* Nov 24: National Opt Out Day!

[Lue C Fur]

Subject: Airport Security Solution

Now THIS makes sense- This is an excellent idea. It handles the problem perfectly. Gotta love the common sense factor in this...

Airport Security Solution

Here's the solution to all the controversy over full-body scanners at the Airports:

Have a booth that you can step into that will not x-ray you, but will detonate any explosive device you may have on your body.
It would be a win-win for everyone, and there would be none of this crap about racial profiling and this method would eliminate a long and expensive trial.

Justice would be quick and swift.

This is so simple that it's brilliant. I can see it now. You're in the airport terminal and you hear a muffled explosion.

Shortly thereafter an announcement comes over the PA system,
"Attention standby passengers. We now have a seat available on flight number 4665 .....
Paging maintenance. Shop Vac needed in booth number 4."

 

[toonertoo]

Subject: Airport Security Solution

Now THIS makes sense- This is an excellent idea. It handles the problem perfectly. Gotta love the common sense factor in this...

Airport Security Solution

Here's the solution to all the controversy over full-body scanners at the Airports:

Have a booth that you can step into that will not x-ray you, but will detonate any explosive device you may have on your body.
It would be a win-win for everyone, and there would be none of this crap about racial profiling and this method would eliminate a long and expensive trial.

Justice would be quick and swift.

This is so simple that it's brilliant. I can see it now. You're in the airport terminal and you hear a muffled explosion.

Shortly thereafter an announcement comes over the PA system,
"Attention standby passengers. We now have a seat available on flight number 4665 .....
Paging maintenance. Shop Vac needed in booth number 4."

I agree lets implement it. But first sell it to Soros, and others running the parties so they can make money, then it will fly.

 

[Babagounj]

local rumor mill has it that Congressman Barney Franks retiring and going to work for the TSA

 

[Babagounj]

Another TSA Outrage

Posted by Erick Erickson
UPDATE: I’m getting a lot of emails asking if this is actually true and is this person actually someone I know. (1) Yes it is true — it is too absurd to be made up. (2) Yes, I know the person.
As the Chalk Leader for my flight home from Afghanistan, I witnessed the following:
When we were on our way back from Afghanistan, we flew out of Baghram Air Field. We went through customs at BAF, full body scanners (no groping), had all of our bags searched, the whole nine yards.
Our first stop was Shannon, Ireland to refuel. After that, we had to stop at Indianapolis, Indiana to drop off about 100 folks from the Indiana National Guard. That’s where the stupid started.

First, everyone was forced to get off the plane–even though the plane wasn’t refueling again. All 330 people got off that plane, rather than let the 100 people from the ING get off. We were filed from the plane to a holding area. No vending machines, no means of escape. Only a male/female latrine.
It’s probably important to mention that we were ALL carrying weapons. Everyone was carrying an M4 Carbine (rifle) and some, like me, were also carrying an M9 pistol. Oh, and our gunners had M-240B machine guns. Of course, the weapons weren’t loaded. And we had been cleared of all ammo well before we even got to customs at Baghram, then AGAIN at customs.
The TSA personnel at the airport seriously considered making us unload all of the baggage from the SECURE cargo hold to have it reinspected. Keep in mind, this cargo had been unpacked, inspected piece by piece by U.S. Customs officials, resealed and had bomb-sniffing dogs give it a one-hour run through. After two hours of sitting in this holding area, the TSA decided not to reinspect our Cargo–just to inspect us again: Soldiers on the way home from war, who had already been inspected, reinspected and kept in a SECURE holding area for 2 hours. Ok, whatever. So we lined up to go through security AGAIN.
This is probably another good time to remind you all that all of us were carrying actual assault rifles, and some of us were also carrying pistols.
So we’re in line, going through one at a time. One of our Soldiers had his Gerber multi-tool. TSA confiscated it. Kind of ridiculous, but it gets better. A few minutes later, a guy empties his pockets and has a pair of nail clippers. Nail clippers. TSA informs the Soldier that they’re going to confiscate his nail clippers. The conversation went something like this:
TSA Guy: You can’t take those on the plane.
Soldier: What? I’ve had them since we left country.
TSA Guy: You’re not suppose to have them.
Soldier: Why?
TSA Guy: They can be used as a weapon.
Soldier: [touches butt stock of the rifle] But this actually is a weapon. And I’m allowed to take it on.
TSA Guy: Yeah but you can’t use it to take over the plane. You don’t have bullets.
Soldier: And I can take over the plane with nail clippers?
TSA Guy: [awkward silence]
Me: Dude, just give him your damn nail clippers so we can get the out of here. I’ll buy you a new set.
Soldier: [hands nail clippers to TSA guy, makes it through security]
This might be a good time to remind everyone that approximately 233 people re-boarded that plane with assault rifles, pistols, and machine guns–but nothing that could have been used as a weapon.

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

I may be stating the obvious but I think part of the problem is our airport security has been lax for so long that it will take a change in the mind set of the flying public before any security upgrades can be successful. We are so used to showing up at the airport, getting or showing our boarding pass and getting on the plane. The last time I flew (ALB-RDU) I sailed through security as I knew what to expect and had planned accordingly.

I spent a year in Sicily and went through the airport in Rome. Keep in mind this was 1983. The airport security was handled by the Carabinieri, which is the equivalent of our State Police, armed with uzi's which they made no effort to hide. Screening procedures were very strict.

While I do not advocate the use of armed security officials in our airports, I have no qualms about going through a full-body scanner or invasive pat-down if I can be assured that my flight will be incident-free.

 

[moreluck]

local rumor mill has it that Congressman Barney Franks retiring and going to work for the TSA

It's probably true because I saw him buying the economy pack of rubber gloves at Lowe's.

 

[moreluck]

I have no plans to fly in the near future and I am hoping this all will be resolved in a few months.

The gov't says that the radiation from the scanners is minimal. Thats the same gov't that said the air at ground zero was safe a few days after 9-11.

I already get 2 cat scans a year, mammogram, bone density test, dental x-rays and once yearly octreotide scan (nuclear medicine) I am all but glowing and being stuck to the fridge like a magnet. I fear the radiation and the gov't assurance doesn't make it better.

The scanners are a waste. The latest explosive they were talking about wouldn't be caught with a scanner and can't be detected with a gloved hand through pat downs.

I keep hearing the words....."We are from the gov't and we are here to help."

 

[over9five]

[/COLOR][/SIZE]
The gov't says that the radiation from the scanners is minimal.

It's an outright lie. There's no way they can know this, the system is brand new. In a few years, frequent flyers could start dying of cancer.

Trust no-one!

 

[wkmac]

It's an outright lie. There's no way they can know this, the system is brand new. In a few years, frequent flyers could start dying of cancer.

Trust no-one!

I went and saw Roger Waters The Wall Thursday night and during the song Mother, the lyric is "Mother should I trust the Gov't" and the audience response was a rather thunderous "HELL NO!" I almost called Michelle and told her, "now I feel good being an American!"

 

[wkmac]

TSA Personal Hate New Pat Downs Procedures Too!

 

[moreluck]

I went and saw Roger Waters The Wall Thursday night and during the song Mother, the lyric is "Mother should I trust the Gov't" and the audience response was a rather thunderous "HELL NO!" I almost called Michelle and told her, "now I feel good being an American!"

If you want to call Michelle you would have to reach her in New York because she went with 5 or 6 girlfriends to see a play last night!

 

[toonertoo]

As seldom as I fly, the radiation doesnt worry me, I just dont like the fact that it is that or a pat down. I dont think it would bother me to be frisked, but I wouldnt do it just for the reason I dont think it is necessary. As of yet there havent been too many middle aged white ladies, involved. Or kids, Or white, or black males. Just people of mid eastern descent. I think it is all over kill and a quick way to pad someones pockets. So I will drive, if I cant drive I wont go til they iron this all out.

 

[Jones]

As seldom as I fly, the radiation doesnt worry me, I just dont like the fact that it is that or a pat down. I dont think it would bother me to be frisked, but I wouldnt do it just for the reason I dont think it is necessary. As of yet there havent been too many middle aged white ladies, involved. Or kids, Or white, or black males. Just people of mid eastern descent. I think it is all over kill and a quick way to pad someones pockets. So I will drive, if I cant drive I wont go til they iron this all out.

Richard Reid (the shoe bomber) was English.
Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab (the underwear bomber) was a black man from Nigeria.
Jose Padilla (the dirty bomber) was a US citizen from Brooklyn, New York.
Zachary Adam Chesser is a white kid from my neck of the woods.
Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols
etc, etc.

If all we did for airport security was profile Arabs (as you seem to be suggesting), all you're really doing is making sure that the next bomb won't be carried by an Arab.

 

[soberups]

El Al is generally regarded as the benchmark for airline security and they don't use full body scanners. I'm not sure how practical their methodology would be for the US though because they are pretty time consuming.

There are only two international airports in Israel, which is a country that is about the same geographical size as the state of Maine. Israeli security methods would be logistically impossible to employ in a country with as many airports as the United States.

 

[Jones]

There are only two international airports in Israel, which is a country that is about the same geographical size as the state of Maine. Israeli security methods would be logistically impossible to employ in a country with as many airports as the United States.

True, but keep in mind that El Al maintains the same procedures at every international airport where they have a terminal, not just in Israel. If an airport (for whatever reason) won't allow them to use those procedures, they won't fly there.

 

[soberups]

On issues of national security, I tend to be rather pragmatic and have no interest in political correctness.

Truly effective security would employ the use of aggressive profiling. If it offends people, too bad.

I am a middle-aged Caucasian male. If the hijackings and terrorist acts were being committed by middle-aged Caucasian males, then as an airline passenger who wants to survive his flight I would want the TSA to profile middle-aged Caucasian males for security purposes. If that means I get singled out and spend a few extra minutes in a booth undergoing additional scrutiny, then so be it.

The only reason we are using the body scanners and pat-downs on nuns and children and 75 yr old grandmothers in wheelchairs is to avoid the appearance of any sort of discrimination. It is an expensive and time-wasting excercise in political correctness that does nothing to enhance security or prevent terrorism.

Boarding an aircraft is a privelege, not a right. Those who do not wish to be profiled or searched are free to rent a car or take a train or ship.

 

[soberups]

True, but keep in mind that El Al maintains the same procedures at every international airport where they have a terminal, not just in Israel. If an airport (for whatever reason) won't allow them to use those procedures, they won't fly there.

El Al services far fewer airports worldwide than most other airlines.

The level of scrutiny thay they subject their passengers to would be impossible to duplicate on a larger scale. And, more importantly, El Al makes no apologies for the fact that they rely a great deal on racial and ethnic profiling. Given the recent history of Israel, you really cant blame them.

 

[moreluck]

Political correctness has no place in airport security!

 

[Jones]

Actually the only reason we are using body scanners is because someone is making a hell of a lot of money off them. And the only reason for the "aggressive pat downs" is to intimidate people into using the body scanners that someone is making a hell of a lot of money from.

I've flown an awful lot in my life. I'm not sure I'd call it a privilege. More like a business transaction between myself and the airline.

 

[wkmac]

Actually the only reason we are using body scanners is because someone is making a hell of a lot of money off them. And the only reason for the "aggressive pat downs" is to intimidate people into using the body scanners that someone is making a hell of a lot of money from.

I've flown an awful lot in my life. I'm not sure I'd call it a privilege. More like a business transaction between myself and the airline.

+1