Right, Yet Wrong
Paul Sperry is right that we should be "profiling" potential terrorists in the NYC subway. But he's wrong in the sense that we could get a little too comfy about exactly what a terrorist looks like. How long before the homocidal nutwads start recruiting disenfranchised blond girls from Des Moines? Here's an excerpt from Sperry's piece in the IHT:
In response to the serial subway bombings in London, the police in New York were prudently ordered to start searching the bags of the city's subway riders. But there will be absolutely no profiling, Mayor Michael Bloomberg vowed: The police will select one out of every five passengers to search, and they will do so at random, without regard for race or religion.
In that case, the security move is doomed to fail.
Young Muslim men bombed the London tube, and young Muslim men attacked New York with planes in 2001. From everything we know about the terrorists who may be taking aim at our transportation system, they are most likely to be young Muslim men.
Unfortunately, however, this demographic group won't be profiled.
Instead, the authorities will be stopping Girl Scouts and grannies in a procedure that has more to do with demonstrating tolerance than with protecting citizens from terrorism.
Critics protest that profiling is prejudicial. In fact, it's based on statistics. Insurance companies profile policyholders based on probability of risk. That's just smart business. Likewise, profiling passengers based on proven security risk is just smart law enforcement.
Besides, done properly, profiling would subject relatively few Muslims to searches. Elderly Muslim women don't fit the terrorist profile. Young Muslim men of Arab or South Asian origin do. But rather than acknowledge this obvious fact, the New York Police Department has advised subway riders to be alert for "people" in bulky clothes who sweat or fiddle nervously with bags.
Well, a lot of people wear bulky clothes. A lot of people fiddle with their bags. And for that matter, a lot of people sweat. Could the Police Department be any more general in describing the traits of an Islamic suicide bomber? Could its advice be more useless? Truth be told, commuters need to be most aware of young men praying to Allah and smelling like flower water. Law enforcement knows this, and so should you.
According to a January 2004 handout, the Department of Homeland Security advises U.S. border authorities to look out for certain "suicide bomber indicators." They include a "shaved head or short haircut. A short haircut or recently shaved beard or moustache may be evident by differences in skin complexion on the head or face. May smell of herbal or flower water (most likely flower water), as they may have sprayed perfume on themselves, their clothing, and weapons to prepare for Paradise."
Let's prepare them for life in a maximum security hellhole instead. I'm all for idealism -- right up to the point I'm hopping the #2 or #3 train downtown.
Some London wit with a flair for Photoshop had the same thought.
Check it out...
Stu "El Inglés" Harris at July 29, 2005 6:45 AM
... clearly, Sperry did not see season #2 of "24," where the whey-faced American blonde babe was the recruit
nancy at July 29, 2005 12:20 PM
Leave a comment