NJ Boy, 8, On Terrorism Watch List

[thundley4]

Cub Scout Mikey Hicks Shares Same Name Of Person Who Has Drawn Suspicion Of Homeland Security Department

Travel is a hassle for an 8-year-old Cub Scout from New Jersey.

That's because Mikey Hicks shares the same name of a person who has drawn the suspicion of the Homeland Security Department.

His mother tells The New York Times she sensed trouble when her son was a baby and she couldn't get a seat for him at a Florida airport. She says airline officials explained his name "was on the list."

He was patted down as a 2-years-old at Newark Liberty International Airport.

The newspaper says the boy's name appears to be among 13,500 on the "selectee" list, which sets off a high level of security screening.

Transportation Security Administration spokesman James Fotenos says in the coming months, the agency will cross-check names with birth dates and gender.

WCBS TV

The last part should have been done from the start.

[Specbid]

Next time he flies he should just say as-salaam alaykum. If they give him $hit, he can cry "profiling." He might get a free flight.

[Celtic Rose]

My dad was on the terrorism watch list for years.  I would think that they would do some sort of cross-checking of names, such as checking birth date, race, etc., but apparently they would rather have an unwieldy list of names.