Protecting the world from people named Robert Johnson

Le Sweetie and I watched 60 Minutes' report on the no-fly list that is supposed to protect America. Boy do I feel safer after watching that. Except not. Basically, the no-fly list is just as ass-backwards as the rest of America's security measures. The original story aired about a year or two ago, but it's still worth following if you want a nice reality check.

Thanks to this no-fly list, America at least was somewhat safer. From the 9/11 hijackers, who were already dead when they were put on the list. From the president of Bolivia (what did he do, again?). And from Robert Johnson. Which Robert Johnson, you ask? Well, the one who tried to bomb a Hindu temple and got deported to Trinidad. The no-fly list has made life worse everyone else with that name, because it didn't include the original's date of birth or any other information. So if your name is Robert Johnson and you want to avoid a lot of grief at the airport, you might want to consider a name change.

The whole transcript is here. Admittedly, it is pretty funny, in a who-could-be-so-stupid sort of way. The update says that the FBI is reviewing the list and planning to remove names.

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