John Gilmore on Americans' right to travel anonymously [priv]

[Declan McCullagh <declan () well com>]

---

Subject: Re: [Politech] Questions on CAPPS II [priv]
Date: Mon, 01 Mar 2004 02:53:34 -0800
From: John Gilmore <gnu () toad com>
To: Declan McCullagh <declan () well com>
CC: politech () politechbot com, gnu () toad com
References: <4042BF12.1060905 () well com>

> If you travel frequently or have experienced problems with government or
> commercial databases or both then you have every reason to want to learn
> more about CAPPS II because this system and its color coded risk assessment
> will determine whether you will be able to board a plane and takeoff to your
> destination. 

Why is everyone ignoring the elephant in the transit lounge?  People
complain that CAPPS-2 might enable the government to prevent you -- or
you -- or you -- from traveling, perhaps with inaccurate databases,
political targeting, or bureaucratic ineptness.  But the government
does not have the power to prohibit travel.  Citizens and lawfully
admitted foreigners have a fundamental right to travel anywhere they
want inside the US.  [See http://freetotravel.org]

E.g. Justice Potter Stewart wrote in 1969, "[T]he right to travel
freely from State to State ... is a right broadly assertable against
private interference as well as governmental action.  Like the right
of association, it is a virtually unconditional personal right,
guaranteed by the Constitution to us all." (in the Shapiro v. Thompson
case).

To take away our right of free movement, TSA would have to arrest us,
which requires them to charge us with a crime.  It's no crime to
travel without filling a mess of databases with your life particulars.
Watch the Supreme Court closely to see if it makes the right decision
after hearing Hiibel v. Nevada on March 22 [see
http://papersplease.org].  That case asks them to reaffirm that it is
also no crime to not have an ID, or to refuse to produce ID papers on
demand by a government agent.

        John

PS: Until the U.S.A. becomes the U.S.S.A, people have the right
to leave the country if they choose, too.  So, we can move around
freely inside the US and we're free to leave.  How could CAPPS-2
restrict our movements, then?  By violating the constitution?

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Subject: (SCOTUS)  Dudley Hiibel vs. 'Papers, Please'
Date: Thu, 26 Feb 2004 15:56:17 -0500
From: Bill Scannell <bill () scannell org>
To: Declan McCullagh <declan () well com>

Hi Declan,

On the 22nd of March 2004, the U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether we
live in a free society, or in a country where we must show "the papers"
whenever a cop demands them.

The man who is fighting the good fight is a man by the name of Dudley
Hiibel. Dudley is a 59 year old cowboy who owns a small ranch outside of
Winnemucca, Nevada.  You wouldn't be hearing about him had it not been for
an incident that happened back in 2000.

Dudley was standing around minding his own business when all of a sudden, a
policeman pulled-up and demanded that Dudley produce his ID.  Dudley, having
done nothing wrong, declined.  He was arrested and charged with "failure to
cooperate" for refusing to show ID on demand.  And it's all on video.

http://www.hiibel.com

All the best,

Bill

··· --- ···  ··· --- ···
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety
deserve neither liberty nor safety."
- Benjamin Franklin

---

Subject: Re: [Politech] Questions for the Dept of Homeland Security on CAPPS II 
[priv]
Date: 1 Mar 2004 00:30:59 -0500
From: John R Levine <johnl () iecc com>
To: Declan McCullagh <declan () well com>
References: <4042BF12.1060905 () well com>

I see you had a link to a story at Business Travel News, which is what it
sounds like, a weekly that every corporate travel manager reads.

Another more interesting story, which is still available in the free area,
says:

 According to results of a poll last week by the Association of Corporate
 Travel Executives, 129 of 150 corporate buyer members "support the
 concept of a passenger screening process, but not this one, as it leaves
 too many questions unanswered." Only 6 percent agreed that CAPPS II "will
 get the job done and needs to be implemented."

These are not a bunch of bleeding hearts, these are corporate middle
managers whose job it is to buy plane tickets.

http://www.btnmag.com/businesstravelnews/headlines/frontpage_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=2085918

Regards,
John Levine, johnl () iecc com, Primary Perpetrator of "The Internet for Dummies",
Information Superhighwayman wanna-be, http://iecc.com/johnl, Sewer Commissioner
"More Wiener schnitzel, please", said Tom, revealingly.


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