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9/11 panel's security ideas would change daily life
Friday, July 30, 2004
By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, Los Angeles Times
WASHINGTON -- From setting federal standards for driver's licenses to requiring air passengers to pass through elaborate bomb-detection machines, the report of the Sept. 11 commission contains more than a dozen recommendations that would significantly affect the daily lives of ordinary people.
The measures -- separate from the commission's more publicized call for restructuring the intelligence community -- could cost billions and spark strong debate as lawmakers hasten to respond to the panel's scathing critique of U.S. security.
President Bush might soon adopt some of the security recommendations by executive order, possibly including a proposal that border and transportation security agencies develop a common strategy for screening travelers.
But the commission's blueprint for homeland security could encroach on some liberties now taken for granted. A spur-of-the-moment trip to Canada or Mexico without a passport might well become a thing of the past. "Americans should not be exempt from carrying ... passports or otherwise enabling their identities to be securely verified when they enter the United States," the report said.
Other recommendations -- notably an overhaul of the formula for distributing federal homeland security grants to the states -- carry a steep political price. The current formula, considered generous to rural areas at the expense of urban centers, would be replaced by one that allocates money based on likely threats and vulnerabilities.
Though the changes may not be easy, the commission said a better-organized and more extensive homeland security system would complement intelligence community reforms.
"Defenses cannot achieve perfect safety," said the report. "They make targets harder to attack successfully, and they deter attacks by making capture more likely. Just increasing the attacker's odds of failure may make the difference between a plan attempted or a plan discarded."
Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge is largely pleased with the commission's proposals, his spokesman said. But where Homeland Security has been taking incremental steps to test new ideas, the commission is recommending a series of quick leaps.
The commission recommended, for example that the government "soon" screen air passengers for explosives, especially passengers singled out for more intensive searches.
Checked luggage, carry-on articles and, in some cases, shoes are now inspected for explosives, but a suicide bomber concealing a device under his clothing could theoretically get past the screeners and metal detectors.
The Transportation Security Administration has begun a pilot program to test a walk-through explosives detector at five airports, including San Diego International.The government has not yet decided whether to install such detectors at 450 commercial airports. The added level of security could also lead to longer lines. The process of checking for explosives takes about 14 seconds. In comparison, it takes a second or two for a person to step through a metal detector.
The commission also called for a greater federal role in securing transit systems, railroads and other forms of transportation. "Over 90 percent of the nation's $5.3 billion annual investment in the TSA goes to aviation -- to fight the last war," the report said.
But its vision for protecting U.S. borders is even more sweeping. The panel called for a high-tech system that would use digital photographs, fingerprints or other such "biometric" information to positively identify people entering or leaving the country.
Homeland Security is phasing in a limited version of a biometric border security system, US-VISIT, which uses fingerprints and digital photos to check arriving foreign visitors against databases of terrorist suspects and criminal fugitives. Currently, the system is in place at airports and seaports but not land crossings.
To safeguard identification documents, the commission called on the federal government to issue standards for birth certificates and driver's licenses. While stopping short of endorsing a national identification card, the commission said all states and localities should use the same technical standards for issuing identification documents.
Posters Note:
Re The Commission having "stopped short" of recommending a national identity card, I wonder as to how far "short" of such recommendation they might be. Regarding the "failure of Congressional Oversight", mentioned in The Commission's report, this is nothing new. Other than that, has there been any noticeable improvement in the performance of Congress's Oversight function? Not that one would notice. Another problem mentioned I believe was dysfunctional agencies, and their turf battles, which one suspects are still going on. Is it likely that these problems will be attended to any time soon, I doubt that. On the other hand, is it likely that those congress critters and bureaucratic types will attempt to foist off on the citizenry, a national identity card scheme or scam, quite likely, I would think. Don't worry your little head about such matters, though for NATIONAL SECURITY, or HOMELAND SECURITY or THE WAR ON TERRORISM IS INVOLVED. Besides, it's all for your own good, can't you recognize that?
Friday, July 30, 2004
By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, Los Angeles Times
WASHINGTON -- From setting federal standards for driver's licenses to requiring air passengers to pass through elaborate bomb-detection machines, the report of the Sept. 11 commission contains more than a dozen recommendations that would significantly affect the daily lives of ordinary people.
The measures -- separate from the commission's more publicized call for restructuring the intelligence community -- could cost billions and spark strong debate as lawmakers hasten to respond to the panel's scathing critique of U.S. security.
President Bush might soon adopt some of the security recommendations by executive order, possibly including a proposal that border and transportation security agencies develop a common strategy for screening travelers.
But the commission's blueprint for homeland security could encroach on some liberties now taken for granted. A spur-of-the-moment trip to Canada or Mexico without a passport might well become a thing of the past. "Americans should not be exempt from carrying ... passports or otherwise enabling their identities to be securely verified when they enter the United States," the report said.
Other recommendations -- notably an overhaul of the formula for distributing federal homeland security grants to the states -- carry a steep political price. The current formula, considered generous to rural areas at the expense of urban centers, would be replaced by one that allocates money based on likely threats and vulnerabilities.
Though the changes may not be easy, the commission said a better-organized and more extensive homeland security system would complement intelligence community reforms.
"Defenses cannot achieve perfect safety," said the report. "They make targets harder to attack successfully, and they deter attacks by making capture more likely. Just increasing the attacker's odds of failure may make the difference between a plan attempted or a plan discarded."
Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge is largely pleased with the commission's proposals, his spokesman said. But where Homeland Security has been taking incremental steps to test new ideas, the commission is recommending a series of quick leaps.
The commission recommended, for example that the government "soon" screen air passengers for explosives, especially passengers singled out for more intensive searches.
Checked luggage, carry-on articles and, in some cases, shoes are now inspected for explosives, but a suicide bomber concealing a device under his clothing could theoretically get past the screeners and metal detectors.
The Transportation Security Administration has begun a pilot program to test a walk-through explosives detector at five airports, including San Diego International.The government has not yet decided whether to install such detectors at 450 commercial airports. The added level of security could also lead to longer lines. The process of checking for explosives takes about 14 seconds. In comparison, it takes a second or two for a person to step through a metal detector.
The commission also called for a greater federal role in securing transit systems, railroads and other forms of transportation. "Over 90 percent of the nation's $5.3 billion annual investment in the TSA goes to aviation -- to fight the last war," the report said.
But its vision for protecting U.S. borders is even more sweeping. The panel called for a high-tech system that would use digital photographs, fingerprints or other such "biometric" information to positively identify people entering or leaving the country.
Homeland Security is phasing in a limited version of a biometric border security system, US-VISIT, which uses fingerprints and digital photos to check arriving foreign visitors against databases of terrorist suspects and criminal fugitives. Currently, the system is in place at airports and seaports but not land crossings.
To safeguard identification documents, the commission called on the federal government to issue standards for birth certificates and driver's licenses. While stopping short of endorsing a national identification card, the commission said all states and localities should use the same technical standards for issuing identification documents.
Posters Note:
Re The Commission having "stopped short" of recommending a national identity card, I wonder as to how far "short" of such recommendation they might be. Regarding the "failure of Congressional Oversight", mentioned in The Commission's report, this is nothing new. Other than that, has there been any noticeable improvement in the performance of Congress's Oversight function? Not that one would notice. Another problem mentioned I believe was dysfunctional agencies, and their turf battles, which one suspects are still going on. Is it likely that these problems will be attended to any time soon, I doubt that. On the other hand, is it likely that those congress critters and bureaucratic types will attempt to foist off on the citizenry, a national identity card scheme or scam, quite likely, I would think. Don't worry your little head about such matters, though for NATIONAL SECURITY, or HOMELAND SECURITY or THE WAR ON TERRORISM IS INVOLVED. Besides, it's all for your own good, can't you recognize that?