Kathleen McGivney

The TSA wants to know you better

I am a frequent traveler, and therefore I encounter the Transportation Safety Administration on a far more regular basis than I'd care to. I also frequent a number of frequent-traveler-related message boards, which is where I encountered this gem about TSA's Secure Flight Program. The following portion really caught my eye:

The second phase of Secure Flight begins August 15, 2009 when passengers will be required to enter their date of birth and gender when booking airline flights.

I'm sorry, but WHAT? I am going to be required to enter, along with my credit card number, my date of birth and gender? The only thing missing for complete identity theft is the SSN (but maybe I shouldn't say that, lest the TSA get the brilliant idea to require SSN for travel in their heads). Clearly, someone at the TSA is either really, really trying to prove that their job is necessary or they want to make it that much easier for identity thieves to steal travelers' information.

I'm sure some people will think this is necessary for "security". The TSA says they're doing this so they can better match travelers against the no-fly list. My opinion? If the people on the no-fly list are so dangerous, why not arrest them? If they can't be arrested for any crime, why are they on the no-fly list? What, exactly, makes these people so dangerous that they are not allowed to travel on an airplane, but are allowed to freely roam anywhere in the U.S. by any other means?

This, combined with the increasing use of whole-body imaging to perform a virtual strip-search at airports (take a look at the second image in the article), makes me just not want to travel anymore. But instead, I will write to my congresspeople and fight for the right to travel with my dignity and identity intact.

Giving back my birthday

The other night, Atom and I were invited to an open house at the offices of DonorsChoose.org, a charitable organization that I've donated to before. They help teachers get funding for their classrooms through individual donors, all facilitated through their website. I hadn't funded a project in a while, but was interested to meet some of the staff and teachers, so we headed over. As we chatted with the staff, one thing kept coming up - how mind-boggling it is that some projects even have to exist. For example, there are at least three projects currently in need of funding in NYC that are for basic supplies such as pencils and paper for students. Think about that. Pencils and paper. How screwed up is it that public schools cannot provide such basic supplies to students so that they can learn and succeed?

So, I decided to create a Giving Page at DonorsChoose.org to highlight some of the projects I'd like to see funded. I set it up as part of the "Give-Back Birthdays" campaign going on right now, but I thought I'd mention it early, since my birthday is in August and I've selected some projects that need funding right now. Some of the projects I've selected have matching funds promises from several foundations that partner with DonorsChoose.org, but I'll do them one better - I will personally match the first $2,000 donated through my Giving Page. If a project is fully funded, I will still do the match and apply it to another similar project.

Even if you don't want to fund any of the projects I have chosen, please take a look at DonorsChoose.org and find a project you want to support. You can easily sort by subject, location, and grade level to find projects that speak to you. You don't have to donate a lot - they take small donations as happily as they take large ones - and you'll be helping students get the education they need. Or, set up your own Giving Page and post it here in the comments!