The TSA: Laughing at you since 2001

[Lord Thesaurian]

I'm sure most of you have seen or heard of this latest story in Politico about the TSA:

http://www.politico.com/magazine/sto...h#.UvUm_YXSk9n

The story has stirred controversy in the media, but frankly, I just feel sorry for the TSA employees. Their job is miserable and everyone hates them. How could they not gawk and joke about the thousands of people they see naked everyday in the scanners? I know I would. What cracked me up about the "confession" though was how many different code words the agents use to alert their buddies that a hot babe is coming through security. Clearly these "scoundrels" and I must be cut from the same cloth.

Anyway, what I found most telling about all this is the apparent confirmation of what people have complained about for years: Yes, most the "security protocols" are pointless. Yes, they profile people. Yes, they will make your life difficult if you cop an attitude. Yes, the hugely expensive body scanners aren't effective at actually detecting explosives or hidden paraphernalia. Yes, office politics and drama mean many agents are less concerned about checking you for bombs and more concerned with whether Sheryl from I.O. is going to break up with Jim from Section B. Yes, the scanners emit "technically" harmful radiation. Yes, many agents feel guilty about being part of an Orwellian and ineffective "security" operation.

So my question here is, how valid is this "exposé?" Is it a coup de main against the system, or simply a disgruntled employee trying to make his fortune by playing off of popular fears and concerns? Do you think this will have any real impact other than a press release from the TSA and some "disciplinary action" against offending employees?

[Knight of Heaven]

Aparentky the so called "disgruntled employee" did a no more then a public service.

[Lord Thesaurian]

Perhaps, but he certainly has made some nice money on interviews, etc, and a possible book deal. I'm just wondering how much of what he says relevant to Americans' civil liberties concerns, and whether his actions will have any real impact on that situation.

[Knight of Heaven]

Perhaps, but he certainly has made some nice money on interviews, etc, and a possible book deal. I'm just wondering how much of what he says relevant to Americans' civil liberties concerns, and whether his actions will have any real impact on that situation.

He made money writting his stuff, i dont have a problem with that, hell its not like TSA itself is a perfection, the criticism arent exact new. Im not against Security on the airports, but placebo security, and a lack of work ethic with this people, seems to be an issue long before he came up with his blog, and maybe you right, its all behond his actions too.

[PointOfViewGun]

Most of them are pretty bad at their job. In U.S., most of them practically molest you. In U.K., the same people who do the same job are much more civil and respectful. TSA is imposed on travelers, not the other way around. They should learn to be decent human beings. Whether they laugh at your scans or use codewords to give heads up for "hot babes" is not much of an issue.

[The Despondent Mind]

I once read an critique from Israeli security officer about the TSA , a lot of stuff made sense . I mean if one agency has better and more effective ways of preventing an terrorist attack , then why not use it ?

[Celsius]

I haven't flown many times in my life, but the few times that I have my experiences were okay. I mean it took me maybe a minute to get through security and I was on my way. I mean I actually followed all of the regulations and had my shoes off before I was asked. Most people (in my opinion), have no idea how to travel and are just a mess. Wear sweats and a hoody and you'll have no problems (at least in my experience).

[Simon Cashmere]

I don't care if they laugh at me, I hope they do. But then again I'm not a big fat guy, so Im not particularly humourous. Had a TSA guy get ready to draw his gun at Memphis Airport because he was worried I had a weapon, under my watch...Im sure I've told that story before. He was saying show me the watch, show me the watch! And so I went to take it off to give it to him, and then he really went nuts. No! No! Don't touch it, keep your hands in the air! By the way, I had my hands in the air the whole time, so i say, ok, with your non-weapon hand you have a look at it..I won't touch it.

So he gingerly unclasps the Rolex, as if its a bomb about to detonate, and is satifised its ok and then says, ok you can go on your way, next time follow instructions! I'm thinking they give this guy a gun? Seriously. And we're taking your deodorant. Ok the free world is safe because they have my right guard, which I can then buy again at the store which is past the security gate.

I had a private security guy in Australia squeeze my nuts pretty hard in a pat down with a big smile on his face at Kingsford Smith International. I had mental images of me left hooking him across the terminal, but of course that would just get me tased, beaten and perhaps shot as a result. So I kept my cool and did nothing about it. Nobody else would have been aware that's what he did either - my word against his.

It still is a bit creepy to find their calling cards inside your luggage.

Also - glycerine hand cream sets off the explosive residue test. So grandma who uses lots of hand lotion can be thrown to the floor and cuffed for setting off the residue test.

[mongrel]

It not the laughter that seems to be the issue, it is substandard equipment and a wasteful procedure which seems to be based on politics rather than proper risk assessment.

[conon394]

Hmm I think the larger problem is the front door TSA security is over the top but backdoor cleaning and janitorial staff for example is often lax or poorly managed. There is really no point in putting a dead bolt on the door if your back door has a lock I slip with an old drivers license.

I always laugh now though in the TSA lines. Back when my son ~2.5 years old we moved and I flew back on a round trip to get him from my parents. He was on a one way. So they stopped him and demanded a search due to protical it was rather funny. they wanted to search his diaper! And I said fine but I'm not doing for you - the group huddle tying to figure out was going to do was amusing. Better yet my son got bored and than decided to run diaper only through all the lines with TSA officials running after him.

[Slaytaninc]

We could get rid of the TSA entirely and be just as safe as we were before 9/11. However it's now an entrenched government program so it's here to stay.

[Simon Cashmere]

The security is there not to stop terrorism, but to reassure the general public. Which is the most amusing part about it all, it's all just for show.

[Slaytaninc]

The security is there not to stop terrorism, but to reassure the general public. Which is the most amusing part about it all, it's all just for show.

Yep. The TSA exists because we wanted it to exist. The Last Psychiatrist has something to say about it: http://thelastpsychiatrist.com/2010/...ssed_at_a.html

[Simon Cashmere]

The true threats are the things that nobody gets to hear about, and while the public has a right to know to an extent - there are some things, they just cannot be told, because they could not cope if they were told. The last years since 9/11 have seen the most extraordinary near misses, some the public know about - the worst ones, they don't.

The new cold war is the West vs Islam, only this time we are in denial about it. And they'll keep on trying until we get serious about the fight. Terror is the act, Islam is the philosophy. There is no philosophy called terror, no more than there is no philosophy of using firearms. What is the viewpoint, strategy and goals - of those people. Terror is but one strategy and in many ways its one of the least effective ways of bringing our society down. Mass immigration, demands for special treatment by the government, business and the judiciary, requests for special laws, demands for tolerance - have a greater toll on our institutions and society, and do far far more damage to our society than any amount of terror ever will.

The latest focus for Islamic terrorists in the US appears to be on mass infrastructure, power and water. A muslim man was found stuck in a water pipe in the United Water drinking water treatment plant in New Jersey. What was he doing there? Taking a walk? He had to be rescued, so the plan did not go well. What possible reason could he be there for? Needed a drink? The press barely reported it.

MANALAPAN, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) – Rescuers have freed a man who had been stuck for hours in a pipe at a water treatment plant in New Jersey.

Officials told CBS 2 around 11:30 a.m. that 26-year-old Asef Mohamed, of Manalapan, had been freed and airlifted to an area hospital. He was 10 to 12 feet down the pipe, which was not in use, WCBS 880′s Levon Putney reported.

http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2014/01/...minal-charges/

Then about 4 months ago someone had a very good go at shooting up transformers with a rifle, fired 100s of rounds into it in a targeted manner. The power company routed around the damaged power station in San Jose. It only *just* came out, so it was covered up. Just how professional the operation was, was shown by the fact that none of the shell casings had fingerprints on them. That means that whomever loaded the magazines had the foresight to use gloves. That's not Billy Bob and Billy Ray taking late night target practice.

Shortly before 1:00 a.m., someone cut telephone cables near the substation. About a half-hour later, multiple gunmen quickly fired dozens of shots at 17 transformers inside the perimeter of the station. Fifteen minutes later, transformers began to fail.

But officials managed to avoid serious disruptions by rerouting power. The shooters escaped before police arrived, and they have not been caught. The chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission at the time of the attack, Jon Wellinghoff, has described it as the most serious domestic terror attack on the grid.

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/snipe...ns-power-grid/

Think about if say 10 squads of 2, spread across the country, all attacked power station transformers at 2 am. Or even more than that. The US is about 3 days away from anarchy if the power goes out.

Forget about the airport, that's not even on their radar anymore.