Each day, thousands of pieces of intelligence information from around
the world -- field reports, captured documents, news from foreign allies
and sometimes idle gossip -- arrive in a computer-filled office in
McLean, where analysts feed them into the nation's central list of
terrorists and terrorism suspects.

Called TIDE, for Terrorist Identities Datamart Environment, the list is
a storehouse for data about individuals that the intelligence community
believes might harm the United States. It is the wellspring for watch
lists distributed to airlines, law enforcement, border posts and U.S.
consulates, created to close one of the key intelligence gaps revealed
after Sept. 11, 2001: the failure of federal agencies to share what they
knew about al-Qaeda operatives.

Watch list sets low bar
But in addressing one problem, TIDE has spawned others. Ballooning from
fewer than 100,000 files in 2003 to about 435,000, the growing database
threatens to overwhelm the people who manage it. "The single biggest
worry that I have is long-term quality control," said Russ Travers, in
charge of TIDE at the National Counterterrorism Center in McLean. "Where
am I going to be, where is my successor going to be, five years down the
road?"



TIDE has also created concerns about secrecy, errors and privacy. The
list marks the first time foreigners and U.S. citizens are combined in
an intelligence database. The bar for inclusion is low, and once someone
is on the list, it is virtually impossible to get off it. At any stage,
the process can lead to "horror stories" of mixed-up names and
unconfirmed information, Travers acknowledged.

The watch lists fed by TIDE, used to monitor everyone entering the
country or having even a casual encounter with federal, state and local
law enforcement, have a higher bar. But they have become a source of
irritation -- and potentially more serious consequences -- for many U.S.
citizens and visitors.

Good info FedMan. I wonder how you report someone who constantly spews
hatred.

?????

Hummmmm: I wonder how I can do enough to get on the list, then maybe
the FBI will watch my house 24/7 it would be cheaper than a burgler
alarm. Plan B. Start walking around backwards so nobody can sneak up
behind me. Oops, that has already been done by one of the characters in
Joseph Heller's book "Catch 22". Have to run now, need to line my hat
with tinfoil so the government can't read my thoughts.

"...line my hat with tinfoil so the government can't read my thoughts."

Too funny garden...

verb, you're so funny. That's a good one.

now verb....forge.....be nice now....he's only looking out for OUR well
being. Because he care's for us, and wants us to be informed as to what
really is going on in the world.



















sorry......couldn't hold it back anymore.

Sorry guys, sometimes I can't help myself :-) (mental note to self: must
find 3 friends to invite here so I can use smiley faces). My day job is
the Conductor on the Disoriented Express "All aboard Please"

LOL

mmm- could this be a test of the theory, six degrees of separation?