, leading to potential violations of their privacy and making it difficult for them to travel.




http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/12/29/AR2010122904172.html

[notesdev]

1. More security state BS

apparently objecting to unconstitutional searches at an airport can now get one on the list

[hlthe2b]

2. McCarthyism rules... what's the reward/incentive for...

turning in your neighbors, colleagues, or perceived "enemies?"

As per my sigline... why can we NEVER seem to learn the lessons of history? (and yes, given the state of our education system the past several decades, I know that most of America does not KNOW history)

[Journeyman]

3. But who determines "credibility"? "Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?" . . .

[somone]

4. So, if you have a friend who works for TSA

a single tip can really 'ground' your enemies for good.

[Capitalocracy]

5. Grab a phone book.

Maybe we should just start reporting everyone's name. If everyone's on the watch list, then at least we're all equals again.

[Fleshdancer]

6. This is just as stupid as the "single source tip is insufficient" rule

How about actually listening to the tip and, oh I don't know, utilizing critical thinking skills? For example, if a father is frantically calling the authorities on HIS OWN SON then common sense would say to follow up on it.