Profiling is as old as time and is an inherent part of our natural skills for survival. We have modern day detectives that specialize in the science of profiling; does that make them racist? Absolutely not.
The press has everyone in a tizzy over profiling because they keep slipping the word racial in front of it, and the public in their quest to understand complicated issues in 9 seconds or less have reduced a modern day science into a farcical racial mud slinging contest. Profiling is multi-faceted and is not based on how an individual looks or walks. It is supposed to be based on multiple criteria with things such as how and when an airline ticket is purchased, what are the travel habits, how is the documentation, how do they respond to questioning etc.
Unfortunately our single tier approach to airport security has come to depend on single answer issues. i.e. Ticket purchased full fare, one day prior for one way trip, holder of ticket is Airline Captain on duty just arrived from an operating flight and now must deadhead… Yikes! He fits the profile according to the ticket; search him (don’t bother checking his I.D. etc…).
The Israeli’s have this one right. If we are going to base airline security solely on eliminating all objects that can be used as some form of weapon in an aircraft; we’re doomed, as this approach is un-achievable.. . -----------------------------------------