Customs and border enforcement stops people at the border.

There are limits to their powers, but regardless, this only relevant to international flights. The “watch list” bars people from domestic flights as well.

The government can’t have it both ways Jeff.

Agreed.

If they have determined that driving (freedom of movement) is a “privilege” and not a “right”,

How do they then conclude that flying (freedom of movement) is a “right” and not a “privilege?”

Excellent question.

A driver’s license is analagous to a pilot’s license. A plane passenger is analgous to a taxi/bus passenger.

If they have determined that driving (freedom of movement) is a “privilege” and not a “right”,

How do they then conclude that flying (freedom of movement) is a “right” and not a “privilege?”

You’re also assuming that each name is only one person.

But i’m curious to know who these people are that can’t fly but yet aren’t arrested.

secret aviation watch list

If it were really just a “watch list”, I wouldn’t have any problem with it.

The problem is that a person on the list is denied access to a critical portion of our transportation infrastucture. This is further complicated by the fact that there is little, if any, due process involved.

Why not just book a handful of air marshalls on the flight if a match comes up? That would shift the burden from presumably innocent citizens to the LEOs. This how the rest of law enforcement has to operate in this country. It would give them excellent motivation to keep the list at its optimal length.

The U.S. population is just over 296 million.

Second, the article you quoted said the list contained numerous common names such as “Robert Johnson”. Since a simple web search reveals 136 instances of “Robert Johnson”, this list of 119,000 names would impact many more than the 0.016% you figure.
Did those 136 instances of “Robert Johnson” all have the same date of birth, SS# and address?

When the burden these watch lists put on a free society becomes greater than the threat they are meant to prevent, then yes, they should be done away with.
You consider the inconvenience placed on you at the airport, to be a greater burden than the loss of life and destruction of 911?

Americans learn quickly and regardless of what security measures we may take, they will not let terrorists hijack another aircraft.
Americans turn apathetic quickly.

Maybe you would consider a compromise. The airlines would set aside aircraft for people who feel as you do.

No checked hold baggage, no checked carry-on. No watchlist, wands, x-rays or questions. Just sign a waiver that you will not sue the airline when your plane is HJ’ed and you will not sue the government when they shoot you down.

Everyone is happy.

Remember that the terrorists hijacked four aircraft on 9/11 but only three reached their target. Richard Reid was not on any watch list, and though he slipped through every security checkpoint he still failed to complete his objective. Americans learn quickly and regardless of what security measures we may take, they will not let terrorists hijack another aircraft.

While watch lists may make most of us feel safer, they are not very likely to stop any terrorists. A few dry runs could easily determine if they are on any watch list and if they are don’t you think they would just use an alias?

When comparing the 119,000 names to the 740 Million domestic passengers who, per the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, travel each year, that comes out to less that 2 tenths of one percent or 0.016% per year. That is assuming all of the 119,000 attempt to fly, and are actually law abiding citizens.

Davef, you should review some of your assumptions.
First, 740 million domestic passengers would be quite an achievement considering there are only about 600 million people in this country to begin with. Most people who fly do so several times a year which significantly reduces the number of people potentially affected.
Second, the article you quoted said the list contained numerous common names such as “Robert Johnson”. Since a simple web search reveals 136 instances of “Robert Johnson”, this list of 119,000 names would impact many more than the 0.016% you figure.
Third, you can add to this all of the people who are not on the list but are flagged anyway. Even the Department of Homeland Security admits that it’s matching system is not perfect. If you assume it is 99.9% accurate at matching names, then an additional 74,000 passengers a year that get flagged for no good reason.