US Airport Security
Just wondering what everyone thinks of the recent airport security measures in the US. I am referring to the full body scanners and pat downs.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Gaytor on -
There have been three attempts... or more to bomb planes in the US or headed for the US. We are responding after the fact with each measure in knee jerk fashion. Israel doesn't operate like we do, so how do they deal with it? Tools like bomb sniffing dogs need to be used. There is no reason a bomb sniffing dog can't walk up and down the lines and be in the screening area. It violates no one's rights and we all keep moving. License plate readers and other passive technologies can be implemented. A blanket "strip search or molestation" isn't a reasonable answer for me. The metal detector serves a great purpose and look through my luggage. Beyond that, I see no reason to give up more rights. The 4th and the 6th guarantee Privacy and Due Process, unless flying? I think that it's time to draw the line.
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Permalink Reply by Bill on -
It does seem pretty silly to me to be screening the aircrew. They can fly the airplane into a building any time they want, so why bother with searching them? Ultimately, we have to trust them.
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Permalink Reply by Jason Paisley on -
I read an article on how Israel does it. Those guys wrote the book on how to run a secure airline without invading privacy however the US won't implement anything another nation came up with as we want to do it "our way" even if "our way" is moronic.
"Hello there Constitution, my name is the Patriot Act and i'll be ripping you to shreds now."
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Permalink Reply by Becca on -
They are responding to known threats in the wrong way IMO. They shouldn't be focusing all their time on checking every single person in this manner to me it just takes their time away from focusing on and identifying that small number of people who would actually do harm. And it gives them more hassles with already stressed and disgruntled passengers having to go through more bullshit. Just because I'm traveling by plane doesn't mean it's ok to violate my rights. Bomb sniffing dogs would probably be a lot more effective in preventing bombs getting onto planes than giving everyone the "TSA massage" or taking nude pictures of them.
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Permalink Reply by Kris Feenstra on -
It's a dog and pony show. Instead of accepting the fact that criminality exists and that there is only so much we can do to inhibit and prevent it, we, culturally, get sucked into this hindsight 20/20 histeria every time something happens. No matter how unlikely the criminal scheme was, people are out there crying about how the authorities should have prevented it.
But how? Anyone could be potentially guilty of a future crime, and no matter what system you put in place, someone is going to find a loophole. The easiest way to deal with this problem is to take a 'guilty until proven innocent' approach. That's what we do. Everyone going through airport security is a suspect. If someone still slips through, the investigations step up.
When I use just about any paid service out there in Canada and the US, I feel like a customer and a guest. When that paid for service is a flight (even domestic) I feel like a convict in a minimum security prison.
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Permalink Reply by Matt Coulthurst on -
The easiest way to deal with this problem is to take a 'guilty until proven innocent' approach.
"All suspects are guilty. Period. Otherwise they wouldn't be suspec...
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Permalink Reply by Zane Wallace on -
I don't have a problem with any of it. If someone wants to touch my junk under the pretense of looking for contraband, go for it!
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Permalink Reply by Kris Feenstra on
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If b-rate comedies are in any way accurate descriptors of reality (and I think we can all agree that they are), you will be told 'Shirley will be patting you down should you refuse the scanner.' You will jump at this chance only to have it later revealed that Shirley is a 6'7, very burly man whose parents merely had an unfortunate sense for choosing boy's names. Your plea to reverse your decision and choose the scanner will be denied. You will nervously remark, "Shirley, that's an unusual name for a man." To this, Shirley will don a grin that imparts not a feeling of innocuous merriment, but rather inspires fear of sadistic joy.
Sorry Reggie; it's only a matter of time before. Nothing in this universe is more absolute than b-movie clichés.
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Permalink Reply by Reggie on -
Ha! My life is seems to be a B rate comedy at times.
How about this? I get to feel up the TSA agent first. Fair is fair, right? If they get a grope, so do I.
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Permalink Reply by Cathleen Sessions on -
I have flown within the last month. I got the scanner at the Denver Airport. Frankly, I really didn't know what was going on. I had been standing in line for 45 minutes, my carry on was heavy and I just wanted to get the F thru.
I did have a problem with them questioning a medicine that happened to be a liquid. It was well under the three oz. But everyone was very polite.
I did get a pat down on the way to Denver because I was wearing a skirt and it was 'baggy'. I didn't care as the young woman had a supervisor standing over her and she was more embarrassed than I. I felt sorry for her having to pat down a baggy old lady.
My feeling is kind of like 'I don't care.' I am old and don't get much of that action from strangers anymore. I cannot cite religious objections after all.
Dennis Leary once said that we should have all nude airlines. Prehaps he was right.
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Permalink Reply by Cathleen Sessions on
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I always get extra checking and I don't know why. I have an idea that if someone accuses TSA of racial profiling they can point to me the middle age white library lady and say, "See her, she got screened." It is the only explaination I can come up with.
Even if I read all the TSA stuff ahead of time they still pull something new on me.
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