Re: Finding information on the Internet

[Rick Tarara <rtarara@SAINTMARYS.EDU>]

John,

I'd reeeeeally like to hear your alternative here.  It seems that not doing
something like Tim's example either requires we strip-search all passengers
OR we tolerate x number of planes blown up by 20 year-old Arabic males
traveling one-way carrying backpacks?    ;-(

Rick

*********************************************************
Richard W. Tarara
Professor of Physics
Saint Mary's College
Notre Dame, Indiana
rtarara@saintmarys.edu
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----- Original Message -----
From: "John S. Denker" <jsd@MONMOUTH.COM>
> > * Suppose I want to look for terrorists trying to blow up airplanes.
> > Is it "unscientific" to concentrate attention on a 20 year old Arabic
> > male travelling one way carrying a backpack?  These are secondary
> > characteristics.
>
> This is a really, really, reeeeeally bad idea.
>
> All you will accomplish by this is
>   a) Creating a racist society.
>   b) Causing all evildoers to take off their
>      kaffiyehs, shave their beards, and buy two-way
>      tickets.
>
> This will punish the innocent without significantly
> burdening the guilty.  This is diametrically opposite
> to what a good security measure should do.
>
> This is, in a backhanded way, a powerful illustration
> of the risks associated with relying on secondary
> characteristics.