Why has eight-year-old Mikey Hicks always been stopped and frisked by airport security since he was an infant? Unfortunately, Mikey and his dad have the same name, if not the same age, as a terrorist suspect on TSA’s watch list, making air travel a big hassle for the Clifton family. Mom Najlah Hicks has had enough, telling CBS News “a terrorist can blow his underwear up and they don’t catch him. But my 8-year-old can’t walk through security without being frisked.” Najlah and Mikey told their story this morning to CBS News on The Early Show:
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You know, Osama bin Laden, a Florscheim shoe salesman in Perth Amboy has exactly the same problem!
I can understand them making an error but why, after 7 years, have they not corrected the problem?
What problem? If there is someone on the terrorist list named “mike hicks” then everyone flying under that name should get a little extra attention, right?
Or do we just want to leave it to the discretion of the TSA agent there at the time?
It’s unfortunate, but it’s not like they’re being interrogated for hours. They get a little extra attention and a pat down. It’s not the end of the world.
My name is similar to someone on the list and the last few flights I wasn’t able to confirm and print a boarding pass — I get the alert that my reservation needs special handling. I actually would prefer being frisked than the pain of waiting in line for the ticket agent to issue a boarding pass.
I read this in the NYTimes yesterday.
ROC: We’re talking about an 8-year-old kid, really. After a few years, it’s more than a little inconvenience.
Leave the kid at home.
“ROC: We’re talking about an 8-year-old kid, really. After a few years, it’s more than a little inconvenience.”
MM. If we exempt 8 year old kids from security scrutiny when warranted, terrorists will know that and they’ll strap a bomb on an 8 year old kid.
Anyone “exempt” from the proper amount of scrutiny will be exploited.
I think the issue is much more than inconveniencing a kid and/or his family. The fact is that the family has been after the authorities for years to get this situation resolved, and nothing has happened.
If it is this hard to get OFF the list, one can only wonder how carefully the list is maintained and how often it is updated.
Right, Because these animals are not beyond sending an 8 year old out with a bomb strapped to them.
I have to tell, this could be one of the biggest non-story waste of times I’ve seen in a long time. Who cares that their angel has to be a little inconvenienced . There are a lot of people in our area that have the inconvenience of losing their dad or mom on 9/11.
Congressional democrats have been breaking their committment to the American people by meeting behind closed doors and yesterday gave into the Unions exempting them from taxing their health benefits unlike the rest of the country, huge , huge news and the only thing CBS can report on is Little Mikey being inconvenienced. Shame on Mikeys whining parents and shame on CBS. And btw- I careless who gives me a thumbs down because you know I’m right.
Of course , “giving in” means that the threshold went from $8500 a year for an individual and $23,000 for a family, to $8900 for an individual and $24,000 for a family.
and the “unions” (state and local employees) are pushed back to 2018 rather than 2013.
What some call compromise, herb sees as Dems “giving in”. Well, when your mind is made up who needs to be bothered with facts?
Yeah, cro. What’s the big deal about a tax everyone has to pay for fund healthcare “reform” which union members don’t have to pay for 5 years? What’s the big deal? It’s only $60,000,000,000 we unlucky slobs will have to make up in some other way.
It’s nothing, move along folks….
We can argue about whether its fair or good policy. There are plenty of points to indicate that it is neither.
however, it is not as herb said, that they are “exempt”.
I know that its hard for you to stay on topic and to look carefully at what others say (unless it is to get, as you would say, a “rise”), but I keep hoping.
I think when a tax is going to be applied to everyone except a particular group for a period of 5 years, that “exempt” is an appropriate term. It could be made clearer by saying “exempt for 5 years” to be sure. But “exempt” fits.
Call me crazy, but I’m a stickler for “clearer” language.
That’s why I never made it at Fox News.
Hope you won’t miss me while I’m away from the computer, ROC (or herb).
In honor of MLK weekend, I’m going to read Langston Hughes’ classic poem, “A Dream Exempt”.
Looks like the NY Times and I are even on the same page:
“In addition, they said, health plans covering state and local government employees and collectively bargained health plans would be exempt from the tax until 2018.”
This is not a compromise, this is policy created to appease the unions for their continued support. Compromise ? how in the world do you know its a compromise when your not privy to the meetings or its going ons? It’s a cheap sell out to the Unions that will drastically increase the costs specifically in the NY/NJ areas.
Now back to Little Mikey
It’s one thing to be cautious and err on the side of screening more rather than less, but this is just a waste on many levels. There a many things TSA agents could be doing to keep us safe instead of spending hours on needless searches. You also have TSA agents becoming complacent when they do find someone on the list because a majority of the time these are false alarms.
And let’s not forget the money this is costing us. I’m sure there are several, but one estimate puts it somewhere between $500 million and $1 billion since 9/11. Obviously not all of that is waste, but what is waste sure could buy a lot of sniffers and scanners. Seems the only thing being kept safe for sure are TSA jobs.
How about a smarter database that indicates exceptions, such as the a list of the Mike Hicks who should be excluded from being given a pat down search to begin with because they were already cleared at least once before? It’s actually up to the airlines themselves to create their own databases, if they wish, to keep detailed passenger data to avoid false positives. Every decent law enforcement database in the world contains more information than just a name. Why is this list so dumb. It should really only take one extra check at an airport to get you exempted from the bad guy list. They put in your related idenitification, such as address, description, etc. Voila, the database becomes a useful tool. This just seems stupid as it is now.
Why are we calling it an error?
I think the name legitimately is on the list and unfortunately, this kids shares a name with the person for whom it was listed.
Perhaps they need some checks and balances such as age of listed person but just removing a name from the list doesnt seem to be the right answer.
All Osama Bin Laden’s are hereby allowed to fly unless the passenger lists this address:
3rd Cave on the Right
Parachinar, Pakistan
Assuming (and I do) that CBS News and the other local news programs got this from the original Times item, this item is therefore third-hand. And even despite how close by Clifton really is, still contains no original reporting. Really, such editorial slacking is just amazing.
And depressingly pro forma here.
I’ve heard that the NSA has recently intercepted a message sent from Osama to his followers who are protecting him.
It reads, in part:
“I’ve recently learned that the Americans may be attempting to infiltrate our ranks, particularly the guard detail assigned to my protection. We must take steps against this. First patrol will consist of Muhammed, Omar, Akbar, Salim, and Scott.”
Thank you croiagusanam ! I needed a good laugh to end my work week.
“Security Theater” (as opposed to ACTUAL security) continues to destroy whatever credibility the government and TSA may have ever had.
If we were serious we’d take notes from actual professionals and stop the current foolishness. It’s a shame we’re such sheep.
This is an outrage. I, too, am forever being inconvenienced at airport security. Apparently Al Qaeda has another von Klink-Walleroo somewhere.
Why can’t the politicians be more worried about our safety than political correctness?
Herb, my grandfather was a baker, and the bakers had a union, and he was a member of that union, after he served in WW1 in the cavalry, until the day he retired.
You have a problem with that?