How many of us are in the databases?
 

http://projects.washingtonpost.com/t.../?hpid=topnews

This entire article makes my blood boil. I wonder how many of us are in this database because we took a stand for our Constitutional rights while flying. Our only crime being that we didn't want to get irradiated or groped.

Shades of Joe McCarthy.

~~ Irish

If so, I would consider it a badge of honor to be in that database for that reason.

To put a little perspective here, it's very likely that the reporter for the article had access to numerous such reports and the one that was chosen here was "the worst". So trying to generalize all the reports as being similar to the one that was reported is undoubtably wrong.

DHS wrote this little gem:

http://www.fas.org/irp/eprint/rightwing.pdf

(U) Disgruntled Military Veterans
(U//FOUO) DHS/I&A assesses that rightwing extremists will attempt to recruit and
radicalize returning veterans in order to exploit their skills and knowledge derived from
military training and combat. These skills and knowledge have the potential to boost the
capabilities of extremists—including lone wolves or small terrorist cells—to carry out
violence. The willingness of a small percentage of military personnel to join extremist
groups during the 1990s because they were disgruntled, disillusioned, or suffering from
the psychological effects of war is being replicated today.

More than shades. I think it's screaming McCarthyism.

So let me get this straight... If I spend an afternoon at Boston Harbor, decide I'd like to take pictures of some boats, meet a friend, watch more boats for a little bit, and then my other friend and her kids join us, and then we all get on a harbor cruise to visit Spectacle Island... somehow that counts as "suspicious"?

Or does it just not matter because I'm Caucasian?

Pardon my French, but WTH? :confused: :confused: :confused:

http://www.breitbart.com/article.php...show_article=1

Govt 'creating vast domestic snooping machine'
Dec 20 07:27 AM US/Eastern

This appears to be a continuation of The Washington Post's TSA (Top Secret America) stories. There's an opportunity to correlate the world of top-secret portions of America, and the sterile area managed by the TSA. In that bubble, the normal rules don't apply. :)

To add even more perspective, 5 arrests from 161,000 reports might indicate this is a collosal waste of effort. Not to mention an egregious assault on liberty. :mad:

YMMV of course.

Richard Nixon would be proud.

I know that I am in a database or two. After my shirt incident at MCI, I discovered that a formal report was written up.. Good thing they did notnget my name when I was there!

Even worse, 5 arrests and NO convictions. This is a VERY distrubing report. I can hear Huxley now, "Looks like I was off by 26 years."

Far beyond that. This is what Joe Stalin would have done if only he had computers available.

Tell me again who "won" that there Cold War? I am having trouble telling the sides apart. Was it Eastasia or was it . . .

Do you mean Orwell?

I don't remember if Huxley specified the year of the Brave New World, but the Orwellian nightmare of 1984 is definitely invading reality.

I think our right to privacy ought to include the right to not be in any database. The USA got along well for many years without computers and databases.

Yes, of course, I was referring to 1984. Should have been Orwell. Guess that's why I majored in engineering instead of a lit.

Arrests were likely for some variation of 'contempt of cop' anyway.

Gee, and we wonder why we have budget problems in this country. As the Washington Post series has pointed out, a lot of this stuff is in black budgets not subject to public oversight. And, as we can see from this debacle, every politician in both partied considers this a sacred cow and doesn't want to be seen as "soft on terrorism."

The result? A gigantic, expensive, untouchable security bureaucracy reaching into the lives of everyday Americans who are seeing their taxes go up and standard of living go down.

I'm sure Richard Nixon wasn't as bad as the worst of Team DHS, regardless of branch of government.

How many of us are in the databases?

I am proud to say that I am in the "databases" and have been about as long as I've been on FlyerTalk.

I believe the term you're looking for is Ministerium für Staatssicherheit.

Old news, my friend. Remember. Everybody is suspicious to everyone else. Big Brother is watching.

Washington Post-DHS, Top Secret America
 

There are some very sobering statistics with regards to DHS's spending habits. They are spying on us at every turn, so the next time you go into Walmart or your local corner store you may want to cover your license plate over. (I kid you not) They actually have local gov'ts taking pictures of people's plates while they are shopping.

DHS is so busy with their Big Brother spying that they said they don't even know how much they are spending on it. What?

This article is a long, eye opening read, so make some popcorn, put your feet up and get ready for some crazy reading.

http://projects.washingtonpost.com/t...ing-america/1/

DHS doesn't seem to be committed to the idea that Americans' privacy rights should extend beyond the house (if even that). DHS however does seem to be committed to creating a Big Brother infrastructure/society that covers everything that may be potentially viewable by another ordinary citizen -- in other words, DHS wants that everything that may be in public view should be allowed for DHS tracking.

the only "suspicion" needed to get you added to the database is taking pictures, or (presumably) being stopped by a BDO/having your information taken at an enhanc -er- resolution patdown.

My favorite part there is to "Watch for vessels" near ports, bridges and marinas.

I'll get right on that.

Just imagine what Nixon could have done - and what the politicians of the future can do - with the dossiers that DHS is compiling on the American populace. Don't think it won't happen. Just see what J. Edgar Hoover did (COINTELPRO), Joseph McCarthy did, or Nixon's enemies list.

Is this report available for public viewing?

(not trying to bring you into a poor light, I just want to see how crap like this gets written up, and how much sunlight would be needed to disinfect it)

I'm sure that all the Anto-NoS activists here on FT are in the databases. Of course, we want the NoS' to be discontinued because they are extremely effective and foiling our terror plot :P *sarcasm*

Anything for safety.:confused:

It's coming more than it's already here: our government has way more information in the dossiers about us now than it acquired when doing our background checks for whatever security clearances were applicable; and our government already uses the information from growing secret dossiers against innocent US persons, sometimes in collusion with non-governmental entities such as those operating in the private sector.

That brochure posted above is unbelievable. In fact, if I didn't know what was going on in our country right now I would think it was a joke. Here is what I don't understand: many of the items listed on there as suspicious are perfectly normal behaviors that one can and does see all the time:

1. Unusual diving activity: How does your typical boater determine what is "unusual" diving activity? This summer my friends and I drove up to Lake Meredith and rented a small boat for 2 hours (suspicious???). We paid in cash (suspicious???), and drove out a few miles, dropped the anchor, and I jumped off the boat to take a dip. Is this now considered suspicious? I know swimming and diving are not the same thing but my point is, who determines what is suspicious? That is a completely subjective assessment. This is what law enforcement are trained to look for, not everyday citizens!

2. Unsual number of people onboard: Again, this is really specific. :rolleyes: Who decides what an "unusual" number of passengers is on any given vessel at any given time? :confused:

3. My favorite: Note taking, video, sketches, asking questions. These are things ANY tourist is going to do! In fact, many tourists will do ALL of those things. I love to ask questions when I am in new places. How about artists, and videographers, and vacationers that participate in these hobbies?? This is now suspicious activity?

It would be one thing if specially trained LEOs were being tasked with this kind of vigilance because they would hopefully be able to discren between normal tourist behavior and something fishy. But when you start making requests like this of Joe Q. Public you are asking for HUGE problems. American citizens should not be spying on each other. This is NOT appropriate behavior on the part of our government to ask this!

This is why this idea especially the Wal-Mart thing is so stupid..... Geeze..... Proves how messed up the DHS is.

Rumor has it that if you turn in five of your neighbors at the Wal-Mart DHS kiosk, you get a coupon for a free brown shirt.

You forgot gas docks.

I'm sure Doc Marten's and green NF jackets (flight jackets) will be coming to Wal-Mart soon enough. Fake Hitler mustaches and those plastic hands that automatically do a nazi salute probably not far behind.

TXagogo - if you think thats bad being a diver alone you try being a underwater photographer, that has caused more BS and incidents were i wanted to shove a fin up some idiots butt sideways then i can count. Then if you want to throw in a rebreather, stage and/or deco tanks and a scooter in the mix it gets even worse.

As sad as it is the BS from diving has paled in comparision to what i have dealt with as a photographer. Talk about a lot of nervous nellies scared of there shadow, but yet like to stick there mug in other peoples business.

I have no doubt im in multiple government databases but getting all up in my business or showing up at my residence unannouced (this being Texas after all) could be hazardous to ones health.

Next time I take a cruise, you can better believe I'll think twice before transferring myself or my stuff between the shore and the ship.

As soon as I get word on how much additional hot water I can expect to be in for posting it, I will be posting a picture of a DHS squad car that was circling my property earlier this year. I went out to see what the clown wanted and he sped off, so I jumped into my truck and gave chase. I caught up with him, but didn't really have a lucid plan beyond "get him", so I snapped a few photos of the car and went home.