TSA Plans Full Searches for Certain Fliers

[wolfwalker]

Now I don't know how anyone else feels about this. But isn't this closing the barn door after the cow gets out?

these people are not leaving the US bound for where ever to blow something up. They are flying into this country and searching them after they get here, if they get here is pretty stupid.


wolfwalker

[Linus]

Do you mean this article (http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2010/01/03/politics/politicalhotsheet/entry6050472.shtml)? IIRC, this search will be done at the start of the flight rather than after (it's a secondary search before boarding the plane). I've experienced the secondary check when flying from Mexico to NYC (JFK) and it was done by TSA/US Customs.

Additionally, just because they are domestic doesn't mean that they aren't terrorists. There are many home grown terrorists (McVeigh comes to mind). That said, I travel lots. Even with a full beard and F as a gender marker (gender markers are required now as part of passenger info), I've yet to be challenged. I carry a letter from my doctor indicating my trans nature.

[Mindy]

I don't think a full "pat down" will do anything to stop them, truthfully. They will continue to find ways of creating bombs, etc with ordinary things.

I see the main problem with our security measures are that they are reactionary, rather than preventative. We wait until something happens, then react to it, putting out new security measures after the fact. I think we need people to try to figure out ways to prevent things from happening and work from there, although how we can decide what people "might" do and prevent it is beyond me. Definitely not my area of expertise!

[MsDemeanor]

This new policy is


:deepthoughts:

Wait a minute, the word will come to me

:deepthoughts:

Oh yeah.....


STUPID!!!!


This is a stupid :overreaction:

Cart after horse stupid. Barn door closed stupid. Would not have detected the crotch bomb stupid. All around Stupid. Right up there with no blankets or anything in your lap or getting out of your seat the last hour of a flight. As stupid as not being able to carry liquids. As stupid as taking off your shoes. All knee-jerk reactions where they jerked so hard that they hit themselves in the head with their knee.

This gives our government one thing: a policy to quote as an excuse for harassing people. Up until now, they just denied profiling and lied about targeting certain groups of people for extra screening. Now, they can quote "policy".

No, wait, two things. It also gives a lot of people a whole 'nother reason to hate us.

Unless they are going to pat crotches and breasts and slide in a little cavity search, there's a whole lot of space on the human body to hide stuff from a pat down.

Also, the government can demand all the screenings that they want, but these screenings are supposed to be done in other countries under other governments' policies. We can't control what happens.


While we're on the subject of :overreaction:, how about this new shit where Canada is supposed to give the US the passenger list for every flight that goes over US air space. Not just the ones that land, but also the ones that fly over. The US wants to know who's on that non-stop from Vancouver to Cabo. Unfortunately, this demand violates Canadian privacy laws.

Anyone care to get me started on the conservatives who are bashing Obama about this after they voted against funding airport security projects? Or the idiot DeMint who is blocking hearings on a TSA director because of that most horrific threat to the US: TSA unionizing. Oh, the horror!!!!

Oh, and to all those people jumping up Napolitano's ass over her Sunday comment - listen to the whole quote, not the partial, out of context quote being spewed by right wing nut jobs and Faux Newz.

I could go one for another page the hypocrisy of conservatives bashing Obama over his response and the plans for prosecuting this guy. Um, assholes, remember how you handled the shoe bomber?


Yes, as a matter of fact I do feel better for getting that out of my system.

[PapaC]

I don't even bother with a letter (granted, I don't live/work in the US), but I've been visiting the US as 'F' but appear at 'M' since 2004.

Never get questioned about my gender marker. Ever... not even when I was almost not allowed in last time.

Maybe one day they'll do full cavity searches..

I'll just make sure I've washed that day.