Coyote Blog

So, how are all you libertarians feeling who supported Obama hoping he could not make too much of a hash of the economy, but were willing to take the risk in exchange for an expansion of civil rights, a demobilizing of the post-9/11 security state, and curbs on executive power?

This from Rahm Emanuel is just nuts.  I remember just 6 months ago Democrats were rightly critical of the no-fly list, arguing (as I do) that there cannot reasonably be a million terrorists running around America and that the list unreasonably curbs civil liberties of everyone put on it without due process, and without any hope of removal in case of mistakes.

I had to listen to the youtube video (in the linked article) to confirm for myself he really said this and in context, but this is exactly what he means, garnering applause from the Brady Center:

"if you're on that no-fly list, your access to the right to bear arms is cancelled, because you're not part of the American family; you don't deserve that right. There is no right for you if you're on that terrorist list."

Wow, a lot of due process here.  What's next,  sending every girl who has her name on a men's room wall (you know, the ubiquitous "for a good time call..." graffiti) to prison as sex workers?

If your second ammendment rights are cancelled (it can't be an accident that he is using nearly the exact text from the Constitution) then doesn't that imply that other Constitutional rights can be cancelled as well?  After all, its dangerous to let terrorists assemble, is it not?  And speak.  And practicing their religion can be a problem.  Etc...

Please, let's not go here.

As most of you know, Andy Warhol once predicted that "In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes."  The statement seems eerily correct given the explosion of talk shows and reality TV, which mainly happened after his statement.

I would like to follow-up on Mr. Warhol's bold prediction with one of my own:

In the future, everyone will be on the TSA's no-fly list

The TSA has the ridiculous policy of stopping everyone with a similar name as a single terrorist subject.  So, once a John Smith comes under scrutiny as a possible terrorist, every John Smith gets turned away at the gate. 

Sarah Zapolsky's 1-year-old son had better get used to being looked at as a
possible terrorist every time his family gets on a plane.

That's because experts and officials say there's no way the toddler's name
will be taken off the federal no-fly list - even after he and another tot made
headlines for being stopped as potential terror threats.

"His name is the same or similar to someone on the no-fly list," said Ann
Davis, a spokeswoman for the Transportation Security Administration, explaining
that even though a baby is not a threat, someone out there with the same name
is, and the name must be kept on the list.

Hat tip to Hit and Run.