Quiet Skies: Air Marshals are following thousands of random Americans through airports and on planes, for no articulatable purpose

Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2018/07/30/rapid-eye-blinking.html

3 Likes

If “strong body odor” is a behavior indicator, I’m going to have to turn in a hell of a lot of my fellow passengers for being suspicious as hell.

I’m not saying I’m in favor of a fascist surveillance state, but if a few people dealing with the consequences of the five pound enchilada they just had at the airport TGIFridays have to be thrown in detention instead of getting on the plane with me, I guess I could be convinced to look on the bright side.

1 Like

“That’s one for Quiet Skies. Call the Marshals.”

12 Likes

The criteria listed are a fantastic way to identify literally any given person at the Wagnerian hell that is airport travel these days.

23 Likes

I must protest. Not only is the music terrible, but the stage props are far below Wagnerian standards, and the acting is terrible. How is a this a Gesamtkunstwerk?

Kafka is a bit overstretched, and Beckett too intellectual. But Wagner? Naaaah.

11 Likes

That check list reads like “We know that you are going to be bored silly on flights to nowhere so, here’s something that you can do when finished with the in-flight magazine.”

4 Likes

One of the criteria is “goatee”? They’re officially looking for bad guys from the Mirror Universe now? Well, I guess they’ve got just as good a chance of doing something productive with that as they have since 9-11…

13 Likes

The other me from the mirror universe is clean shaven… Oh and Yes HE’s the “bad” one. Yep. Him. Not me.
I’m good. The Best. Not evil.

6 Likes

I’m sure this program is not being used to target leftists previously ignored in no-fly list criteria.

7 Likes

Ah, but isn’t the point of this extremely dumb plan… to be be extremely smart-like! No accidents means they are doing their job, right? They are outwitting even the press! /s
Otherwise this just screams “we got this budget, so let’s just use the money before somebody clues in”.

4 Likes

Just wait until the targets are selected by AIs rating our responsibility, happiness, aggression, attractiveness, weirdness, and emotional stability.

11 Likes

Yeah, just … wait.

4 Likes

“i scan the crowds until i see someone who is obviously insane
and then i follow that person until they go into a building or get into a car
in order to make sure that they don’t do anything crazy.” --MC 900 Ft. Jesus

8 Likes

I’m pretty sure that section is for updating the dossier with changes to appearance.

In fact, I’m pretty sure that none of this is “criteria.” Someone up above already identified the subjects as persons of interest and detailed one or more marshals to surveil them. The “criteria” phase is already over. These lists are for making observations during surveillance.

Not defending the program. If the people responsible for making it happen think it’s garbage, then it probably is. I just think folks here are probably misinterpreting those lists.

2 Likes

Sounds like the TSA are once again abusing their authority to give busy work to the Marshals so actual law enforcement agents aren’t around to show-up their clown-show.

What did anyone think would happen when you put mall cops in charge of airport security?

Disband the TSA.

9 Likes

Haven’t thought about that in a while. Thanks for the reminder. Time for a listen!

1 Like

I’ve signed up for my very own disgruntled Air Marshal simply for writing this post! Get yours today!

11 Likes

When they decide to place a team of air marshals on the target’s next flight what happens if the next flight is booked solid? (I’m sure I can guess what happens)

1 Like

to the air marshals tracking me potentially: let’s have a beer. If you want to know something, ask.

3 Likes

This probably more about training these air cops into feeling that state surveillance all the time is normal, no matter how prurient.

8 Likes