Please pause a moment, reflect back, and take the following multiple choice test. The events are actual cuts from past history. They actually happened!

> > Do you remember?
> >
0. 1968 Bobby Kennedy was shot and killed by
> > > a. Superman
> > > b. Jay Lenno
> > > c. Harry Potter
> > > d. Muslim male extremist between the ages of 17 and 40
> > >
1. In 1972 at the Munich Olympics, athletes were kidnapped and
> > massacred by
> > >
> > > a. Olga Corbett
> > > b. Sitting Bull
> > > c. Arnold Schwarzenegger
> > > d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40
> > >
2. In 1979, the US embassy in Iran was taken over by:
> > > a. Lost Norwegians
> > > b. Elvis
> > > c. A tour bus full of 80-year-old women
> > > d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40
> > >
3.During the 1980's a number of Americans were kidnapped in Lebanon
by:
> > > a. John Dillinger
> > > b. The King of Sweden
> > > c. The Boy Scouts
> > > d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40
> > >
4. In 1983, the US Marine barracks in Beirut was blown up by:
> > > a. A pizza delivery boy
> > > b. Pee Wee Herman
> > > c. Geraldo Rivera
> > > d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40
> > >
5. In 1985 the cruise ship Achille Lauro was hijacked and a 70 year old American passenger was murdered and thrown overboard in his wheelchair
by:
> > > a. The Smurfs
> > > b. Davy Jones
> > > c. The Little Mermaid
> > > d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40
> > >
6.In 1985 TWA flight 847 was hijacked at Athens, and a US Navy
> > diver trying to rescue passengers was murdered by:
> > > a. Captain Kidd
> > > b. Charles Lindberg
> > > c. Mother Teresa
> > > d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40
> > >
7.In 1988, Pan Am Flight 103 was bombed by:
> > > a. Scooby Doo
> > > b. The Tooth Fairy
> > > c. Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid
> > > d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40
> > >
8. In 1993 the World Trade Center was bombed the first time by:
> > > a. Richard Simmons
> > > b. Grandma Moses
> > > c. Michael Jordan
> > > d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40
> > >
9.In 1998, the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania were bombed by:
> > > a. Mr. Rogers
> > > b. Hillary Clinton, to distract attention from Wild Bill' s women Problems
> > > c. The World Wrestling Federation
> > > d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40
> > >
10.On 9/11/01, four airliners were hijacked; two were used as
missiles to take out the World Trade Centers and of the remaining
two, one crashed into the US Pentagon and the other was diverted and crashed by the passengers. Thousands of people were killed by:
> > > a. Bugs Bunny, Wiley E. Coyote, Daffy Duck and Elmer Fudd
> > > b. The Supreme Court of Florida
> > > c. Mr. Bean
> > > d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40
> > >
11.In 2002 the United States fought a war in Afghanistan against:
> > > a. Enron
> > > b. The Lutheran Church
> > > c. The NFL
> > > d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40
> > >
12. In 2002 reporter Daniel Pearl was kidnapped and murdered by:
> > > a. Bonnie and Clyde
> > > b. Captain Kangaroo
> > > c. Billy Graham
> > > d. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40
> > >
Nope, ...I really don't see a pattern here to justify profiling, do
you? So, to ensure we Americans never offend anyone, particularly fanatics intent on killing us, airport security screeners will no longer be allowed to profile certain people. They must conduct random searches of 80-year-old women, little kids, airline pilots with proper identification, secret agents who are members of the President's security detail, 85-year old Congressmen with metal hips, and Medal of Honor winning and former Governor Joe Foss, but leave Muslim Males between the ages 17 and 40 alone
because of profiling.

I received this email this morning and wrote a response to the people the forwarded it to me... I was going to keep it off the board for political reasons, but then realized there was nothing political about it. Just some food for thought...
John, if this is too far outside the intended scope of the site you have my permission to delete it....
Bryan

I received the following email forward this morning and since so much of this material has been circulated recently, I wanted to take a minute to climb onto my soap box and reflect and respond to it.
Please pause a moment, reflect back, and take the following multiple-choice test. The events are actual cuts from past history. They actually happened!


1. On April 19, 1995, around 9:03 a.m. a massive bomb inside a rental truck exploded and the Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City was destroyed and 168 people were dead in the worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil.
The Bombers were:
A. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40
B. Two Little old ladies who lost at Bingo
C. Hillary Clinton, to distract attention from Wild Bill's women problems
D. Two White men aged 27 and 40

2. In 2002 two terrorists went on a killing spree that Left 10 Americans dead and three wounded.
The Killers were:
A. Hillary Clinton, to distract attention from Wild Bill's women problems
B. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40
C. Two Little old ladies who lost at Bingo
D. Two Black men aged 17 and 41

3. On Sept 15, 1963 A Bomb exploded in a Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, Killing 4 teenage girls and injured more than 20. The Bomber was:
A. A 24 year old white man
B. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40
C. Two Little old ladies who lost at Bingo
D. Hillary Clinton, to distract attention from Wild Bill's women problems

4. On Dec 8, 1980, a man gunned down one of the more influential and outspoken members of a generation, John Lennon
The gunman was:
A. Harry Potter
B. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40
C. Two Little old ladies who lost at Bingo
D. A 25 year old white man with an above average IQ

5. On Nov 22, 1963 John F. Kennedy was shot and killed by:
A. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40
B. Two Little old ladies who lost at Bingo
C. Tom Brady
D. A 24 year old white male who had served in the Marines

6. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., leader of the American Civil Rights Movement, was assassinated on 4 April 1968 in Memphis, Tennessee while lending support to a sanitation workers' strike. The Killer was:
A. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40
B. Two Little old ladies who lost at Bingo
C. Tom Brady
D. A 40 year old white male

7. On the morning of January 29th, a sophisticated bomb exploded in front of the New Woman All Women Health Clinic in Birmingham, Alabama, killing off duty police officer Robert "Sandy" Sanderson and wounding clinic nurse Emily Lyons. The Bomber sent a letter to new agencies claiming responsibility. He signed the letter
A. Mohammed, the Muslim male extremist
B. Hillary Clinton
C. Rossane Barr
D. The Army of God

8. On October 6, 1998, an openly gay college freshman was lured from a bar, lashed to a fence, beaten with a pistol into a coma and died five days later. His Killers were
A. Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40
B. Hillary Clinton
C. Rossane Barr
D. Two white men aged 21 who claimed "gay panic" as a defense to a heinous crime

My point is that profiling of any kind is a dangerous path to go down. I know I fit several of the profiles for the above correct answers, as do many of the students on this campus. Think about this next time you look twice about someone being a terrorist or an assassin, which is something I myself am guilty of. History has proven the extremists from all walks of life and trains of thought can do the unthinkable. The war in Afghanistan was waged against Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40, but EXTREMIST is the appropriate word of note in that sentence. Unfortunately the world has its share of nut jobs. It is my belief that teaching children that profiling someone just because of the color of their skin or ethnicity will lead to hatred and repression for the next generation to deal with.
Bryan

Good point.
F'ed up world we live in either way

Amen Van...
I work with a fellow in his 70's... not long after 9/11 we were chatting over coffee and he said one of the best truisms I've ever heard when he said "Brother, I've seen the best of times and this ain't it..."

speaking of which...

i get pulled over by the TSA screeners every time I fly for extra special treatment. :heybaby:

it seems I fit "the profile" of a terrorist (male in '30's, seemingly militant about many things, non-muslim) :laughs:

even funnier when I'm lugging fishing gear with me when I fly. should see the looks on their faces when they see all those sharp treble hooks on plugs.

one time i packed a vs 250 reel with me and they wouldn't let me carry it with me. too much metal and they were suspicious of the grease in the housing. they x-rayed it twice and told me it could be used as a blunt force weapon. so it went into the checked baggage.

i told them they better check my head too. it is very hard after all. :laughs:

not to jack the thread but....Weewee

"Gilligan is so dumb, he stares at an orange juice can just because it says concentrate"


too funny

:laughs:

My point is that profiling of any kind is a dangerous path to go down. I know I fit several of the profiles for the above correct answers, as do many of the students on this campus. Think about this next time you look twice about someone being a terrorist or an assassin, which is something I myself am guilty of. History has proven the extremists from all walks of life and trains of thought can do the unthinkable. The war in Afghanistan was waged against Muslim male extremists mostly between the ages of 17 and 40, but EXTREMIST is the appropriate word of note in that sentence. Unfortunately the world has its share of nut jobs. It is my belief that teaching children that profiling someone just because of the color of their skin or ethnicity will lead to hatred and repression for the next generation to deal with.
Bryan [/B][/QUOTE]

While you cant argue with the facts you put up about the white guys and the muslims you are missing one HUGE point here. The white guys you mention are basiclly just a handfull of wackjobs and are isolated inccedents. Yet there are MILLIONS of Muslims who would be more than happy to murder any american and kill at split second becuase they are completely wacked out. Dont get cought up in the PC bull Sh@! We all know who the enemy is and who is more likely to kill us so dont try and compare a few wacked put white guys to the Millions of radical muslims that want us all dead. Talk about apples and oranges. If you want to profile all white guys and over look the true enemy that is radical Islam go right ahead....But i fear you are wasting your time profiling 40 year old white males:smash: Some peope just dont get it and its really sad and scary. get a friggen clue people

Skip... first off, dont call me clueless for my beliefs, especially since you dont know me. But to fill in a demographic I am a very well educated white male, who has never been and probably never will be ethnically or racially profiled....

I disagree wholeheartedly with most of what you have posted on nonfishing subjects but I never remember calling you clueless, especially since I dont know you...

My point was that profiling in general is a bad idea, at the airport or otherwise, and we're sending a bad message to kids and to other countries...

As far as the need for more profiling, if it is radical muslims that are the problem, and they have known terrorist ties how are they geting into the country??? this should be averted well before they are near an airport and underlies a much bigger problem.

Show me numbers where profiling has decreased the number of terrorist attacks in this country, or anywhere (I'm not talking intelligence gathering, rather specific profiling based strictly on ethnicity). I'd argue it is hurting our image worldwide, especially with muslim groups creating negative feed back from this....

are we confusing ordinary criminals and terrorists?

remember terrorists of a particular ilk are usually united and motivated by a common cause. in the case of muslim extremists, that common thread is more often than not manfiested along ethnic and religious lines.

anyways, deep down, we're all profilers.

you're sitting on a plane.

it's after 9/11.

don't tell me you won't notice young middle eastern-looking males sitting nearby you. don't tell me that you're not thinking of a plan in your mind to beat the crap out of them if they rush the cockpit while the plane is in flight. :laughs:

Originally posted by Skip N
We all know who the enemy is


Well....Who is it then, Lets say I don't know, for arguments sake. Tell me who it is.

Isn't that the problem we are having right now, We can't really identify who it is.

Last time I looked Muslim was a Religion, not a Skin Color.


Profiling is just another name for racism.

If non-radical Islamic leaders would just come out and condem the acts of the terrorists, that would go a long way to allaying the concerns that many westerners have. Have any western (or any where else for that matter) Islamic leaders done that yet? Links?

WW..
I was walking a thin line between criminals and terrorists, and tried to seperate out either acts of terror or acts with a specific targets group...
I'm pretty sure I mentioned that I am guilty of thinking along some of these very same lines and that as a whole we need to be careful about where that leads us as a country/culture...

RIRH -

Sometimes the line is very thin indeed.

We look at terrorists as an interesting breed of criminal.

On the other side of the pond, they are viewed as heroes.

On the other side of the pond, they are viewed as heroes.

Very true but not in every case.... but that leads to a different train of thought; as to why they are thought of as heros for doing bad things to us....

Originally posted by The Dad Fisherman
Well....Who is it then, Lets say I don't know, for arguments sake. Tell me who it is.

Isn't that the problem we are having right now, We can't really identify who it is.

Last time I looked Muslim was a Religion, not a Skin Color.


Profiling is just another name for racism.


Wow, if you dont know who the enemy of the U.S. is by now we have some major catching up to do:rolleyes: So im a racist becuase i take a second look at middle eastern people before i get on a plane?? Or maybe it was 40 year old white males who took down the towers in NYC on 9/11...Or maybe it is 40 year old white males who are cutting off people heads on Iraq right now....Maybe they are 40 year old white males making car bombs and killing our soldiers everyday...maybe they are 40 year old white males who danced in the streets after 9/11 in the middle eastern counties....Maybe they are 40 year old white males in Palestine killing jews everyday....This my friend is the enemy....Maybe im missing something here but if not mistaken they are ALL muslim middle eastern people who preach RADICAL islam!! But even though I know who is causing all the trouble in he world today under your views i am not allowed to take a second look at these people or i am a racist?:af: I think most people call this common sense...wich i guess many people today dont have or they are to caught up with the PC crap they dont want to ge it.

"My point was that profiling in general is a bad idea, at the airport or otherwise, and we're sending a bad message to kids and to other countries"

Even after 9/11 and we have pretty damn good idea who is most likely to put a bomb on a plane or hijack a plane you still woudlnt take a 20 year old middle eastern man and ask him an extra question or two??? Oh yea, only 40 year old white guys can be questions so we dont offend the others:smash: Yea, good logic!:smash: Please tell me your not a screener at the airport:laughs: I will fly out of a different place if thats the case!!:laughs:

Originally posted by NaCl H2O
If non-radical Islamic leaders would just come out and condem the acts of the terrorists, that would go a long way to allaying the concerns that many westerners have. Have any western (or any where else for that matter) Islamic leaders done that yet? Links?

Nope, If they are condeming it we dont hear about it. I think they are afraid of the Radical muslims who might come after them and kill them too....Ah, the reilgion of peace its called right? Dont get me wrong i know alot of muslims are woderful people who are sickened by how they're religion has been hi jacked...But they need to stand up and defend themselves and condemn 100% what the radicals are doing...if they dont do this of course peopel will wonder about them.

Yes it it racist. It's somewhat understandable, but still not desireable. I've met plenty of Lebanese Christians and Sikh's that are sick and tired of being looked at as potential terrorists, just because of what they look like, their names or how they dress.

-spence

"I'm pretty sure I mentioned that I am guilty of thinking along some of these very same lines and that as a whole we need to be careful about where that leads us as a country/culture"

So you DO profile at the airport? Then according to the Thedadfisherman you are a rascist!:laughs:

Originally posted by spence
Yes it it racist. It's somewhat understandable, but still not desireable.

Not too long ago, a handful of nutbags made a statement in NYC, D.C. and PA.

Said nutbags made the entire Arab and Muslim world look bad. Plain and simple.

It's only human nature to generalize.

p.s. I'm having Lebanese food for lunch. My favorite. :drool:

Skip, closer to home... of the 6 terror suspects mentioned in the news last week, what nationality where they?

4 were Chinese nationals... am I now supposed to look closely at every person of asian decent cause they may be a terrorist...

What about IRA? Say down the road we get involved in N. Ireland, maybe they get pissed at us and are now terrorists.. hmm white males, of irish decent damn now I'm screwed...

Where does it stop?

Ben's right a few nutjobs did a bad thing a few years ago.... not everyone in that religion is the same or acts the same or thinks the same...

"Yes it it racist. It's somewhat understandable"

You just agreed with me. How can we NOT take a second look giving whats going on in the world and who is out to kill us. Even though you admitted its understandable its still racsist?? I guess all amercians are racsists then becuase i dont know if anyone who flies and doesnt take a look around to see who's on the plane with them. I guess it does sound bad but hey, we have to watch out for ourselves and cant take anything for granted. Play it safe or risk getting another 9/11. Even if that meens profiling and hurtung someones feelings then im sorry but it must be done.

"4 were Chinese nationals... am I now supposed to look closely at every person of asian decent cause they may be a terrorist"

That was hoax....so thats doesnt have any merit anymore

Skip, I think the reality is that the average Arab-Muslim American is already getting a boatload of scrutiny/animosity from everyone.

Kinda like the Nips shortly after they bombed Pearl Harbor.

I give everyone the second look and trust none of them . Im not a racist , I hate everyone equally !

nips ? those are some small crackers , but tastey

Originally posted by Skip N
Wow, if you dont know who the enemy of the U.S. is by now we have some major catching up to do:rolleyes: So im a racist becuase i take a second look at middle eastern people before i get on a plane??

I know I'm not thinking its every guy who's skin is darker than mine.

Pulling someone out of a crowd Because they are not a "40 Year Old White Guy" is a form of racism.....is it not. Pretty much the same as making somebody go to the back of the bus for the same reason.

I just personally don't think Profiling is a good thing, I'm trying to raise my kids to look at a person as a person, nothing more, nothing less.

TDF.. thats a great view...
Kids see people as people until we (not just parents but a culture) teach them otherwise...

Skip I realize that was a hoax, but 90% of america is still looking for 4 chinese terrorists....

"Ben's right a few nutjobs did a bad thing a few years ago.... not everyone in that religion is the same or acts the same or thinks the same..."

They did a "bad thing"? is that what you call murdering 3000 of our brothers ans sisters? Maybe we should be more sensitive to the muslim world and when we catch Osoma just give him a timeout and not hurt him so we dont offend the Muslim world. I meen that would make the Muslin radicals like us right? yes thats it...lets be more nice to them and they will be nice to us. And i NEVER said ALL muslims were bad...the good ones NEVER condemn it is what scares the %$%$%$%$ outta me


:smash:

Originally posted by chris L
I give everyone the second look and trust none of them . Im not a racist , I hate everyone equally !

nips ? those are some small crackers , but tastey


See thats what I'm talking about, Equality for all.......:D

I never implied that we should give Osama a hug and a slap on the wrist, now your talking people specifically guilty of killing americans, I'm talking profiling, not justice for those that acted against america...

"I never implied that we should give Osama a hug and a slap on the wrist, now your talking people specifically guilty of killing americans, I'm talking profiling, not justice for those that acted against america..."


Your right I stand corrected....I was on a role and got carried away:D

"Kinda like the Nips shortly after they bombed Pearl Harbor. [/B][/QUOTE]
He said "NIPS"....You damn racsist pig!:laughs:

i despise the Japs as does most of my family.

they deserved to be nuked TWICE.

f*ck 'em.

"Pulling someone out of a crowd Because they are not a "40 Year Old White Guy" is a form of racism.....is it not. Pretty much the same as making somebody go to the back of the bus for the same reason."

There is a BIG differnce between the two...we KNOW there are muslims who want us dead and will do anything to make that happend and we are looking at them because the radicals have occomplished that and killed many Americans so you can see why we would take a second look. They do look a certain way so what the hell are we gonna do to not take a second look!?...The Blacks never harmed us so we had no reason to do what we did to them...That was 100% racism no question. I just dont know how you can put the two together. We have a good reason to take a second look at muslims becuase of what the radicals are doing to us now....I dont recall the blacks ever harming us or give us any reason to look at them more closely.

Originally posted by Skip N
[BThere is a BIG differnce between the two...we KNOW there are muslims who want us dead and will do anything to make that happend and we are looking at them because the radicals have occomplished that and killed many Americans so you can see why we would take a second look. They do look a certain way so what the hell are we gonna do to not take a second look!?...The Blacks never harmed us so we had no reason to do what we did to them...That was 100% racism no question. I just dont know how you can put the two together. We have a good reason to take a second look at muslims becuase of what the radicals are doing to us now....I dont recall the blacks ever harming us or give us any reason to look at them more closely. [/B]

No matter what reasons you have behind it, singling someone out because of the color of there skin IS Racist......thats the bottom line, thats the Definition of racism.

And I said that, I, Me, Personally don't think that profiling is a good thing. I don't know how anyone can look at someone and say "He looks like a Radical".

What if they kept pulling you out for a drug test at work Month after Month because your a "Young White Guy" that looks like he uses drugs but never grabs the 50-something guy that actually does spark one up every morning before work...doubt that would make to many people happy.

"What if they kept pulling you out for a drug test at work Month after Month because your a "long haired White Guy" that looks like he uses drugs "
hey I resemble that remark ! Im profiled all the time . everytime a cop gets near my truck window you can hear him sniffing . they must have colds . My father ( state cop ) told me before 1975 that with the length of my hair that I should expect some degree of harassment and I get plenty .

sure I have long hair but what does that really mean ? Im a drug addict ? NO ! just a piece of camel dung infested with dung beetles .

Originally posted by chris L
"What if they kept pulling you out for a drug test at work Month after Month because your a "long haired White Guy" that looks like he uses drugs "
hey I resemble that remark ! Im profiled all the time . everytime a cop gets near my truck window you can hear him sniffing . they must have colds . My father ( state cop ) told me before 1975 that with the length of my hair that I should expect some degree of harassment and I get plenty .

sure I have long hair but what does that really mean ? Im a drug addict ? NO ! just a piece of camel dung infested with dung beetles .

Then you qualify to answer these questions "Do you think its right for them to do that to you" and "Do you like it"

....and I don't think your a piece of Camel Dung.....hippy :D

No
No but have lots of fun cracking their stones sometimes
oh but I am ! LOL

HATE is the last thing my girls would ever learn from me . I dont condone stereo typing but I understand it . there are a lot of bad people in all races , religeons , organizations and jails . LOL

oh no see you stereo typed me Im not a hippy ( I shower regualrly ) LOL

see everyone how easy it is to stereo type someone ! LOL

Profiling is one of the necessary evils in todays society.

ex..... 4 arabic men between the age of 18-40 board a 9 am flight with no carry-on luggage. They wisk through security don't say a word and are seated at the front of the airplane. You in turn are standing behind a curtain with your belt and shoes off getting the "wand" as they board the plane unscathed.

This scenario would make everybody uneasy, if you say anything different, you are a liar. Why does it make you uneasy? Because in your own mind YOU are profiling. You know those men fit the profile of the individuals who have caused so much harm to our country over the last few years/decades. Some people just don't want such a policy put into writing, however they want to be encased in the security that such a policy provides. Lets face it, we are living in a "post 9-11" terrorism era. It is not going to stop or lessen. We have to be vigilant. If that means that certain groups of people receive a lesser expectation of privacy so be it.

My two cents. In general I don't approve of racial profiling, but in some cases the unease with profiling (note that I'm not talking about discrimination) just makes good sense. If your the police looking for a young white male who jusy murdered his girlfriend what sense would it make to leave out his race in the APB, just to have Blacks and asians looked at as potntial suspects? Subsitute black or asian in that last question and you get the same answer.
Suspicion because of age and race is not the same as discrimination in other things where it simply isn't warranted. Plus it should not be used as the sole criteria. The guy padilla that they caught in a bombing plot was hispanic.

i think tax attorneys who relocate to RI outta be strung up by their Penn Int'ls. :hihi:

Bronko well said:)

WW,
Wattsa matter, jealous? :smash:

Originally posted by Bronko
We have to be vigilant. If that means that certain groups of people receive a lesser expectation of privacy so be it.
A very, very, very dangerous statement.

When you check in for a flight, do they ask you what your religion is? How many nationalities do you think would have a higher potential for spawning terrorists? 50? 100?

Can you personally tell the difference between a Pakastani and a Sikh?

The burden to determine if someone's rights should be lessened should always be their behavior, not race or religion.

Freaking out over a group of Arab men on the plane may be perfectly natural after 9/11, but it's still a racist behavior that needs to be checked. Otherwise it can lead to very bad things.

-spence

Originally posted by spence
A very, very, very dangerous statement.

When you check in for a flight, do they ask you what your religion is? How many nationalities do you think would have a higher potential for spawning terrorists? 50? 100?

Can you personally tell the difference between a Pakastani and a Sikh?

The burden to determine if someone's rights should be lessened should always be their behavior, not race or religion.

Freaking out over a group of Arab men on the plane may be perfectly natural after 9/11, but it's still a racist behavior that needs to be checked. Otherwise it can lead to very bad things.

-spence

I knew eventually I'd see the ACLU in you Spence.;) Tough subject all around. Just posting my two cents.

Originally posted by spence
The burden to determine if someone's rights should be lessened should always be their behavior, not race or religion.
-spence

Thats exactly how it should be looked at.

Originally posted by Bronko
ex..... 4 arabic men between the age of 18-40 board a 9 am flight with no carry-on luggage.

In that statement there the determining factor why they should be questioned shouldn't be because they are 4 Arabic men.....it should be that they are 4 men boarding a cross-country flight w/ NO luggage.

Everybody is going to give people of middle-eastern descent a second look because of 911, thats just human nature. And a second look isn't the same as singling someone out of a crowd,stopping them and searching them because of it.

The key is to try and not make it an acceptable practice. Once we say its OK, as a society, to look at this guy w/ suspicion because of the color of his skin then thats a real problem.

Wow... this thread has taken on a life of it's own... good thread and I'm glad it has stayed apolitical, as it is a non-political issue IMHO

I think everyone has expressed their views well, and whether you argree with me or not you all make valid points. As stated before I AM guilty of looking twice and thinking bad thoughts, less now than right after 9/11, but with all of the different nationalities featured as suspects recently, valid threats or not, we should be looking at actions not color, as mentioned earlier...

Anytime you define someones intent based on color or religion, it is a dangerous precident...

How quickly we forget and latch onto one group with others around and passed such as:

David Koresh
Embassy bombings all over the world
Terry Nichols & Timothy McVeigh
Heaven's Gate
Klu Klux Klan
Michigan Militia (although im sure they're half of your heros)
Neo Nazis
The WHITE AMERICAN who was caught by the CIA in Afghanistan supporting Al Qaeda.
Earth Liberation Front (The people who burn stuff.)

(I'm sure if I thought about it more I could list probably 50 more groups around this country which would be considered 'terrorist' groups.)

All of these groups and people are considered "extremists"
Half of which do so for religious reasons or use religious reasoning.
Most of them are white.
Most have commited what would be considered now "terrorist acts".


And as far as profiling at airports....
Who gives a damn?
You don't know what they're looking for, they WON'T tell you what they're looking for and for good reason.

Half of the replies in this thread are bigoted and are the EXACT reason half the world hates the US right now (other than foreign policy).
They're not jealous
They don't wish they were like us.
They just think we're a bunch of idiots for letting what is going on today continue.