Janet Napolitano Bans Parcels from Japan in Response to the Ink Cartridge Bomb from Yemen

This is beyond absurd.

The ink cartridge bomb was allegedly shipped from Yemen. And what does Janet Napolitano do, in addition to having the TSA sexually harass and molest air travelers in the US?

She bans non-commercial parcels from Japan sent via Japan Post.

Mr. Ken Adachi at Educate-Yourself says Janet Napolitano has quietly set up a new regulation on November 17 that:

blocks the shipping of any NON COMMERCIAL parcel into the United States that weighs more than 0.9 pounds (under 16 ounces) without first supplying the Social Security number (or taxpayer ID number) of the RECEPIENT of the package (and it's likely that the new DHS shipping restriction will soon also apply to detailed ID requirements on the part of the person sending the package as well).

The non-bomb in the ink cartridge was from Yemen, and Napolitano goes and stops parcels sent from friends and relatives in Japan to their fiends and relatives in the US. How is that going to stop "terrorism"?

I checked the Japan Post website, but the announcement says nothing about supplying the Social Security number of the recipient. Instead, it says any item mailed by air that weighs more than 16 ounces will be suspended for shipment until further notice:

November 12, 2010

Japan Post Service Company (Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo-to, Representative Director: Shinichi Nabekura) has announced that, due to the elimination of air flights for the delivery of postal items over 453 grams (16 ounces) in weight following the recent anti-terrorism airport security enforcement on the part of the USA, these postal items will be suspended for shipment for the time being starting from November 17, 2010.

We will make a relevant announcement once the situation changes.

There goes my end-of-the-year package I've been waiting for from my relatives in Japan.

This new harassment from the DHS applies to air parcels from other countries, not just Japan. What's really irritating about it is that it targets ordinary people by restricting the application of the rule to non-commercial shipment.

Well, what else could we expect from the corporatist administration like this one?

There are alternatives, albeit more expensive than Japan Post. So far, Fedex and UPS are not stopping the shipment from Japan, and Fedex doesn't require the Social Security number of the recipient as long as the package is a gift and that the declared value of the content is less than $100.

Kuroneko Yamato, DHL Japan require the Social Security number of the recipient, but they are not stopping the shipment.

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