Air Paranoia

Tue, 2007-10-16 14:48

#52

peacenik2

PLEASE TAKE ACTION NOW:

October 16, 2007

Dear Fellow Cuba Travelers,

President George Bush, without so much as a squeak of protest from the Democratic Party presidential candidates or the government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper in Canada, is planning to enact regulations requiring that all Canadian airline passenger manifests -- from flights to the Caribbean region and Central and South America -- be reported to U.S. Homeland Security, the FBI, CIA, etc. The regulations are set to go into effect later this month, unless you act today!

HOW DOES THIS AFFECT YOU AS A CANADIAN?

As a Canadian, it affects you dramatically. Let's say you visit Cuba, which is ludicrously listed as a "terrorist state" by G.W. Bush, or even if you visit Venezuela, Bolivia or Ecuador (seen as "emerging terrorist nations" by the U.S.). The next time you travel across the border, you could be held up at U.S. customs or worse. You could be stripped and body cavity searched, detained or imprisoned; your automobile and its contents could be confiscated; or you could be turned back to Canada without explanation or recourse.

More than 600,000 Canadians visit Cuba every year to explore the island or renew ties with friends and family. This could change soon unless you take action.

Many Canadians also have friends and family in Venezuela, Bolivia and Ecuador, or decide to visit because of the exciting political developments occurring in these countries. If you go, your travel itineraries could be on permanent file in the many sinister agencies of the U.S. government -- all of which are hostile to the multicultural needs and aspirations of the Canadian people. Please take action now (see below). Don't let Bush and his little brother Prime Minister Stephen Harper impose police state regulations on us!

HOW DOES THIS AFFECT YOU AS A RESIDENT OR CITIZEN OF THE UNITED STATES?

Residents and citizens of the U.S. who travel to Cuba via Canada will be reported by the Canadian government to U.S. agencies, if these regulations go into effect after October 22. A bilateral police state reality will further limit the rights of U.S. citizens to travel.

We at Cuba Education Tours appeal to our friends in the U.S. to take action today to stop Bush's draconian plans. Your letters and emails will be extremely effective. Be brave. This is a noble cause. Our staff and friends have all sent messages of protest and we stand with you in solidarity. You have much to lose: your right to freedom of association guaranteed by the U.S. constitution.

DEADLINE FOR ACTION IS OCTOBER 22!

Here's the minimum information the U.S. security agencies get if these regulations go into effect:

* Full name, as the name appears on his/her passport
* Date of birth
* Gender
* Known traveler number (if applicable), identifying someone who the U.S. government has already screened and ruled not a security threat.

Canadian carriers would also be encouraged to transmit further details about passengers, including their itineraries, with a listing of their departure airport codes, airlines, departure/arrival times and arrival airport codes.

PLEASE TAKE ACTION NOW

Send an email or fax message TODAY to the Canadian regulatory body in charge of whether to agree to this regulation. Address it to:

The Honourable Lawrence Cannon
Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities
Tower C - 330 Sparks Street
Ottawa, Ontario, K1A 0N5 Canada
Telephone: (613) 991-0700
Fax: (613) 995-0327
Email: mintc@tc.gc.ca

Protest this proposed policy in the strongest possible terms. The conservative Bush-loving regime of Stephen Harper is a minority government. So your passionate messages of protest will have a big impact. Any message you send will be read and noted.

In solidarity,
Marcel Hatch

Wed, 2007-10-17 21:23

#53

Fidel

Jesus! It's a damn police/national security state. I hate those bastards. And I hate our weak and ineffective stoogeocrats for not standing up to them. Damn grovelling Dubya's-boot licking lap dogs anyway! [img]mad.gif" border="0[/img]

[ 17 October 2007: Message edited by: Fidel ]

Wed, 2008-06-04 16:44

#54

M. Spector M. Spector's picture

quote:

Karen DeYoung of the Washington Post reported last year that since 2003, a database that stores names of "individuals that the intelligence community believes might harm the United States" has quadrupled from 100,000 to 435,000. I am sure the numbers now are much higher. If the US has these many "terrorists" or "dangerous people," then we have a real and huge problem that cannot be solved by a watch list that selectively targets people.
....
"The ‘war on terror' has created a culture of fear in America," opined Zbigniew Brzezinski in a Washington Post OpEd. "Such fear-mongering, reinforced by security entrepreneurs, the mass media and the entertainment industry, generates its own momentum...The atmosphere generated by the ‘war on terror' has encouraged legal and political harassment of Arab Americans (generally loyal Americans) for conduct that has not been unique to them," he added. A case in point is the fact that an astronomical number of Americans, mainly Muslims, who are placed on the government's watch list and are subjected to unwarranted delays and detentions while traveling or crossing US borders.

While the proponents of the policy that led to the establishment of the watch list argue that it is in place to protect national security, facts indicate that it used as a tool to punish dissenters.

"I was denied a boarding pass because I was on the terrorist watch list," said Walter Murphy, a renowned constitutional scholar, a lecturer at Princeton University, and decorated Marine veteran. Why? Because "in September 2006, (he had) given a lecture at Princeton, televised and put on the Web, highly critical of George Bush for his many violations of the Constitution."

[url=http://www.counterpunch.org/akhras06022008.html]Ahmad Al-Akhras[/url]

Fri, 2008-06-06 11:33

#55

M. Spector M. Spector's picture

quote:

Airport security staff were following regulations when they threw out 1Ѕ litres of breast milk a passenger tried to take on a plane with her, says Canadian Air Transport Security Authority spokesman Mathieu Larocque.
Nina Brewer-Davis was going through security at Vancouver International Airport on Tuesday to board a plane to her home in San Diego when she had to surrender the breast milk she had pumped while away from her baby. She said she had a cooler containing 180-millilitre bags - 10 of them, most of which weren't full.
Even though some of the bags contained only 60 millilitres of milk, they weren't allowed through because their [b]capacity[/b] exceeded the 100-millilitre limit, Mr. Larocque said. They would have been permitted if Ms. Brewer-Davis had her seven-month-old daughter, Laura Mae, with her.
"The regulation doesn't look at the content; it looks at the container," Mr. Larocque said.

[url=http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080606.BCBREAST06//TP... terrorists have officially won[/url]

[ 06 June 2008: Message edited by: M. Spector ]

Fri, 2008-06-06 19:16

#56

laine lowe laine lowe's picture

I guess Nina Brewer-Davis should count herself lucky. At least she wasn't taken down by Taser toting RCMP agents.

Sat, 2008-07-19 14:58

#57

M. Spector M. Spector's picture

quote:

Clearly, the security program is not about protecting the flying public, or the nation’s tall buildings. That could be done much more cheaply by putting air marshals on all flights, the way they do at El Al, the Israeli airline that has never had a successful hijacking.
[b]No, this is all about heightening the fear level of the American people, to routinize us to living in a police state.[/b]
The truth is, nobody is really interested in trying to hijack planes anymore. First of all, the “crash into buildings” tactic is dead. Pilots are now flying armed in armored cockpits that cannot be easily entered, and would not accede to a terrorist’s demands any longer, knowing what happened last time. And passengers would not sit passively in a cabin takeover attempt, either. As a result, we don’t have to worry about such things any longer.
The ease with which security could be breached, and the fact that it hasn’t happened now for seven years, is evidence enough that nobody is even trying to do it.

[url=http://www.counterpunch.org/lindorff07192008.html]Dave Lindorff[/url]

Fri, 2008-10-24 20:26

#58

M. Spector M. Spector's picture

quote:

Helen [a Muslim who wears the hijab] was traveling through JFK airport security when she was flagged for further screening. She says she's gotten used to this kind of treatment. However, the usual security treatment then took a strange turn. A Transportation Security Administration (TSA) employee asked to see Helen's I-Phone.
Helen tells me she was hesitant to hand over her new $400 phone, and she was unclear as to why she had turn over her private property in order to board a plane.
"He said it could be used as a weapon," she explains, shrugging. The shrugs says: So what was I supposed to do?
Helen gave the TSA employee her phone, and he proceeded to search through her list of contacts. Explaining the incident, Helen still squirms in her seat, and I can tell how violated the treatment made her feel.
The TSA employee then explained he would have to take her phone for further inspection, and that Helen could reclaim it later at the airport help desk. At this point in her story, Helen throws up her hands in exasperation.
When Helen went to reclaim her phone, the airport employees claimed they couldn't find it.
"I said, 'No, no, no. Look, I have his name! I was just here!' They looked at me like I was crazy. They said, 'Sorry, your phone isn't here.'"
This kind of story isn't uncommon. Understandably upset and furious, Helen went home to vent to her friends. To her surprise, many of her Muslim friends said they too had experienced this kind of airport theft.
"Items get stolen at the airport all the time by TSA staff," says Udi Ofer, the New York Civil Liberties Union's advocacy director.
In the United States, the Fourth Amendment protects citizens against unreasonable searches and seizures. But there is a big loophole, Ofer explains, "On the issue of the Fourth Amendment, the biggest obstacle is that the courts have held that, by voluntarily flying, passengers waive their rights."

[url=http://www.counterpunch.org/kilkenny10242008.html]Allison Kilkenny[/url]

Sun, 2010-01-03 11:11

#59

M. Spector M. Spector's picture

Getting back to the topic of air paranoia:

[url=http://www.counterpunch.org/pump08242006.html]Penis pump or Bomb?[/url]

Quote:
A female security guard claims Amin uttered the word "bomb" when she was examining a small black squeezable object she'd taken from his bag.

For his part, Amin, on his way to Turkey with his mother and his children, claims he was whispering to his mother that it was a "pump" in fact a penis pump.

Sun, 2010-01-03 11:12

#60

M. Spector M. Spector's picture

[url=http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/news/opinion/story.html?id=1c0072fe-... the Paranoid Skies[/url]

Quote:
When the pilot on my Ottawa-bound United flight from Chicago last Tuesday came on the intercom to report a problem, I felt a trickle of panic, even though he assured us that there was no cause for alarm. They had discovered, he said awkwardly, an object on the plane that should not be there. He had notified the authorities at Ottawa airport, and they would handle the problem upon our arrival.

A few nervous minutes later, at around 4 p.m., we landed and taxied to a desolate spot far from the terminal. I and my fellow passengers (close to 50 of us) expected to see emergency vehicles waiting and a crew of people to rush us off the plane before this "object" exploded. No such luck. We were greeted by an eerie silence, a silence that lasted almost 40 minutes until a bus finally pulled up near our plane.

Perplexed and confused, we were ordered to disembark and told that we could bring nothing with us, not even our passports. (Apparently this order was a mistake because we were expected later to have our identifying documents with us.) Grim-faced police officers with guns stared at us with accusing glances as we staggered down the steps. I felt the impulse to put my hands up. What had we done wrong? Were we suspected of terrorism?

We were transported to a large garage, filled with armed police, on the airport complex and told that we had a long wait ahead of us. This turned out to be true. It would be four hours from our arrival at Ottawa before we were finally released....

Sun, 2010-01-03 11:17

#61

M. Spector M. Spector's picture

.

Sun, 2010-01-03 11:20

#62

M. Spector M. Spector's picture

[url=http://www.infocusnews.net/content/view/16890/135/]American Muslims required to pass political correctness tests on returning home[/url]

Quote:
In a post-9/11 world, returning from an overseas trip could mean a serious ordeal at the port of entry for many American Arab and Muslim travelers, especially those returning from the Middle East or a Muslim country.

Many recount harrowing experiences of unfair treatment, rude behavior, unnecessary and humiliating interrogations, unprofessional conduct by DHS officials and long detentions for little or no reasonable cause. For many, the striking similarities between their stories and the frequency of occurrence point to one inevitable conclusion: profiling.
...
Fazaga said he experiences similar treatment with regards to the questioning. He said he is asked questions such as, “What do you think of Bukhari (a ninth century Muslim scholar of Hadith)? How come you are not dressed as an imam? What are your thoughts on the Shia? What are your feelings on jihad?”

Sun, 2010-01-03 11:22

#63

M. Spector M. Spector's picture

Quote:

On 1 March 07, I was scheduled to fly on American Airlines to Newark, NJ, to attend an academic conference at Princeton University, designed to focus on my latest scholarly book, [i]Constitutional Democracy[/i], published by Johns Hopkins University Press this past Thanksgiving.

When I tried to use the curb-side check-in at the Sunport, [b]I was denied a boarding pass because I was on the Terrorist Watch list.[/b] I was instructed to go inside and talk to a clerk. At this point, I should note that [b]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.[/b] 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: [b]"Have you been in any peace marches? We ban a lot of people from flying because of that."[/b] I explained that I had not so marched but had, in September, 2006, [b]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.[/b]

After carefully examining my credentials, the clerk asked if he could take them to TSA officials. I agreed. He returned about ten minutes later and said I could have a boarding pass, but added: "I must warn you, they're going to ransack your luggage." On my return flight, I had no problem with obtaining a boarding pass, but my luggage was "lost." Airlines do lose a lot of luggage and this "loss" could have been a mere coincidence. In light of previous events, however, I'm a tad skeptical.

[url=http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=viewArticle&code=GRA20070... F. Murphy, professor emeritus, Princeton University[/url]

Sun, 2010-01-03 11:26

#64

RevolutionPlease RevolutionPlease's picture

I miss your posting M. Spector. I've learned much from your posts even if I can't engage with most of it.

Sun, 2010-01-03 11:30

#65

M. Spector M. Spector's picture

M. Spector wrote:

Next time you fly to the USA (if any of you are still foolhardy enough to do so), Homeland Security will be adding the following information about you to their database:

[LIST][*]The date of your reservations and your travel dates.[*]Your name and the names of your travelling companions.[*]Your address, your credit card information, your billing address, your cellphone number and email address.[*]Where you like to sit on the plane and any special services — meals or otherwise — you request.[*]Your frequent flyer points and your travel agency.[*]The number of times you have booked one-way tickets.[*]How many bags you check and their tag numbers, and whether you have ever booked a flight and not shown up.[/LIST]

The data will be kept in the database for 40 years, and mined by something called the Automated Targeting System to assess the risk that you may be a terrorist. That risk assessment will follow you around for the rest of your life.

And now Canada's New Government™ is set to negotiate an agreement with US Homeland Security whereby airline passenger data will be submitted to the US agency 72 hours in advance of any flight taking off from Canada that will [b]pass through[/b] US air space to destinations in Mexico, Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua, etc.

If the US objects to your travelling, [url=http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/10/12/flying_into_data_hell/]you will not be allowed to board your flight.[/url]

If they don't object, they will simply keep the info about your little vacation trip to Cuba on file and use it to harrass you next time you try to get into the US.

Or they could change their mind and object 72 hours before your return flight, effectively stranding you in Cuba, and forcing you to fly home via Europe.

Have a look at [url=http://www.aclunc.org/issues/technology/blog/department_of_homeland_secu... kind of information they collect and keep[/url] about airline passengers.

Sun, 2010-01-03 11:33

#66

M. Spector M. Spector's picture

[url=http://www.irontontribune.com/articles/2006/08/19/news/news180.txt]Woman caught smuggling deadly dihydrogen monoxide onto plane[/url]

Quote:

Flights in and out of Tri-State Airport are back to normal today, one day after a Pakistani woman was suspected of having possible explosives in her carry-on items.

The liquids in question were apparently not explosives, but precautions were taken anyway and the woman was released without charges....

When the containers were sent through an electronic device known as a sniffer, two plastic containers tested positive for suspicious chemicals.

“I didn't see one of the liquids; one of the bottles looked like it might have been a water bottle,” [airport manager] Salyers said.

A K-9 unit was brought in and the dog also detected a suspicious chemical. West Virginia National Guard and West Virginia State Police explosives teams were notified and the two containers were isolated and taken by a robot to a remote location of the airport for final determination as to what the identity of chemical residue.

The woman was later taken by F.B.I. agents from the airport to another location for continued interrogation.

“The woman didn't act suspicious; she acted calmly,” Salyers said. “She had an immediate reason as to why such material might be on the outside of what she was carrying.”

The airport was evacuated at approximately noon and all flights suspended.

About 50 passengers were affected by the flight delays. Salyers said it was the first time in the history of the airport that flights had been delayed because of suspected explosives at that airport.....

The investigation eventually involved a number of emergency services and law enforcement agencies, among them, the state police, airport police, the national guard, Federal Bureau of Investigation and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
....
The woman's mother told the Associated Press that her daughter, who is four months pregnant and lives in Barboursville, W.Va., was targeted because of her nationality and Islamic headcover.

“It was not only a false alarm, it was racial discrimination because there was nothing,” Mian Qayyum said, refusing to name her daughter.

“She just had water to drink because she is pregnant and she had a face wash that had a drop of bleach on it,” Qayyum said from her home in Jackson.

Sun, 2010-01-03 16:39

#67

peacenik2

RevolutionPlease wrote:

I miss your posting M. Spector. I've learned much from your posts even if I can't engage with most of it.

ditto

Sun, 2010-01-03 16:51

#68

NorthReport

Paranoia or perceived threat? Which is it?

Britain and US shut embassies in Yemen after al-Qaida threats

Embassies in Sana'a closed due to 'ongoing threats' as US citizens in Yemen urged to be vigilant

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jan/03/us-shuts-yemen-embassy

Sun, 2010-01-03 17:01

#69

NorthReport

If that Tory MP is to be believed what's the point?

Full-body scanners being ordered for airports, says Gordon Brown

Gordon Brown outlines new airport security regime but opinions remain mixed as to whether scanners can detect liquids

Ben Wallace, a Tory MP who was involved in a British defence firm's project to test the scanner's effect before he entered parliament, told the Independent on Sunday that the kind of low-density materials used in Christmas Day's attempted attack would not have been detected. Instead the machines were best at detecting shrapnel, heavy wax and metal but not plastics, chemicals and liquids.

Wallace said: "Gordon Brown is grasping at headlines if he thinks buying a couple of scanners will make us safer. It is too little, too late." Instead, he said the time had come for the use of passenger profiling.

A government source has said profiling of passengers is now "in the mix" of the government's review.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jan/03/gordon-brown-airport-body-scanners

Sun, 2010-01-03 18:30

#70

NorthReport

Top Obama counter-terrorism official cites human error in airliner attack
John O. Brennan denies that infighting in the intelligence community is at fault and says there is no 'smoking gun' that would have pointed to the attempted Christmas Day bombing.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nation-and-world/la-na-brennan-terror4-2010jan04,0,5478759.story

Sun, 2010-01-03 18:51

#71

NorthReport

Northwest Flight 253: Mounting Evidence of U.S. Complicity in Terrorism

http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=16769

Sun, 2010-01-03 19:07

#72

Fidel

NorthReport wrote:

Northwest Flight 253: Mounting Evidence of U.S. Complicity in Terrorism

http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=16769

WHERE THE STORY IS GOING

We keep going back to 2007. Why were these terrorists released to Saudi custody? Why did Saudi Arabia release them soon thereafter? With the 2nd major terrorist front in the world being Yemen and the terrorist operation there under the control of released Bush detainees, there is reason for suspicion.

While we have all of these facts, easily verifiable, we have a much stronger case against the Bush Administration or Israel than Al Qaeda. There is no real evidence that Al Qaeda would be operating in Yemen without American or Saudi help and even, as stated by the Government of Yemen, direct material assistance from Israel.

Why would such a thing be done, something against all reason unless terrorism itself was part of a larger regional plan and a "war on terror" was only a ruse.

When Pakistan comes to us and says that Israel and India are involved in terrorism there and we ignore it, is it because it isn't credible or because the US government has been involved, as we seem to be involved in Yemen?

Sword play

Mon, 2010-01-04 15:44

#73

NDPP

The Strange Case of Umar Farouk Abdulmuttab

http://antifascist-calling.blogspot.com/2010/01/strange-case-of-umar-far...

"And so dear reader we are left to ponder the question, cui bono? Who would benefit practically from a major terrorist incident on American soil, ready, willing and able to step into the breach and exploit the catastrophic loss of human life that would follow...?"

Conspiracy: = persons aligned in interest

Mon, 2010-01-04 21:05

#74

Fidel

[url=http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=16768]"The Underwear Bomber": Crushing Freedom With Phony Arab Terrorism[/url] Shoe bombers and now knicker bombers

Mon, 2010-01-04 21:16

#75

NorthReport

Now France shuts its embassy doors in Yemen as well.

Mon, 2010-01-04 21:19

#76

NorthReport

New scanners break child porn laws

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2010/jan/04/new-scanners-child-porn-laws

Tue, 2010-01-05 13:46

#77

NDPP

Body Scanners Come to Canadian Airports

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2010/01/05/security-canada-us-airport.html

Group Slams Chertoff on Scanner Promotion

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2010/01/02/group_s...

"Since the attempted bombing of a US airliner on Christmas Day, former Homeland Security secretary Michael Chertoff has given dozens of interviews touting the need for the federal government to buy more full-body scanners for airports. What he has made little mention of is that the Chertoff Group, his security consulting agency, includes a client that manufactures the machines...

"Mr Chertoff should not be allowed to abuse the trust the public has placed in him a former public servant to privately gain from the sale of full body scanners under the pretense that the scanners would have detected this particular type of exposure," said Kate Hanni, founder of FlyersRights.org which opposes the use of the scanners..."

Tue, 2010-01-05 19:36

#78

NorthReport

Obama:

'OUR INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY FAILED TO CONNECT THE DOTS'

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/05/new-airline-safety-measur_n_411501.html

Tue, 2010-01-05 20:04

#79

NorthReport

Trouble in Paradise!

CIA agents in Afghanistan are 'menace to themselves,' former operatives claim

• Attacks expose long-term US intelligence failings
• Obama launches inquiry into Christmas jet bomb

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jan/05/cia-intelligence-weaknesses

Wed, 2010-01-06 01:28

#80

NDPP

"'Explosive' at California Airport Found to be Honey

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20100106/ts_nm/us_security_airline_bakersfield

"US Transportation Security Administration screeners turned up five Gatorade bottles of what they called a 'suspicious-looking liquid.' Swabs of the bag and bottles tested positive for the explosives TNT and TATP.

When the bottles were opened, two of the screeners smelled a strong chemical odor, complained of nausea and were rushed to a local hospital..

After the all clear was given officials said they were trying to determine why the honey tested positive for explosives and made the screeners so ill that they would need medical attention.."

Wed, 2010-01-06 02:11

#81

NDPP

Obama Adds 675 Million Muslims to the Ultimate US Terrorism List

http://www.counterpunch.org/lamb01052010.html

"At midnight Washington DC time, January 3, it want into effect and placed 675 million more Muslims and ARabs on yet another 'Terrorism' list. Also added were Nigerian and Cuban Christians but they were not the target....

the stock of American Science and Engineering, a US company that makes the full body scanner skyrocketed after Christmas and hit $82 dollars per share on 1/4/09, up from around $42 this summer.

Former Bush homeland security director Michael Chertoff admitted to NPR the other day that he is in the hunt for contracts for his new consulting firm..."

Wed, 2010-01-06 04:51

#82

NDPP

The Airport Scanner Scam

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article24332.htm

"The body scanner is sure to get a go-ahead because of the illustrious personages hawking them. Chief among them is Michael Chertoff who now heads the Chertoff Goup, which represents one of the leading manufacturers.."

The full body scanners and 'Israelification' airport security procedures contemplated by authorities here, being hustled by Zionist former Bush Homeland security Czar Michael Chertoff - Watch how the Canada-Israel Security Agreement provisions assist this new stepped up surveillance/national security regime being urged upon us by this latest panty-bomber setup..

Wed, 2010-01-06 14:48

#83

Catchfire

Books, periodicals among items banned from flights by Transport Canada in wake of foiled Christmas Day attack

Quote:
[L]ast Monday, Transport Canada issued a new official ban on carry on luggage in an effort to keep delays to a minimum. The carry-on ban, according to Transport Canada, includes everything except: medication or medical devices, small purses, cameras, coats, items for care of infants, laptop computers, crutches, canes, walkers, containers carrying life sustaining items, a special needs item, musical instruments, or diplomatic or consular bags.

You'll notice that newpapers, magazines and books are not on that list, and thereby effectively banned from flights (although those purchased once passengers are through security were apparently allowed).

The ban on carry on items is "until further notice", according to Transport Canada spokesperson Melanie Quesnel. And it has raised a question for some: how could a book be regarded as a possible security threat while other items - such as laptops and musical instruments – are not.

[...]

When reached for comment, [facebook-group founder Mary] Soderstrom (who points out that the US is not including books in their carry on ban for domestic flights), explains why she started the group: "The fact that books (and magazines and newspapers) appear to have been left of the "permitted" list suggests two pretty scary things: One, reading as a leisure activity has such a low profile among people who make these kind of rules, that it didn't even occur to them that reading material might be important. And two, people who make these kind of rules think the less people read, the better. This is the worst-case explanation, and sounds a bit paranoid, but good heavens, we are living in some pretty strange times."

Wed, 2010-01-06 14:53

#84

Timebandit Timebandit's picture

The books ban really aggravates me. I always travel with a laptop, a book and a notebook/journal. I have to go to the States in a few weeks, too. Hope they straighten this out before then. It's completely assinine.

Wed, 2010-01-06 15:06

#85

kropotkin1951

Timebandit wrote:

The books ban really aggravates me. I always travel with a laptop, a book and a notebook/journal. I have to go to the States in a few weeks, too. Hope they straighten this out before then. It's completely assinine.

If we don't then evil people will murder us in our beds as we sleep. With the new emphasis I am especially worried about Cuban suicide bombers attacking Canadian airports. I hope when they are profiling they include having Buena Vista Social Club on your Ipod or computer.

Not reading books on board a flight to the heart of civilization is a small price to pay, don't you think?

Wed, 2010-01-06 15:07

#86

Polunatic2

The Backfiring of the Surveillance State - Glenn Greenwald

Quote:
As numerous experts (such as Rep. Rush Holt) have attempted, with futility, to explain, expanding the scope of raw intelligence data collected by our national security agencies invariablyimpedes rather than bolsters efforts to detect terrorist plots. This is true for two reasons: (1) eliminating strict content limits on what can be surveilled (along with enforcement safeguards, such as judicial warrants) means that government agents spend substantial time scrutinizing and sorting through communications and other information that have nothing to do with terrorism; and (2) increasing the quantity of what is collected makes it more difficult to find information relevant to actual terrorism plots.

What I really don't get is why, after 8 years and hundreds of billions of dollars spent by the world's mightiest military power, that they could not have figured out Abdulmuttab's modus operandi in advance? What are they paying all these security experts to do?

Thu, 2010-01-07 11:37

#87

NDPP

'Naked' Scans at Airports

http://www.nationalpost.com/most-popular/story.html?id=2411075

"The Canadian government says air travellers heading to US destinations will not only face virtual strip searches in major airports across the country, they may also soon be subject to behavioural profiling in an effort to bolster security..."

another step forward for the surveillance state...with cbc doing lots of interviews with canucklheads 'willing to sacrifice a little freedom to be safe'

Thu, 2010-01-07 12:01

#88

kropotkin1951

I just spent some time looking at driving times from BC to Ontario because with these new measure I suspect the next time I tell an Air Canada agent exactly how much I like their surly attitude I will likely have a major delay. As it turns out my Prius will get their cheaper than one ticket let alone the two tickets that my spouse and I would need. Leaves lots over for food and a couple nights hotel on the way for about the same price.

Given the stories I have heard from other people and my own personal experiences with Air Canada I expect them to use these new measures for intimidation of disgruntled passengers.

Thu, 2010-01-07 12:09

#89

Michelle

Does this include any flights that fly OVER American airspace to other countries, or just flights to the US?

Thu, 2010-01-07 12:16

#90

kropotkin1951

Michelle wrote:

Does this include any flights that fly OVER American airspace to other countries, or just flights to the US?

I am going to be so daring as to suggest that when they are installed in the dozen or so largest terminals in Canada we will all be walking through them or agreeing to be strip searched. I don't trust the bastards and I love the fact that the fucking machines will not work to detect what they are most worried about and the company that will make a fortune and whose stock prices are going through the roof has close ties to the US administration.

Obama's America is no better than Bush's and because he is more devious and disingenuous it is far scarier. Cartoon figures who seem to be stupid are not nearly as frightening to me as obviously intelligent people who believe in their own imperial power to decide the fate of the world by discussing it with the American military and security industrial complex.

Thu, 2010-01-07 12:20

#91

Timebandit Timebandit's picture

If you have an international connection in the US, it's as if your destination is the US, even though you won't leave the terminal. Not sure about fly-over, though. Interesting question.

Someone told me the book ban is repealed.

As to kropotkin's comment about Air Canada staff, it's ATSA that does the profiling, not the airline. Don't be rude when you go through security, that's all. I make a point of being sweet as can be already, so no skin off my nose. Although I expect that the "suspicious behaviour" profiling will be used less discriminately than it should be.

Thu, 2010-01-07 12:55

#92

kropotkin1951

Timebandit wrote:

As to kropotkin's comment about Air Canada staff, it's ATSA that does the profiling, not the airline. Don't be rude when you go through security, that's all. I make a point of being sweet as can be already, so no skin off my nose. Although I expect that the "suspicious behaviour" profiling will be used less discriminately than it should be.

I have already seen Air Canada try to get other authorities involved when people were disgruntled. They will go to the nearest security supervisor and tell them this person is a problem and they should investigate them.

A few years ago when I was in a lineup that Air Canada was blaming on security while Westjet passengers were not suffering delays. (Air Canada had a baggage conveyor problem.] I told an Air Canada supervisor and I quote; "the problem is with Air Canada it has nothing to do with Osama Bin Laden." The supervisor started yelling at me that I was a threat and went and got an Ottawa City cop to arrest me. Fortunately for me I was surrounded by people who had heard my statement and when the cop asked them what I said they all agreed that I had said the above statement. I was allowed on the plane that time but who knows in the future. The moral of the story is that all good citizens should keep their mouths shut and never complain.

Thu, 2010-01-07 13:50

#93

Timebandit Timebandit's picture

Actually, every time I've had a problem with an airline employee, I become studiously polite, ask their name and then send a blistering email to the guys higher up the food chain.

I don't have a problem getting on my plane, and they often give me free stuff for my trouble.

Deferred complaint may be more effective.

Fri, 2010-01-08 18:08

#94

NDPP

Scanning the Abdulmutallab story for More Lies

http://onlinejournal.com/artman/publish/article_5441.shtml

" returning to Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab's attempt to blow up a North west airliner on Christmas day, let's scan the body of evidence for government lies, the real explosive elements..."

Did Abdulmutallab Board Flight 253 Without a Passport?

http://globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=16856

Fri, 2010-01-08 18:16

#95

NorthReport

How about a bit of a reality check - he is suspected of trying to blow up a plane with at least one Canadian on bord. Maybe you think he should be given a medal I don't. Who gives a tinker's damn whether or not the authorities screwed up.

Fri, 2010-01-08 18:54

#96

kropotkin1951

NorthReport wrote:

How about a bit of a reality check - he is suspected of trying to blow up a plane with at least one Canadian on bord. Maybe you think he should be given a medal I don't. Who gives a tinker's damn whether or not the authorities screwed up.

So how about "our" soldiers who sit in North America and pilot drones that have killed 700 innocent Pakistanis in 2009. Do you think they should get medals? Do they extra points for the children? If someone bombed your home would you want to fight back? If someone else's home was bombed because they are like you would you get mad and fight?

So your reality check is that people in Pakistan and Yemen who are apolitical like most humans are justifiable collateral damage because some of their neighbours have the audacity to fight imperialism.

Having Canadian troops occupying Afghanistan to protect a potential pipeline route does make me feel very insecure. When is some pissed of Afhani whose family was murdered as collateral damage going to attack us Canadian civilians in a tit for tat since we have killed civilians there and they have not done anything to us.

Fri, 2010-01-08 19:04

#97

Fidel

[url=http://toronto.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20100108/men_deplaned_100... Curious guys get deplaned after security questions[/url]

Quote:
TORONTO - Nine men were ordered off a Sunwing aircraft destined for Cuba earlier this week after asking a flight attendant unusual questions about the security equipment on the plane.

The men, onboard a flight from Toronto to Holguin, Cuba, on Tuesday were taken off the plane before the aircraft ever left Pearson Airport in Toronto. A spokeswoman for Sunwing Aircraft says the men were asking "most unusual" questions as the plane taxied to the runway.

Jeez, kinda makes me want to demand that they beef up security everywhere all the time. It's just not safe anymore.

Fri, 2010-01-08 19:16

#98

kropotkin1951

They were likely Cuban suicide bombers.

Fri, 2010-01-08 19:40

#99

Fidel

It's enough to make me think twice about flying, and specifically, to Cuba during these cold Canadian winter months!! Apparently someone wants us to be fearful.

Quote:
Border official: "Viktor, please don't be afraid to tell me you're afraid of Krakozhia." -

Viktor Novorski: "Is home. I am not afraid from my home. So? I go to New York City now?
Official: "No"

Viktor: "No?" - The Terminal

Fri, 2010-01-08 21:42

#100

NorthReport

Man removed from plane after security alert at Heathrow

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/jan/08/heathrow-airport-security-scare

Fri, 2010-01-08 21:46

#101

NorthReport

Mr. Abdulmutallab, the son of a prominent Nigerian banker, is apparently spilling his story to interrogators and a plea bargain may be in the offing.

Otherwise, he could face life in prison if convicted.

U.S. Attorney-General Eric Holder has said interrogation of Mr. Abdulmutallab has already provided “valuable intelligence,” presumably about al-Qeada's operations in Yemen where he is said to have trained for the attack.

However, the lead prosecutor in the case, Barbara McQuade, said it is premature to talk about a deal. “If he wants to plead guilty, he has the right to do that,” she said. “We need to prepare as if this case is going to trial.”

Small groups of American Muslims and Nigerian-Americans carrying signs denouncing Mr. Abdulmutallab and extremist violence gathered outside the courthouse yesterday.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/would-be-airline-bomber-pleads-not-guilty/article1425027/

Air Paranoia

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