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Conservatives share blame for TSA's 'freedom fondle'
Washington Examiner ^ | 11/23/2010 | Gene Healy

Posted on 11/27/2010 5:32:54 PM PST by The Magical Mischief Tour

Last fall, flying out of Chicago O'Hare, I ran into that rarest of breeds: a Transportation Security Administration agent with a sense of humor. In her "Da Bears" accent, she moved the line along with a good-natured, "awright: who's my next victim?" At least they're allowed to joke about it. If a rubber-gloved fed cups your -- er, I prefer the term "treasures" -- just turn your head and cough politely. Don't dare try to ease the awkwardness with a wisecrack, lest you get arrested under the TSA's no-joking policy.

Sometimes, when I manage to pull my eyes away from my twinkly smartphone and look around, I think, "Wow, if you squint a little, this could be a sci-fi dystopia!" (It happened again just recently, as I was passing through the gates at my local Metro station, and Janet Napolitano's voice boomed ominously from the loudspeakers, ordering me to say something if I see something.)

Thankfully, the growing anti-TSA backlash shows that for many Americans, there isn't a Soma dose high enough to get them to grin and bear the bureaucratic feel-up.

In fact, even some of our most rabid terror-warriors, like former Sen. Rick Santorum and neocon stalwart Charles Krauthammer, now say they've had enough.

Santorum and Krauthammer blame a politically correct mentality that prevents profiling. But the Christmas bomber was Nigerian; the shoebomber, a Brit with a Jamaican father. Should we just give the "freedom fondle" to anyone vaguely swarthy?

I have a different explanation for how we got here.

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonexaminer.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Crime/Corruption; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: counterterrorism; tsa; tsapervs
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1 posted on 11/27/2010 5:32:56 PM PST by The Magical Mischief Tour
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To: The Magical Mischief Tour

Bush’s fault?


2 posted on 11/27/2010 5:36:57 PM PST by mylife (Opinions ~ $1 Half Baked ~ 50c)
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To: The Magical Mischief Tour
But the Christmas bomber was Nigerian

But he was on a watch list and his dad had reported him tot he CIA.

3 posted on 11/27/2010 5:40:49 PM PST by marron
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To: The Magical Mischief Tour

This guy doesn’t know what he is talking about. The Israelis have an outstanding profiling system. We could adopt that in a second but our Democrat overlords are more worried about punishing their subjects.


4 posted on 11/27/2010 5:41:05 PM PST by Soothesayer (“None can love freedom heartily, but good men; the rest love not freedom, but license...")
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To: The Magical Mischief Tour

This guy doesn’t know what he is talking about. The Israelis have an outstanding profiling system. We could adopt that in a second but our Democrat overlords are more interested in punishing their subjects.


5 posted on 11/27/2010 5:41:21 PM PST by Soothesayer (“None can love freedom heartily, but good men; the rest love not freedom, but license...")
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To: marron

Someday I’ll learn to spell.


6 posted on 11/27/2010 5:41:27 PM PST by marron
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To: Soothesayer
This guy doesn’t know what he is talking about.

The author sound like he absolutely knows what he is talking aobut. He writes:

For nearly a decade, Krauthammer, Santorum and too many others on the Right have relentlessly hyped and politicized the terrorist threat. But when every bungled attack -- no matter how inept -- gets the screeching siren treatment on Drudge, what do you expect that political dynamic to produce? Sober, sensible policy?.. Conservatives could stand to think more clearly about ideas and consequences, cause and effect. Take last week's comments from Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., a congressional father of the agency: "When the TSA was established, it was never envisioned that it would become a huge, unwieldy bureaucracy."

Well everyone except Bush and his minions saw this as a bad idea at the outset. It is still a bad idea. Read more at the Washington Examiner: http://washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/columnists/2010/11/gene-healy-conservatives-share-blame-tsas-freedom-fondle#ixzz16XKVmUFh

7 posted on 11/27/2010 5:49:20 PM PST by AndyJackson
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To: The Magical Mischief Tour

This author is reaching so far into the barrel of possible, probabilities of causes that he by-passed the level of reason, and reached below the level that residue de bullscoot resides.

I’d say more, but the article doesn’t deserve the time.


8 posted on 11/27/2010 5:49:50 PM PST by rockinqsranch (Dems, Libs, Socialists, call 'em what you will, they ALL have fairies livin' in their trees.)
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To: The Magical Mischief Tour

I drop a rock, strong wind blow it down the hill, a bird picks it up and drop it. Obama walk down a road, trip over the rock. Am I at fault? Is the bird at fault? Is the rock at fault? Or was Obama simply clumsy?


9 posted on 11/27/2010 5:58:04 PM PST by 4rcane
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To: The Magical Mischief Tour
Gene Healy writes: "Don't dare try to ease the awkwardness with a wisecrack, lest you get arrested under the TSA's no-joking policy."

Appeasers of tyranny are, of course, despicable.

But liberals compete for depravity levels.

So here, we see the most depraved of all - a liberal appeaser who is pushing the acceptance of gevernment sexual molestation of families as deserving of being not only accepted - but allowed "with a sense of humor."

Mr. Healy, in the words of Samuel Adams: "Crouch down and lick the hand that feeds you. May your chains rest lightly upon you and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen."

10 posted on 11/27/2010 5:58:47 PM PST by Talisker (When you find a turtle on top of a fence post, you can be damn sure it didn't get there on its own.)
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To: The Magical Mischief Tour
But the Christmas bomber was Nigerian; the shoebomber, a Brit with a Jamaican father.

Gosh, if only there was some other commonality between the two. Something that they both share.
11 posted on 11/27/2010 6:02:19 PM PST by andyk (Hi, my name's Andy, and I was a BF 1942 / Desert Combat junkie.)
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To: mylife
Bush’s fault?

In this case - yep. He created the homeland security gestapo, he steadfastly refused to build a border fence, he created the "trade rights for security" mentality that facilitates the greater loss of rights. Bush did not govern as a conservative and because of that he gave us Osama Obama and the wicked witch of the west's congress. It will take generations to undo the harm that was done under Bush. I fear it will take patriot blood to undo the damage to liberty that Obama has and is doing.

12 posted on 11/27/2010 6:03:51 PM PST by DaveyB (Fear is the foundation of most governments -- John Adams)
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To: DaveyB

Most here were against the HSA.
That said, you want a wall?
Isn’t that kind of the same sort of thinking?


13 posted on 11/27/2010 6:09:40 PM PST by mylife (Opinions ~ $1 Half Baked ~ 50c)
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To: DaveyB

I blame it on Reagan. If Reagan didn’t pick Bush Senior, Clinton would not have won for 2 years, that led to Bush winning 2000


14 posted on 11/27/2010 6:12:58 PM PST by 4rcane
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To: 4rcane

years=term i mean


15 posted on 11/27/2010 6:13:44 PM PST by 4rcane
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To: The Magical Mischief Tour
The new make out line:

Are you a TSA agent, and are you happy to see me?

16 posted on 11/27/2010 6:21:25 PM PST by Slyfox
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To: The Magical Mischief Tour
Santorum and Krauthammer blame a politically correct mentality that prevents profiling. But the Christmas bomber was Nigerian; the shoebomber, a Brit with a Jamaican father. Should we just give the "freedom fondle" to anyone vaguely swarthy?

So, does he just intentionally mistake what profiling actually is?

17 posted on 11/27/2010 6:22:18 PM PST by brytlea (Jesus loves me, this I know.)
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To: mylife
That said, you want a wall? Isn’t that kind of the same sort of thinking?

The fence does not deprive citizens of liberty, it establishes borders and protects against invasion.(A legitimate constitutional function).

18 posted on 11/27/2010 6:23:21 PM PST by DaveyB (Fear is the foundation of most governments -- John Adams)
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To: brytlea

Either purposely or stupidly Americans want profiling the Israeli type which profiles everyone.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3988578,00.html


19 posted on 11/27/2010 6:27:23 PM PST by FromLori (FromLori)
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To: The Magical Mischief Tour

>> Healy: “...that prevents profiling. But the Christmas bomber was Nigerian; the shoebomber, a Brit with a Jamaican father.”

Mindless contradiction.


20 posted on 11/27/2010 6:27:23 PM PST by Gene Eric (Your Hope has been redistributed. Here's your Change.)
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