Constitutional law professor is on the Terror Watch List for criticizing Bush

[Bucky]

One form of terrorism is openly advocating that we use the Bill of Rights to limit the power of the US government. Via Balkinization:

"When I tried to use the curb-side check in at the Sunport, I was denied a boarding pass because I was on the Terrorist Watch list. I was instructed to go inside and talk to a clerk. At this point, I should note that I am not only the McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence (emeritus) but also a retired Marine colonel. I fought in the Korean War as a young lieutenant, was wounded, and decorated for heroism. I remained a professional soldier for more than five years and then accepted a commission as a reserve office, serving for an additional 19 years."

"I presented my credentials from the Marine Corps to a very polite clerk for American Airlines. One of the two people to whom I talked asked a question and offered a frightening comment: 'Have you been in any peace marches? We ban a lot of people from flying because of that.' I explained that I had not so marched but had, in September, 2006, given a lecture at Princeton, televised and put on the Web, highly critical of George Bush for his many violations of the Constitution. 'That'll do it,' the man said."

Read the whole thing. And please, if you're going to fly, don't criticize your government right before Thanksgiving.

[IChing]

1. I read of him today.....See He only teaches at Princeton and not Regent University

You know Princeton (where Einstein taught)
will never equal Regent University




I read other links of him today but not from your links
and yes, the intelligentsia is under attack
on all levels, just look at science, legal and any other branches of
higher independent and logical thinking.

[Fovea]

2. Have you had enough yet?

Have you, Nancy Pelosi?

[Bucky]

42. Somewhat important, if skeptical UPDATE: Wired.com suggests the Prof is mistaken

In the interest of balanced argument, Wired.com's "Threat Level" columnist thinks Professor Murphey may have simply gotten a glib response from the airport security guy. The "Yep, that'll do it" was made by a guy who hadn't seen the speech and may have seen more than his share of flaky, incompetant, and unjustified flight-holds in the course of his short time with TSA and offered a flip response just to move along a passenger who clearly was not a threat to the airplane TSA was guarding.

As Wired's Ryan Singel, puts it: Threat Level is here to tell you {that} it's 99.9 percent sure the good professor isn't on any government watchlist for giving a speech. I have no idea why the counterperson would say that individuals are put on the list for joining anti-war protests, but that's just not true.

The key question to ask about cases where children or nuns or Senators or peace activists get selected for extra screening is: Evil or Incompetent?

Woe be it for this blog to defend the country's foolish watchlist system, but after having spent more than four years reporting on watchlists, filing Freedom of Information Act requests, and talking with persons flagged by the lists, I have never seen a single case of a person being put on the list for activities protected by the First Amendment. Feel free to drop any proof you might have via email or in the comments.

I'm not even certain that in this case Murphy's name matched or was similar to a name on the list - which is what has snagged nearly every David Nelson in the country and what got Senator Ted Kennedy a dose of handheld wanding.

In this case, I would guess that Murphy was singled out randomly. He himself says he wasn't flagged on the way back, which he almost certainly would have been if he were on the 'selectee' list. (The 'selectee' list directs airlines to single out that person for extra screening, while a related list, the 'no-fly' list directs airlines to keep a person off a plane.)

It may have been a random stop-and-grope. The possibility exists also that this was just another fuck up by the TSA. But we shouldn't jump to the conclusion, only the deep abiding suspicion, that evil is afoot in Bush's America. In a follow up post Ryan Singel relays statements by TSA and American Airlines that Professor Murphey was probably randomly screened, not singled out.

I'm ready to call this one a false alarm. But like with any successful fire drill, it's good to know that everyone is alert to the possibility that the national security state could get out of hand. We still need to not trust our government; we still need to be alert to the kind of dangers we face other than the ubiquitous terrorists they never quit mentioning.

[Fovea]

44. That wouldn't surprize me

But if this is about an indpendent actor, what do you think the chances are that they will be fired?

I was edified by the initial firings of HSA airport security for previous law enforcement difficulties.

[rodeodance]

3. i have had more than enough!!!!

[proud2BlibKansan]

4. How about we impeach the decider

so we can ALL fly?

[EVDebs]

31. I'm a Green and afraid to even try anymore. I'd love to see this guy and Ted Kennedy board a flight

together and M$M there to "cover" it. It amazes me that this story won't even break the evening news yawn meter.

[Virginian]

45. Don't forget Al Gore. He, too, was singled out.

My spouse was selected for further screening before we went on vacation in Oct. He had tried to print our boarding passes from home and was told online that he would have to see an agent at the ticket counter.

We went to the airport and stood in line only to discover electronic agents. He still couldn't get a boarding pass. He needed to see a human and humans were hard to find. The line tender was impatient with us and treated us like idiots who couldn't operate a simple touch screen. When the simple touch screen wouldn't work for her either, she told us to step aside so the next person could use the machine. She also told me that since I had a boarding pass to go ahead to the gate. I wasn't about to get separated from my husband. There was still no human who could help us. Several humans walked by behind the counter and we called out to each one of them for help. Finally someone came over who would help. We got his boarding pass and I made sure that we could still sit together.

We had the same problem on the way home.

The next time we flew, was in January. He was still selected for further screening and needed to be checked in by a human. This time we told the line tender we had to see a human, that the automated ticket agent couldn't do additional screening. We did curbside on the way back from that trip without any incidents.

We don't usually fly more than once every two or three years. We have been pulled out of line to have our luggage inspected in front of us. We have been pulled out of line to be patted down.

I also took my brother's coin collection to him on the last trip and every coin was inspected at the security gate. Fortunately, they were in prescription vials and not in paper wrappers so they could go back into the order they were in and not end up as a loose pile of coins.

[The Doctor.]

5. This answers that oft-asked question of late...

"Is it Fascism yet?"

[nashville_brook]

29. totally.

[yurbud]

6. you know what's weird? I was on the watch list until this Christmas

I fly twice, maybe three times a year, and since 9/11, I couldn't do online or self-serve check in at the airport--I always had to talk to a clerk and she'd have to call someone. No more after the 2006 election.

I thought that kind of harrassment would be over for most people.

[shance]

7. The "Terror List" is for those who oppose the Bush Administration policies.

I bet I have a VIP status.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

28. That's what the Patriot Act was for: to keep Big Brother Status

[shance]

43. The Patriot Act is essentially to allow the building of a database of all our information.

The exact same thing Germany did in the thirties.

Watch the video - IBM and the Holocaust.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

48. yes

[tbyg52]

8. 'That'll do it,' the man said."

But, but, if you don't do anything wrong, you have nothing to worry about. ("They" say.)

Yes, and the cabal gets to define what "wrong" is.....

[MessiahRp]

19. The key term is "they"

as in right wingers say that. They don't criticize Bush and consider it wrong to do so. They think it is perfectly alright to detain anyone who is against their almighty leader.

They is very key in the judgement of this concept.

Rp

[tbyg52]

47. Yup.

"They" have met the enemy, and he is us.
*We* have met the enemy, and it is "them."

http://www.search.com/reference/Pogo#.22We_have_met_the_enemy.....22
(Scroll around a little if their anchor doesn't work quite right.)

http://www.ncc-1776.org/tle2006/tle380-20060813-03.html

[formercia]

9. Welcome to the American Gulag

a prison with invisible walls. Just try to leave.

[Supersedeas]

26. the real American Taliban (and maybe Regents U, too) has its eye on you

[NormanYorkstein]

10. "Have you been in any peace marches?" This can't be real

Impeach them now.

[file83]

36. It sure is!

[WiseButAngrySara]

40. Exactly my thought! How can this be real? Their talk of

freedom is so utterly void of real meaning. I have known that for years, but this really tops anything I've read yet.

[NormanYorkstein]

11. "Have you been in any peace marches?" This can't be real

Impeach them now

[file83]

37. It sure is!

:rofl: (sorry, I couldn't resist!)

[NewJeffCT]

12. I wonder if I'm on any lists for writing some anti-Bush LTTEs?

I was planning on going overseas either at the end of May or in early June...

[Dr. Death]

13. I'm on the watch list also

And was given a hard time coming back into the U.S. last week. I'm writing about it, and will post here when finished.

[MessiahRp]

20. Is there a way to check if you are on the list?

I surely have said enough shit about Bush to be on it and I have a flight to Boston planned for June. It would be bad timing for them to pull that on me.

Rp

[Dr. Death]

27. Not that I know of

None of the TSA people or airline employees have ever been able to give me any info beyond that I'm "on a watch list" or have been labeled a "lookout."

[file83]

38. That's the only way to find out - buy a ticket and see what happens.

[Virginian]

46. You won't know until you try to get a boarding pass

if you are "selected for further screening" like my husband. Try to print your boarding pass at home.

I don't know what you do if you are on the watch list or no-fly list.

[Wednesdays]

14. A lot of the comments essentially say he's a liar

Whatever. And everything that comes out of Drudge is gospel. :sarcasm:

:banghead:

[in_cog_ni_to]

15. Ted Kennedy was put on that list and it took him 4 months to get off of it. I can just imagine

how long a 'regular' citizens will remain on the list. This is so sinister.

[moodforaday]

16. The greatest danger

is not just winding up on a no-fly list, this is merely a side-effect and a nuisance. The worst thing is that there is, within the government, a group people who gather and analyse the body of information upon which they make concrete decisions about other people's lives. So today, the decision is to place a name on a watchlist. How far from this to other forms of harassment, or to arresting someone? The process is entirely opaque and there is apparently no appeal.

[arcane1]

18. question: what law spared him from being arrested...

and questioned in a secret jail, instead of merely in an airline office?

answer: none

this shit has got to stop :evilfrown:

[moodforaday]

21. Exactly what I mean (nt)

[dogday]

17. This is Fucking Outrageous

sorry for the curse word, but in this case it fits... This man served his country and is denied to fly because he exercised his freedom of speech.... Fuck That :wtf::wtf:

[EVDebs]

22. Wear a mask and take public transit to future peace marches

and check out your group's agent provacateurs a second time before even THINKING of speaking out, huh ? Naw...when enough fill the jails it ends up bankrupting city's like Seattle's insurance companies. Lobby those companies to pressure the administration to withdraw from Iraq as another Marine (Mutha) has suggested. It's only common sense, but Bush will soon make common sense a felony.

[Initech]

23. RIP First Amendment, 1791 - 2007. You will be missed.

Argh, I hate these scum fucks (W and Cheney) with every fiber of my body. They in no way pass for human beings.

[mnhtnbb]

24. When hubby wore his fatigues to a peace march (Major, USAF, retired)

he put duct tape over his name! We laughed about it then, but I'm not laughing now. We know they've been videotaping marches.

[StefanX]

25. Fascism

Sorry to use such a strong word, but there's no other name for this.

[malaise]

30. This is madness

I hope you all understand why Bush is insisting on passports.

[Joe Chi Minh]

32. I don't know if this is normal, but a couple of years ago, I received

two or three invitations to accept a gratuitously-offered Green Card. I thought they were quite difficult to get, and had to be applied for.

It may be normal practice that they randomly select a number of people to offer Green Cards to, but the US is not a place I wish to discover at this time. It may be paranoia, but I have a suspicious mind.

[IWantAChange]

33. Repug BizzaroWorld seems to be alive and thriving...

[Disturbed]

34. Will this Prof. sue the Airline?

He damn well should!

[pacalo]

35. Not allowed to fly = being sent to the cornfield by the bratty boy king...

[nam78_two]

39. K&R.nt

[WiseButAngrySara]

41. Is DU safe? Can our connection to DU place us at risk for

being on a terror list? I have worried about this before.

:kick: &R!