So, you think you want to take a flight? Sir, that is NOT your correct name!

[LarryC]

HEADS-UP!

I spent an hour on the phone with United Airlines yesterday, trying to pave the way to being permitted to fly somewhere for the Christmas Holidays. I ran across the problem in trying to sign up for frequent flier miles. I had to come up with a government-issued ID that had exactly the same name as the one on my ticket. On top of that, my FF account has to be under the SAME name, to win frequent flier miles.

My "problem" is that I can't stand my first name, so I go by first initial (F) and middle name -- Larry for many things, but F Lawrence for my credit cards. However, Maryland requires all 3 names on MD driver licences, and I cannot change that! So does Social Security, although my Medicare card is only Larry and my last name. My uniformed services ID card is simply "FL" and my last name.

I had to spend at least 15 min with the reservations agent to get on the right flight with a chosen ID card and name, another 15 min or more with United's web support to get the name itself into the system to make the purchase, and still another 15 minutes with the United frequent flyer program to get my same name ("FL") onto my frequent flyer account. Now, I have to write and fax them a letter and photocopy of the government ID, requesting a "change of my legal (!) name" on my FF account! The agent's petty bureaucratic authority persona inserted itself when I said it was "bullsh!t" -- "don't use that language, sir." It felt like the Soviet empire!

The background: New Vigilance Over Traveler IDs -- http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/16/travel/16practsa.html?scp=1&sq=New%20Vigilance%20over%20traveler%20ids&st=cse:

AIRLINE passengers are asked to remove their shoes, shrink their toiletries and submit to full-body scans. Now one more thing must be inspected: their middle initials.

In an effort to beef up security, the job of matching passengers’ names against terrorist watch lists is being transferred from commercial airlines to the Transportation Security Administration. The government initiative, known as Secure Flight, seeks to reduce the number of times passengers are misidentified as possible terrorists, in part by standardizing how names are matched, but also by now including age and gender in a passenger’s profile.

In the first phase, which was instituted earlier this year, the security agency asked airlines to begin collecting passenger names as they appear exactly, letter for letter, on government-issued IDs like passports and driver’s licenses. The second phase, effective Aug. 15, requests airlines to ask passengers for their gender and date of birth.

In theory, the new rules are designed to help the Transportation Security Administration distinguish between a John X. Doe, who is a 9-year-old boy, and a John Z. Doe, who is a 34-year-old man on a terrorist list.

But the new rules are also creating a lot of confusion, and a lot of misinformation is spreading among travelers. In particular, the new name requirement is causing some passengers to worry that they will be barred from flying. For example, if a plane ticket reads “Pat Jones” instead of “Patricia X. Jones” — as it appears on her passport — will she be barred? Or what if someone goes by a middle name? Or what if the middle initial was mistyped?

The security agency is not asking passengers to change their IDs. What passengers are being asked to do is to travel under the name that is on the government ID.

Slight differences should not be an issue, but the Transportation Security Administration says that providing all the information accurately (name just as it appears on the ID, date of birth and gender) will reduce delays and misidentifications by more than 99 percent. To keep things consistent, you might consider changing the name on your driver’s license to match your passport, unless you always carry a passport as your government-issued ID for all of your travel, domestic and international.

BS! I can't change the name on my driver's license because Maryland requires my full name.

Will Secure Flight affect my frequent flier programs?

It may. As Mike Weingart, president of Travel Leaders, a travel agency based in Houston, explained, “If I am Michael Nat Weingart on my passport, Michael N. Weingart on my driver’s license and Mike Weingart on my frequent flier program, it won’t work.” To receive mileage credits, he said, the names must match, so he is advising clients to make sure all their travel profiles and IDs agree.

As a pre-emptive step, passengers with different names on their frequent flier accounts should change them to match their IDs. Airlines often require a fax or a letter to make that request. Meanwhile, keep your boarding passes in case you need to submit a request for miles retroactively.

Happy trails!

[Oblio]

Welcome to AMSOC , please proceed to Ministry of Hospitality, Room 101 [8-)]

I can empathize, R Chris on my cards, full name on ID.

[seti]

I used to love to fly and travel. Now I'd rather have my spleen pulled out through my nose than go through an airport. I do have to travel a couple times a year for work but if it wasn't for that I just wouldn't. When I need to take a break we have been taking road trips instead.

[CIGARBUM]

I agree with Seti, any more it is just a pain in the butt to travel. I'm diabetic, and traveling with all my medications is a super pain. I feel sorry for all you guys that HAVE to travel.

I just stay in my own back yard.

CigarBum

[ace168516]

My father had a similar issue...Social Security and Birth Certificate has his full name, but he always went by his middle name because he hated "Rudolph" (can't say I blame him) which was on his drivers license. Ended up legally changing his name so he could get a passport to go to mexico after he retired and started actually taking vacations.

[seti]

They are already doing full body xray through clothes. Why don't they just do body cavity searches and get it over with.

[dtel]

Mr Larry I have had the chance to meet you in person and you are one of the nicest and calm, even tempered person I have ever met, if your first name bothers you that much it must be bad !

[LarryC]

Dtel, there's a United agent I'd like you to talk to! Hang on, I'll get the number ....

He almost threw me off the program when my "even" temper frayed on the phone with a hearty "[bs]".

At least you had the smarts to stick with your first name.

[seti]

EDIT i had a bad attitude : )

It is very frusterating when a behemoth of a bureaucracy gets in the way of something simple or something that should be simple that you want to do......

[LarryC]

This whole name precision fiasco stands revealed if one steps back -- isn't the precise purpose to guard us against terrorists entering and flying around the country, and haven't all the terrorists since Oklahoma City been Islamic extremists? If so, what the heck does getting first and middle names and initials in WESTERN populations have to do with terrorist threats??????????

This is beginning to sound like the last administration, which invented this whole thing, simply wanted to collect information on American citizens WITHOUT any relationship to terrorism!

Take a look at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_name -- HOW is it possible to assure that an individual's name has any consistency or meaning unless the jihadist INVENTS a Westernized muslim name???????

"Old Arabic names are based on a long naming system; most Arabs do not simply have given/middle/family names, but a full chain of names. This system is in use throughout the Arab world. Because of the importance of the Arabic language in Islam, a large majority of the world's Muslims use Arabic names (ism), but it is not common outside the Arab world to employ the full naming conventions ..."

"The main name of an Arab person is the ism, his or her personal name (e.g. "Kareem" or "Fatima"). Most Arabic names are originally Arabic words with a meaning, usually signalling the good character of the person. Karim means "generous", mahmud means "praiseworthy", and both words are employed as adjectives and nouns in regular language. Arab newspapers sometimes try to avoid confusion by placing names in brackets or between quotation marks. Generally, context and grammar will indicate how the word is being used, but foreign students of Arabic may initially have trouble with this ...

"??? ???? ???? ?????? ?? ???? ?? ??? ?????? ?????????

Abu Kareem Muhammad al-Jameel ibn Nidh'aal ibn Abdulazeez aal-Filisteeni

"'abu karimi mu?ammadu-l-jamilu-bnu ni?ali-bni ?abdi-l-?azizi-l-filis?ini"

This means, in translation:

"Father-of-Kareem, Muhammad, the beautiful, son of Nidal, son of Abdulaziz, the Palestinian"

(Kareem means generous, muhammad means praised, jamil means beautiful; aziz means Magnificent, and it is one of the 99 names of God.)

Abu Kareem is a kunya, Muhammad is the person's proper name (ism), al-Jamil is a laqab, Nidal is his father (a nasab), Abdulaziz his grandfather (second-generation nasab) and "al-Filistini" is his family nisba. Normally, this person would simply be referred to as "Muhammad" or "Abu Kareem", but to signify respect or to specify which Mohammad we are speaking about (namely, the beautiful son of Nidal and grandson of Abdulaziz), the name could be lengthened as above, to the extent necessary or desired ...

"Many Arabic countries have now adopted a Westernized way of naming. This is the case for example in Lebanon and Maghreb countries where French conventions are followed, and it is rapidly gaining ground elsewhere.

"Also, many Arabs adapt to Western conventions for practical purposes when travelling or when residing in Western countries, constructing a given name/family name model out of their full Arab name, to fit Western expectations and/or visa applications or other official forms and documents. The reverse side to this is the surprise of many Westerners when asked to supply their first name, second name, father's name and family name in some Arab visa applications. Similarly, if an Arab woman marries a Westerner and applies for a passport, her new 'official' name becomes, for example, Maryam David William Smith because of the patronymic naming convention.

AND GET THIS:

Arab family naming convention

In Arabic culture a person's ancestry and his/her family name are very important.

Assume a man has the name of "Saleh bin Tariq bin Khalid Al-Fulan"

"Saleh" is his personal name, and is the name that his family and friends would call him by. "Bin" translates as "son of", so "Tariq" is Saleh's father's name. "Bin Khalid" means that Tariq was the son of Khalid, making Khalid the grandfather of Saleh. "Al-Fulan" would be Saleh's family name.

So "Saleh bin Tariq bin Khalid Al-Fulan" translates as "Saleh, son of Tariq, son of Khaled; of the family Fulan."

The Arabic for "daughter of" is "Bint." A woman with the name "Fatimah bint Tariq bin Khalid Al-Fulan" translates as "Fatimah, daughter of Tariq, son of Khaled; of the family Al-Fulan."

Modern naming convention may drop the word "bin" or "bint" as it is already implied, so Saleh's full name would be "Saleh Tariq Khalid Al-Fulan" and "Fatimah Tariq Khalid Al-Fulan"

If Saleh was married his wife would keep her maiden name. His sons and daughters will take Saleh's family name, so his son Mohammed would be called "Mohammed bin Saleh bin Tariq Al-Fulan".

In many non-Arab Muslim communities the naming convention is further abridged to fit into a three name nomenclature. Thus the first name is the personal name, the middle name is the father's name and the last name is the family name.

Muslims also do not, in general name a child the full and exact name of the parent or the full exact name of a relative, deceased or living. Nor do they give the child the first name of a parent or living relative. Both are considered a form of ancestral worship forbidden by the Qu’ran. As a rule one will rarely, if ever, find a “senior,” “junior,” designation in Muslim nomenclature or a designation of "I." "II," "III," etc.

"It is often seen as a sign of a non-religious Muslim parent, who names a child the exact name, in the exact order as the parent. This can be seen in the naming of President Barack Hussein Obama. Until the death of his father, President Obama carried the designation of "Jr." This is a rare, to almost non-existent, occurrence in the Muslim culture and is instead a frequent American convention.

Whaddya think, guys?

[seti]

That is basically what I deleted from my post. American citizens are being punished for something they did not do. I don't really care if they profile or search everyone but US citizens in US airports. Wouldn't that be more effecient? They are spending lots of money to search thousands vicious grandmas every day. I call shenanigans on the airline security industry.

[Audible Nectar]

I have been avoiding flying now for about 6 years - one post 9-11 trip and the accompanying boorish behavior by security and airline employees (not to mention parts of my luggage contents missing) was enough to deter me. But alas, I MUST do so again here at the end of the month. Attending a music festival in Indio, Ca - which means I need to take some camping gear with me. Given my experiences with airport security (and numerous commentary in more recent years) as well as the added cost of luggage on airlines, I am shipping my gear via UPS to the RV rental facility so it will be there waiting for me.

I repeat: I am using UPS to handle my vacation luggage in preference to the airlines I am flying. Same cost, more reliable service through UPS. Things are getting WEIRD.

And then I now just realize upon reading this post (and checking my reservations) that my (and my wife's) airline tix do not have middle initials on the tix. Oh bleep. Booked through Orbitz. I hope this isn't a problem.[8o|]

[LarryC]

And then I now just realize upon reading this post (and checking my reservations) that my (and my wife's) airline tix do not have middle initials on the tix. Oh bleep. Booked through Orbitz. I hope this isn't a problem

Look at the NYT link I cited -- I think the name on the ticket has to match the name on A picture ID letter for letter. Don't take my word for it -- although United thought I was OK with what we agreed on.

I just don't want to have to show any other ID, since none of those names will match the one on my ticket!

[Islander]

An old buddy of mine beat a speeding ticket once, due to a name mix-up. He gave his name as Harry, but the cop assumed it was short for Harold and wrote that on the ticket. When Harry got to court and showed that his actual name was Harry, not Harold, the judge threw out the ticket, leaving the cop looking foolish.

[j-malotky]

Sorry to hear about your travel problems Larry.

I have money sitting in the unclaimed trust fund because I can no longer prove I lived somewhere 25+ years ago.

I'm sorry but more of Government in anything makes it more complicated.

And people think Government can run healthcare. Ya right....

JM

[BigStewMan]

.

I'm sorry but more of Government in anything makes it more complicated.

And people think Government can run healthcare. Ya right....

JM

I hear ya JM--to me that is a great paradox. people just assume that the government is the answer to every problem. I do agree with Ronald Reagan when he said, "the government isn't the answer to your problem, the government IS your problem." Apparently, we haven't learned much at all since he spoke those words. But i'm sure they'll fix the healthcare issue [8-)]

[LarryC]

John, I think I got ahead of problems because the NYT article alerted me. That's why I posted for others. I'm sorry about your trust fund issue.

I think government can run Medicare better than the private sector (MHO of course), but that's mostly because, when Medicare was enacted, the Social Security Administration had a very strong tradition of administrative excellence and efficiency, and still does. It had a very strong research and policy office, and great credibility with Congress throughout the many years of deliberations (a lot longer than one summer). Medicare also had the powerful backing of organized labor. Even with all that, it only passed because of LBJ's overwhelming 1964 landslide.

I doubt that the government could create that excellence today if it tried to create a public plan for all. However, no one is proposing that -- it's only a public OPTION which might enroll 10-20% at most if it were put into effect.

The public option should probably be put on reserve, in case the private sector frustrates everyone and doesn't work well. I actually think that's possible, since the private sector has been busy chewing up itself and the Blues for at least 30 years. The high-profit imperative has been very destructive of health insurance IMO.

[Saturn5]

Just think how a single national ID will make all these problems go away. One ID that's your passport, your driver's license, everything. All referenced in any and all necessary government databases so all organizations know exactly who you are.

I don't like the idea of a national ID - but as the inconvenience and bureaucracy increase, people will become willing to accept it. They'll even ask for the government to solve this problem - any privacy they may give up is a small price to pay for avoiding the inconvenience and possibility of being mislabeled a terrorist. (or I guess the correct term today would be man caused disaster creater?)

[BigStewMan]

Just think how a single national ID will make all these problems go away. One ID that's your passport, your driver's license, everything. All referenced in any and all necessary government databases so all organizations know exactly who you are.

I don't like the idea of a national ID - but as the inconvenience and bureaucracy increase, people will become willing to accept it. They'll even ask for the government to solve this problem - any privacy they may give up is a small price to pay for avoiding the inconvenience and possibility of being mislabeled a terrorist. (or I guess the correct term today would be man caused disaster creater?)

Except in this era where political correctness and not hurting anyone's feelings--the government isn't willing to say No (except to white, Christian males). So, illegal aliens would end up getting the national id card and we'd be right back where we started. i just saw on the news yesterday where some group (can't remember who it was) used that very familar picture of a space alien and it was labled Illegal Alien. It wasn't an immigration issue--i think it may have had something to do with halloween. But, this illegal alien advocacy group is asking them to stop using that advertisement as it is offensive to illegal aliens. this is all just getting real stupid. "Common sense has left the building (Country)"

[jheis]

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/20/business/20road.html?ref=todayspaper