Interesting
NEWS FROM THE LIBERTARIAN PARTY
2600 Virginia Avenue, NW, Suite 100
Washington DC 20037
World Wide Web: lp.org
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For release: July 1, 1999
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For additional information:
George Getz, Press Secretary
Phone: (202) 333-0008 Ext. 222
E-Mail: 76214.3676@Compuserve.com
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New government computer may decide
you're a terrorist next time you fly
WASHINGTON, DC -- The FAA wants to let a computer decide if
you're a terrorist the next time you travel by plane -- a scheme that
could turn flying into a nightmare for thousands of innocent Americans,
is probably unconstitutional, and won't make the skies any safer, the
Libertarian Party warned today.
"Are you ready to fly the paranoid skies -- and let security
agents question you, inspect your luggage, and possibly strip-search
you if a government computer decides you fit the profile of a dangerous
terrorist?" asked Steve Dasbach, the party's national director.
"Unless we stop it in time, that's what could happen when the
government's new Computer Assisted Passenger Screening (CAPS) program
goes online."
Scheduled to be launched on January 1, 2000, the CAPS program
will use a computer program and information in the airlines'
computerized flight reservation system to identify possible
"terrorists."
Although bureaucrats won't reveal the specific suspicious
characteristics they're looking for, experts speculate that traveling
alone, buying your ticket at the last minute, visiting unapproved
foreign countries, or frequent travel could get you tagged as a
possible terrorist. Passengers could also be picked at random.
If you fit the "terrorist profile," security agents could pull
you out of line, search your luggage, interrogate you about your travel
plans, tag your luggage with bright orange labels, or escort you onto
the plane. In a worst-case scenario, you could be x-rayed,
strip-searched, or subjected to a body cavity search.
"CAPS will turn air travel into computerized Russian roulette,
where a microchip will decide if security agents should detain or
search you," said Dasbach. "Last year, 50,892 airline passengers
underwent some kind of body search by airport personnel. You could be
next -- even if you are 100% innocent of any crime -- and their excuse
will be: 'The computer made me do it.' "
In anticipation of such computer-directed harassment, the ACLU
has already set up a special website to collect information about
incidents of mistreatment and discrimination by airport security
personnel.
Because thousands of innocent Americans could be subjected to
such harrowing interrogations and searches, the CAPS program raises
serious Constitutional questions, said Dasbach.
"The Fourth Amendment guarantees protection against
unreasonable search and seizure," he noted. "There's no exception in
the Fourth Amendment that says: 'Unless a computer program thinks
you're guilty.' Innocent Americans shouldn't be treated like terrorists
because a computer chip doesn't like them."
Also, the CAPS program almost certainly won't save a single
life, because current airport security has been 100% effective in
stopping terrorist threats.
"Ironically, CAPS is being mandated at the same time the
government admits the danger of airline terrorist threats in the United
States is all but non-existent," said Dasbach.
In fact, over the past 20 years, a total of zero lives have
been lost on American soil because of airline terrorism, according to
the government -- and airline travel is officially 100 times safer than
driving.
Despite this, the Federal Aviation Administration has already
budgeted $157 million for the project, and is asking Congress for
another $100 million.
The decision to go ahead with the CAPS program was made by the
White House Commission on Aviation Safety and Security following the
explosion of TWA flight 800 -- which later turned out to be a
mechanical malfunction.
"It's typical of the government: In order to solve a problem
that doesn't exist, politicians want to hijack your privacy, spend your
money, and strip you of your Constitutional rights," said Dasbach. "You
don't need a computer to figure out where the real threat to our
security comes from. It's the politicians who support this frightening
Spy-Before-You-Fly program."
On the positive side, the FAA is accepting public comments
about the CAPS program until August 17, so there may still be time to
stop it, said Dasbach.
To contact the FAA, e-mail: 9-NPRM-CMTS@faa.gov.
Or write: U.S. Department of Transportation Dockets, Docket No.
FAA-1999-5536, Room Plaza 401, 400 Seventh Street SW, Washington DC
20590.
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