Saturday, January 2, 2010

Profiling is a thought crime

So what is a TSA screener supposed to do when he sees a young, male, bearded, robed, passenger going thru? Treat him the same as the little old lady next in line? Check him out a little more? The young Islamic men who get their bags hand searched will complain they were "profiled", by which they mean they were subjected to extra screening for the wrong reasons. They will claim they are being picked on because of their race (skin tone actually), sex, religion, national origin or something or other. It's not what was done, it's the motivation behind it, which makes the accusation of profiling an accusation of a thought crime. The TSA screener was thinking wrong thoughts.
I don't like thought crimes. What a person thinks is his own business. And short of mind reading, there is no way of knowing what some one thinks. We can outlaw actions, we shouldn't outlaw thinking.
In actual fact, they were screened 'cause they looked suspicious. Most of them could avoid the extra hassle if they purchased tickets in advance, dressed appropriately, groomed themselves properly, and avoided speaking in foreign languages. The nail that sticks up gets hammered down.

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