That jihad crisis thing is, like, so 2002. “`No Fly’ List of Terror Suspects Will Be Cut in Half (Update1),” by John Hughes for Bloomberg News, with thanks to Doc Washburn:
Jan. 17 (Bloomberg) — The U.S. government will cut in half the “no fly” list of terror suspects banned from flights so it can better focus on people who pose the greatest threat, the head of the transportation security agency said.
The paring, to be complete in a month, will drop “those who were feared to have presented a threat in the past but no longer do,” said Kip Hawley, chief of the Transportation Security Administration.
The “no fly” list and a roster of people who warrant extra checks were expanded after Sept. 11 to prevent a repeat of the terrorist attacks. The lists have frustrated travelers, including Massachusetts Senator Edward Kennedy, who was delayed from boarding flights in 2004 because his name matched an alias of someone on a list.
The security agency processed 20,000 requests last year from people who believed they were wrongly on lists or were being mistaken for people on the lists, Hawley told the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee today in Washington. Agency spokesman Christopher White declined to discuss the size of the lists, citing security concerns.
So what? I was on the list myself at one point. Anyone who is a loyal citizen and isn’t doing anything illegal shouldn’t mind putting up with some inconvenience.