...at Best

The TSA says all its efforts at spying on FAA certificate-holders are for just about nothing.

In a letter that is supposed to explain away its totalitarian attitude towards FAA certificate-holders, the TSA says that its "...review to date of 1.2 million cetificate holders... has determined that only eight individuals... pose a security threat." That's .00067% -- and they're all non-resident aliens. And none has been convicted of anything.

There are several points that need to be made here:

• If that's an expected rate, then it must surely be such a small percentage that it's insignificant. Don't forget -- none of these individuals has been publicly identified; but none, apparently, misued his/her FAA certificate privileges, either. Hence, there is a huge bureaucracy that's set up to do... nothing.
• Consider that the TSA itself admits that all its "suspects" are non-resident aliens. In other words, every single US citizen and resident alien, of the 1.2 million, checked out OK. The TSA, if it were to persist in its jihad, might find it more-effective to limit its search pool.
• Also, consider that an error rate of 2/3000 of 1% should statistically be considered "acceptable error," for anything but a rifle shot at Pluto.
• Oh -- and the TSA is lying, or at least doing its best to mislead. It nabbed the eight last Fall, before the program was even enacted. (It was announced in February.)

Let's move on.

The TSA wrote the letter to the AOPA, to try to justify its decree that says it alone will decide who is a security threat, and tell the FAA, which agency must revoke the holder's certificate. There's at least two things wrong with that explanation.

• First is a blatant deception. The letter says that, "The authority to issue and revoke airman certificates rests with FAA." That is true; but it fails to acknowledge that the FAA is TOLD by the TSA that so-and-so's certificate must be revoked -- and the airman's agency MUST revoke it (pending an impossible 'appeal').
• Secondly, the TSA will not let anyone know how to appear on its 'hit list,' or what criteria are used, or how, perforce, to avoid getting blacklisted. Therefore, 'appeal' is a worthless construct.

Somehow, it's supposed to be OK?

The TSA, in its late-April letter, just released by the AOPA, tries to assuage the effect of its rude proclamation by now saying that it is 'considering'  that 'a final appeal review' (after the accused's funds are used up, and after he's been out of work for months, and after his reputation has been ruined) might be made to the Department of Homeland Security. [The February decision, still not amended, said 'appeals' could be made only to the TSA --ed.] Since the DHS is the parent of the TSA, it is unclear what additional expectation of fairness that would offer. Oh -- the reasons for the blacklisting, and the witnesses and evidence against the certificate-holder, are still secret, even from the defense attorney.

The TSA's argument against one's right to self-defense against its charges remains circular as ever: "...we believe that national security concerns warrant leaving the matter to the expertise and discretion of the agency charged with making the determination." In other words, 'you're guilty, because we said so.'

So, we're left with empty promises from a totalitarian entity, that holds our livelihoods and reputations in its hands, and claims infallibility; and which claims the "expertise" to remain outside the constraints of basic fairness and judicial revue. Failing that, it still retains the "discretion" to whatever it feels like, so, well, tough.

Your Congressman and Senators started this -- is it time, yet, to tell them what they've created, and demand that they dismantle it?

FMI: www.tsa.gov; www.aopa.org/whatsnew/newsitems/2003/030502letter.pdf