I just sort of realized something. An actual, real terrorist most likely wouldn’t risk going above the radar to try and get off the no-fly list. It’d be incredibly stupid, since they’d be the same people who the government (ostensibly) wants to capture. Therefore, there’s little reason not to have a real procedure for someone to be reviewed and taken off the no-fly list.
A real terrorist who’s on it probably wouldn’t be stupid enough to appeal their inclusion on the list, and innocent people on the list should be fairly easy to review and take off the list. Doing so would make the government look much better than it does right now.
But it would appear instead that the government would rather hold on to their ability to be vindictive bigots than to actually do their goddamn job and try to keep the country safe. The only reason to manage the no-fly list the way the FBI has so far, is to use it as a horsewhip to try and beat people into doing their bidding, regardless of whether there’s any valid or legal suspicion on the people on the list.
