Previous Politech message: "John Gilmore sues Feds over secret your-papers-please rule" http://www.politechbot.com/p-03776.html --- To: declanat_private, gnuat_private Subject: Re: FC: Transportation Security Admin. confirms do-not-fly list In-reply-to: <5.1.1.6.0.20021114234904.0589a6d0at_private> Date: Fri, 15 Nov 2002 02:16:58 -0800 From: John Gilmore <gnuat_private> The US Government has responded to my lawsuit challenging the unpublished air-ID regulations. In summary, they argue that I can't challenge the no-fly list or anything other than the ID demand because, having never shown ID, the no-fly list was not applied to me; that I can't sue in a District Court anyway because the Court of Appeals is supposed to have original jurisdiction; that the government can make any rule it wants which relates to air security, and penalize the public over violations, without ever telling the public what the rule is; that being refused passage unless I present an ID does not infringe my constitutional right to travel anyway; that being prevented from traveling anoymously does not implicate any First Amendment interests; that all forms of airport security are fully constitutional 4th-Amendment searches; and that since my right to travel is not being infringed, these searches give me equal protection just like all members of the public, because any 'rational' reason for singling me out will suffice. The regulations I'm challenging purport to require air and train travelers to show a "government issued ID". Every traveler has been subjected to these "requirements", but it turns out that they aren't really required by any published law or regulation. And if you refuse to meet the supposed requirements, you find out that there are alternative requirements, that they weren't telling you about. It is easy for the government to single out members of Greenpeace, and prevent them from flying using a no-fly list, by making everyone show ID to fly. (If no ID was required, any persecuted minority would soon learn to fly under assumed names.) The Nixon Administration had its "enemies list", who it subjected to IRS audits and other harassment. But even that evil President didn't prevent his "enemies" from moving around the country to associate with anyone they liked. The Bush Administration's list interferes with freedom of association and with the constitutional right to travel. As my experience on July 4th, 2002, in the San Francisco airport demonstrated, people are free to not show ID, if they spend half an hour arguing with security personnel. But then, catch-22, they can board the plane only if they'll submit to a physical search like the ones they subjected Green Party members and other "on the list" people to. So, you can identify yourself to them and be harassed for your political beliefs, unconstitutionally. Or you can stand up for your right to travel anonymously, and be searched unconstitutionally. Or you can just not travel. That's why I'm suing the government. The government motion to dismiss my case is filed at: http://cryptome.org/gilmore-v-usa-fmd.pdf The index to all the related documents is at: http://cryptome.org/freetotravel.htm We will be filing our reply by the end of November. John Gilmore ------------------------------------------------------------------------- POLITECH -- Declan McCullagh's politics and technology mailing list You may redistribute this message freely if you include this notice. To subscribe to Politech: http://www.politechbot.com/info/subscribe.html This message is archived at http://www.politechbot.com/ Declan McCullagh's photographs are at http://www.mccullagh.org/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Like Politech? Make a donation here: http://www.politechbot.com/donate/ Recent CNET News.com articles: http://news.search.com/search?q=declan -------------------------------------------------------------------------
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