A new series started here yesterday, a series called “American Dream“. We watched it last night and it was really well done, although perhaps more slanted to people more familiar with American history than many who may live here (Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, for example, are not well known over here).
I love the stories of American dreams. I love the ideals and history behind it. You could grow up poorer than poor and yet have a chance in a country whose streets were – while not exactly paved with gold – at least paved with something that could let you forget who you once were, where you once came from. It was a country of fresh starts, a country that once allowed people in, refugees, people with nothing, people who couldn’t even speak the language. The idealism isn’t complete – I know the immigrants faced waves of prejudice, I know that there were rough starts, starvations, families torn apart. Coming as I do as a direct descendant of an immigrant (my father), I know how hard you can work and I know that you can succeed.
When I think of America, I like to think of that America. The one where you had to move fast, you had to work hard but if you did, or if you just got lucky, then your entire situation could improve. You could get the brass ring.
Recently things have been happening that make my mouth hang open. Last Friday night Newsnight interviewed a Congresswoman named Michele Bachmann, whom I’d never heard of (why would I? I no longer live there and we have our own political dramas to deal with over here.) She started off with a position of Americans not being able to adapt and be flexible to change, which I was surprised at. She then said one thing and then quite literally contradicted herself with the very next answer to a question. But what I was most flabbergasted about was her view that Obama is anti-American, a term that I hoped would die with the McCarthy era. I can’t help but feel that was a term she was using without thinking of the consequences of those actions – witch hunts belong buried back in the 16 and 1700′s, not today. At any rate I don’t know her or her political platform, but I felt uncomfortable by the whole thing – did everyone in America think like her? Is the government going to start going after people for being anti-American? Is it happening all over again, where lives and reputations of people are destroyed simply because they follow their beliefs, something which Constitutionally they are allowed to do (or at least used to be)?
The world view of Americans has been slipping for a long while – we are not the country that everyone dreams of belonging to, as they used to teach in the schools I went to. We are instead reported on as being backwards, as having knee jerk reactions and a clinginess to cultural conservatism that echoes very much to those nutty Pilgrims that were escorted off of European shores for being just too hardcore in their beliefs. This interview comes in ahead of the next issue, a raging outcry here about TSA changes. International flights are now prone to more intrusive searches. The body scanners are sadly not new to us, we have them at Heathrow for flights to the U.S. When in the U.S., if heading out on an international flight you may be subjected to fiercer searches than if you were flying domestically, which to my mind doesn’t really compute – the last atrocities committed by terrorists were on domestic flights, flights with a higher percentage of Americans on them. It would seem that coming down on people leaving the U.S. on international flights is like making people pay an exit tax and then subjecting them to a pat down just because. Further I remember that once upon a time people needed a warrant to search you without cause, something has clearly changed in legislation since I left.
The debate here has furthered with news of the woman who had to remove her post-cancer prosthetic breast. And the elderly man whose trousers were pulled down to show his knee transplant. It culminated into that proverbial straw that broke my camel’s back with two new stories – a young boy who got strip searched in front of others (despite not setting off the metal detectors) and a screaming and terrified 3 year old girl who was forced to be patted down because she cried when they scanned her teddy bear.
I have a 3 year old. I have two of them, in fact. Both of which burst into tears when their beloved cuddly toys were scanned at airports. That’s what children do when a big scary machine “swallows” up their closest confidants. Both children were comforted by the security personnel at the airports in London, Singapore, Australia, and Spain where it occurred. There were not subjected to pat downs by strangers. Random pat downs and strip searching is horrible, and yes I know about it because I was randomly selected to be strip searched years ago in Dusseldorf. You feel dirty. I don’t want my three year old feeling dirty.
In one forum about the strip-searched little lad someone argued they’re all for what happened if it secures their liberty. So I looked up “liberty” because I wanted to know what was so valuable we’re willing to terrify children. Not to be a cheap blogger here, but I think the definition I found on Merriam Webster is important:
Definition of LIBERTY
1 : the quality or state of being free:
a : the power to do as one pleases
b : freedom from physical restraint
c : freedom from arbitrary or despotic control
d : the positive enjoyment of various social, political, or economic rights and privileges
e : the power of choice
None of those apply to the actions of TSA in subjecting people to searches. I was debating this internally and then brought it up with Alastair – “Is flying a right, or is it a privilege?” I asked him from the couch (as I’m still off work and recovering). He looked at me and shurgged. “It’s neither. It’s just a mode of transportation.” I think he’s on to something there. We are due to go visit family next year in America, but unless the random strip searches and pat downs end, we will not be going. America is the America of my childhood memories, it’s (still) that golden paved happy place to me, not a place where I may have to explain to my scared three year old why several strangers wearing gloves have the right to touch them when we spend our time trying to teach them the exact opposite.
Security is a serious issue, I am not claiming otherwise. There are people in the world who want to see airplanes fall from the sky, particularly if they’re full of Westerners. I don’t have the answers and I don’t pretend otherwise, but I know that if it involves patting down our children (who are not setting off metal detectors) then we have already lost. If we’re running around calling people “anti-American” then has the spirit that America was based on been forgotten, namely that we will have discourse and that through voting (not witch hunts) people who are unhappy can effect change? Has fear driven us to lose sight of the bigger picture?
The only thing we have to fear is fear itself — nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.
Franklin D. Roosevelt, First Inaugural Address, Mar. 4, 1933
32nd president of US (1882 – 1945)
-S
PS- if you disagree with me that’s completely ok, but let’s keep the comments adult here. I’m not writing this to incite anyone, to be rude or dismissive, or to incur death threats like the last time I tried to write about something remotely political.
Well said!
I’m 100% against body scanners & extensive pat downs. We should do what the Israelis do in their airports: behavioral profiling. They’re in a much higher risk region, yet they get through their airports much easier & quicker than Americans do. Why not learn from someone who’s been dealing with this much longer than we have? This article describes the method they employ; it makes a lot of sense.
http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/744199—israelification-high-security-little-bother
I haven’t really been following this TSA news, because I’m not sure how much is selective reporting and how much is now SOP. I also don’t know what the answer to airline security is. People have managed to make it past security checks regardless.
Sacrificing liberty for safety is one of the signs of the downfall of a society. I just saw a story on Yahoo that says that Nicaragua is a good place to retire. Maybe I’ll give it more serious consideration. Theoretically, I could even drive there. (Also mentioned, Medellin, Columbia – this confuses me, as I thought it was the historical center of cocaine cartels, which doesn’t sound like a good place to retire to me).
So yeah. I just want to mention that Michelle Bachman is my *personal* representative and I do not understand why my fellow community members keep electing her. I’m not going to start a political rant on your blog … i just feel bad that if you caught wind of the fact that she is from Minnesota, Minneapolis area in particular, that you would think poorly of us poor saps that live in her district and are stuck with her YET AGAIN. I’m not even anti-Republican (I feel the same way about the golden girl of the democrats Nancy Pelosi from California), I just think Michelle Bachman is the biggest idiot in congress. I JUST DONT LIKE HER OR HER POLICIES and yes everything she says is a complete contradiction from what she said 2 minutes ago. Ok end of my small violin sympathy rant. :-) I dont take airplanes very often because my husband gets air-sick … so if we cant get there by car we usually dont go. But I agree with you on children and searches … i would feel horrible if my 5 year old had to go through such a procedure.
No one is going to deny America has it’s share of problems and is extremely imperfect. But going around the world and trumpeting our imperfections, particularly in the face of enemies that cannot be negotiated with and are only looking for a weakness to pounce on, is one of the many issues that I have with Obama.
But back to the major point of this post, the latest atrocities by the TSA have brought to the forefront the subject of the gov’t becoming way too intrusive for the people, all in the name of security. And a false sense of such at that. The problem is that no one in charge is using any common sense in implementing truly effective security procedures, only intrusive and random knee-jerk reactions that are far more disruptive than any perceived security incident. And also there is the issue of profiling, which is a big no-no over here due to the fact it’s been turned into a synonym for racism. I say look at how the Israelis do it. They believe what looks like a duck, walks like a duck, talks like a duck, and smells like a duck deserves a little more scrutiny because it probably is a duck. That’s where the whole basis of security should begin, instead of these random searches of little kids and 88-year-old grandmas. But so long as profiling is equated with racism, nothing is going to change.
I will not be flying, nor will I allow my minor children to until they stop relying on the body scanners and extreme pat-downs. I have seen photos that infuriated me, namely one of a 3-4 year old boy being patted down by a TSA agent.. who had his big hand right on the boy’s private parts! Now, I’m sorry, but little black boys are not taking down airplanes! I’m with Solomon–we need to do what Israel is doing. I don’t want to see any more photos of TSA agents frisking nuns, old people, and 4 year old boys!
I also don’t want to walk through a body scanner. I’ve seen too many photos on the internet to believe that no one else is looking at or posting these things. I’m happy to go through the x-ray machine and/or be wanded. Any more intrusive than that is not acceptable.
Alistair is right, it’s a mode of transportation, nothing more, nothing less. I’m sick of ceding my freedom because of knee-jerk reactions on the part of our government.
Here here, my brother has just gone on vacation to America and it was one of his greatest concerns
I’m so with you on the value of people’s liberties (liberty in its true sense) Shannon and the sense of it being a very slippery slope once that fundamental value has been abandoned. Once people have been made to feel that they are in danger, it is amazing and frightening to see what they will submit themselves (and their children and their elderly) to, and I can’t help wondering if that’s the point of it all. All that dreadful (and largely pointless) scanning and searching heightens everybody’s sense of danger and encourages us to be docile and submissive and to hand our rights over.
I think Alastair is spot on with his point about transportation. I’m greatly in favour of people calculating their own risks (which are truly minute) and making their own decisions.
I’m definitely not with the other commenters who regard profiling as any kind of alternative or step in the right direction.
I was thinking this morning how very powerful fear is – we (Americans) have had so much taken away and restricted, and we don’t say anything because we fear retribution and we also fear because they have told us to fear what will happen if the restrictions are eased.
It is really disturbing here about now, and a sharp contrast to ten or eleven years ago.
Shannon, according to everything that I have read, children under 12 are not subject to the aggressive pat down according to the official TSA policy. Also most people do not go through the full body scanner or receive the alternate pat down as they are more time consuming. I fly frequently and currently the ratio is about 1 in 5 passengers. Perhaps this will change as more body scanners become available. Bur you may want to check the TSA website for more info.
My problem is that everything the TSA is REACTIVE, not PROACTIVE. What happens when the next terrorist has a bomb up his ass? Are we going to be subjected to full cavity searches?
Until blonde haired, blue eyed 4 year olds are blowing up planes, they should just be subjected to the normal metal detectors and have the bomb sniffing dogs sniff everyone who walks by.
As far as Michelle Bachmann’s views on Obama, I’m not a fan of hers, but neither am I a fan of President Obama. I do view him as someone who does not like the individualness and exceptionalism(yes, I made up a word) of the American spirit.
While, I’m not going to parrot her and say that he is Anti-American, I will say that in my opinion, President Obama likes the Big Government statist views and that in and of itself flies in the face of the views of what the founding fathers envisioned.
In response to the comments on what the Israelis do – I flew with a large group to Israel on El Al airlines a little over a year ago, and along with five others in our group, I was selected for further screening. It was a very scary experience, but aside from that, it had nothing to do with our behavior. The five of us who were pulled were the five people in our group without as many “Jewish” qualities as the others – couldn’t speak Hebrew, didn’t belong to synagogues, had piercings and /or tattoos, etc. They then took everything on my person – bags, purse, etc – except my wallet, passport, and phone. They were very unsympathetic to my complete bewilderment when they took all of my things, including my $1500 worth of camera equipment and my laptop, the former which they put in a box and shipped in cargo.
I have mixed views on the new TSA regs – the body scans aren’t enough radiation to be of consequence, given that you get radiation from flying in general, unless you fly weekly (I don’t think they should be doing them to airport personnel for that reason) – and *allegedly* they only do pat-downs if you refuse to be scanned. I appreciate that this is the first move the TSA has made that isn’t in direct reaction to an incident (eg banning liquids, making us take off our shoes), so in that sense, I’m glad they’re being proactive. There are, however, major issues with this system, the least of which is that the pat-downs go too far, especially when it comes to kids (someone will make the argument that terrorists are evil enough to use children as human bombs, and thus it’s valid, but sorry, nothing validate subjecting children to pat-downs of their privates). And the bottom line is that, yes, there are other options, but they take time, and American travelers are, on the whole, as patient as a hungry child in a candy store. I believe there will be an uproar over any measures, especially ones that don’t come in the immediate aftermath of a tangible fear.
So I guess my point is that there are very good arguments to both defend and argue the new measures. Or any measures. The one thing I am certain of, though, is that I don’t want to take a side while it’s still a sensationalized issue, because I just don’t trust the American public or the media.
Largely because a decent proportion of them let Michelle Bachmann run her mouth off, applaud her, and elect her.
I was listening to the radio, and they were playing an audio clip of the TSA president or some such shit. He was basically asking people not to cause a ruckus over the new procedures on Wednesday, because it is the biggest travelling day. He asked people to use common sense.
Common sense. Heh.
I still blame America’s downward spiral on reality television, “news” channels, and all the talking heads blabbering on with their ‘expert opinions’. Ignorance, laziness, instant fame, and fear mongering-the new American dream.
@ Shannon – that may be their official stance, but the web is teeming with videos that other travellers have taken of TSA agents patting down children (including the screaming 3 year old). On the 15th of November they announced they would no longer pat down children under 12, although the continuous launching and date stamping of further videos (including one now of an 8 year old) would suggest that they aren’t always following party line. Some parenting websites are now even launching tips for how to explain pat downs to children, just in case the under 12 rule is forgotten, I guess.
Anna,
The “profiling” the Israelis do (and the profiling I was condoning) is behavioral profiling. In other words, you pay extra attention and monitor closely people who are acting overly nervous, paranoid, or erratic. Contrary to what we see in movies, people who are about to blow up a plane and themselves are rarely cool, calm, and collected. They usually have telling signs that tip off agents that they’re up to something.
Everyone/Anyone,
Helen, if you think this is offensive, please remove it.
I ask this sincerely and don’t mean to inflame. Why is it so bad to profile racially? Isn’t that just using information/intelligence wisely? For example, most pedophiles are white males (my demographic must be so proud) : ) So if a child is “assaulted”, doesn’t it make sense to give extra consideration to any white male in the child’s circle of contact? I’m not saying if there are 2 suspects (1 white & 1 black), that the white guy is convicted on that stat, but he should be the lead suspect.
What good is it to know that 90% of violent crimes in America are committed by black men between 16 & 25, that most serial killers are white men (again, way to go white guys), and that a majority of “random” murders are committed by the spouse if we don’t use this information to narrow the list of suspects?
And with regard to flying, if we don’t want to target Middle Eastern men (even though they’re the only ones who’ve used a plane as a terrorist weapon in America in the last 10 years), let’s target all men and leave the women, children, and elderly alone. It’s better to inconvenience 30% of the population (men) than 100% of the population.
I would genuinely like to hear why that’s bad.
Solomon, I agree with you 100% ‘Racial Profiling’ has always carried seriously negative conotations but not rightly so. Your examples are well taken. I think we need to look beyond the phrases which have become so negative to see what they really mean and if research shows you that a particular race, sex, age group, religion, sports team, etc. is more likely to commit murder, rob, win a football match, eat fish on a friday or blow up a plane then for goodness sake lets be sensible and use it.
I’m from Minneapolis and Michelle Bachmann infuriates me. She says things just for sound bites, without having any idea what she’s saying. She’s extremely conservative which a lot of people like, unfortunately those people don’t seem to understand that she contradicts herself continuously. God help us all if there actually is a Palin/Bachmann ticket in 2012.
I also hate that the TSA is reactive instead of proactive. It’s dumb. That said, I have zero problems with the full body scan. In fact, if someone wants to post that picture of me on the internets, go ahead. I do have issues with the crazy pat downs and will be printing out the TSA regulations on not patting down children under 12 for when we fly in February. If anyone thinks they’re going to make my children cry, they have another thing coming. Mickey Mouse isn’t worth that debacle, I’d rather stay home.
Shannon,
Thank you for putting that so well. I have been disheartened and seriously concerned by many things happening here in the US of late. It is a country that is becoming increasingly polarized and headed backwards in my opinion. Currently I and my beliefs surrounding such are in the minority. Perhaps if a distant voice is heard… Who knows. I fear this trend toward the worse is going to continue. So very sad.
Hmmm. I’m not really sure what to say, because my family flies quite a bit- 3 flights in the last few months, and we’ve had nothing but good experiences. My two and a half year old twins, husband, and self, have never been subjected to anything unusual. If anything, the airport staff at the 4 airports we’ve been through in the last 2 months have been nothing but friendly and helpful.
Regarding the American dream, I still believe in it. My dad grew up in the worst project in Boston, worked his way into and through fancy schools, through his career, now there’s a brick building named after him in my hometown. The head of neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins entered the US illegally from Mexico, worked his way from illegal migrant fruit-picker to the head of brain surgery at (arguably) the best hospital in the world. I can’t think of many places where that would be possible, so I don’t care if some whack congresswoman is spouting off. We elected a black president. This is awesome. I think America is going forward, not backward.
Hi. Long time reader, I’m fairly sure this is my first time commenting. I also live in Minnesota. And I wish I lived in Ms. Bachmann’s district so I could help vote her out of office. I think what’s the scariest about her is that she truly believes what she says.
I think the soundbites haven’t changed much, honestly… you look into history and there is every so much text on how we’re falling into disrepair, yadda yadda. It’s almost as bad as the bit about how kids today are just terrible— for example:
“I would there were no age between sixteen and
three-and-twenty, or that youth would sleep out the
rest; for there is nothing in the between but
getting wenches with child, wronging the ancientry,
stealing, fighting–”
That’s Shakespeare, FWIW. So I’m not too worried about “America in Decline.” It’s all spin, just like “America the Best Ever, And Don’t You Doubt It.”
You know my loathe for flying and this just makes it that much worse. I REFUSE to put my children at risk for pat downs. I also refuse to accept that we have to explain to our children that this is a way of life. The TSA have never played by the rules. Sensationalism or not, I’m not really going to take the chance, if the chance is there.