More on TSA
The stories coming out about the enhanced pat down procedures that were rolled out on November 1st are horrible, humiliating, and a sign that something is really, really wrong with the way we are treating American passengers. Hillary Clinton was even on a Sunday show saying she would not submit to a pat down.
I have always maintained that I would put up with a little inconvenience - longer lines, metal detectors, shows off, etc - for a lot more security. But I don't think I can put up with this. It feels like an abuse for not a lot of security.
And seriously, the idea of a TSA agent touching my son makes me want to punch a hole in a wall.
But we have a whole new problem now. The public is enraged. They are being treated like criminals when the only thing they did wrong was buy an airline ticket. It's now the public, versus the enemy TSA. And that animosity is going to increase incidents of frustration between the two.
And seriously, most TSA agents are just people who go to work every day and are told to do a job. They don't like their job, they don't like getting yelled at by businessmen every day, and I'm sure they are not liking the hostility they are receiving now. Some are even saying that the open hostility is making the pat downs worse, that TSA is doing some of it on purpose to "get back" at the public backlash.
Me thinks that's probably not a good idea.
I don't trust anyone in the administration or Congress to get these rules changed. Republicans don't have the best track record and President Obama is said to have called for these procedures to avoid any sort of terrorist activity like we had last year.
But, I have another tin foil hat theory. There are many people out there who would prefer that people not fly. That they not drive, not fly, and that they remain close to home and only buy things that can be produced locally. If flying becomes so inconvenient that many people give up flying ... well ... there are some out there that don't think that would be such a bad thing.
I'm hoping (and this is going to sound awful for all of you traveling this week) that the Thanksgiving rush causes a bunch of backlash and the procedures get changed. Based on a few stories I've read about the radiation, I'm not comfortable going through it. But I hate being touched. And I'm not always the most polite when cornered.
What to do, what to do!
I have always maintained that I would put up with a little inconvenience - longer lines, metal detectors, shows off, etc - for a lot more security. But I don't think I can put up with this. It feels like an abuse for not a lot of security.
And seriously, the idea of a TSA agent touching my son makes me want to punch a hole in a wall.
But we have a whole new problem now. The public is enraged. They are being treated like criminals when the only thing they did wrong was buy an airline ticket. It's now the public, versus the enemy TSA. And that animosity is going to increase incidents of frustration between the two.
And seriously, most TSA agents are just people who go to work every day and are told to do a job. They don't like their job, they don't like getting yelled at by businessmen every day, and I'm sure they are not liking the hostility they are receiving now. Some are even saying that the open hostility is making the pat downs worse, that TSA is doing some of it on purpose to "get back" at the public backlash.
Me thinks that's probably not a good idea.
I don't trust anyone in the administration or Congress to get these rules changed. Republicans don't have the best track record and President Obama is said to have called for these procedures to avoid any sort of terrorist activity like we had last year.
But, I have another tin foil hat theory. There are many people out there who would prefer that people not fly. That they not drive, not fly, and that they remain close to home and only buy things that can be produced locally. If flying becomes so inconvenient that many people give up flying ... well ... there are some out there that don't think that would be such a bad thing.
I'm hoping (and this is going to sound awful for all of you traveling this week) that the Thanksgiving rush causes a bunch of backlash and the procedures get changed. Based on a few stories I've read about the radiation, I'm not comfortable going through it. But I hate being touched. And I'm not always the most polite when cornered.
What to do, what to do!
Comments
Personally, I am willing to risk another guy with a shoe on a plane or another dude with his Hanes wired to explode if it gets me through the airport faster. These guys should probably be caught and stopped long before they reach the TSA people.
I don't understand your tinfoil theory. Who doesn't want you to fly or drive but to stay home and buy locally? Your Chamber of Commerce? Honestly, most people don't fly to purchase things and the industries that benefit most from travel are not going to boom in your hometown if traveling ceases. I mean, who's going to stay in a hotel in their own hometown? As for the general "buy local" concept...I think it's not a bad deal.
Perhaps you can expand your craziness online, so I don't have to badger you with this on Wednesday, after all its Thanksgiving.
This, enviornmentalist, of course, lives in New York City.
It's the same group (or elusive "they") that don't want people driving SUV's or pick up trucks.
TSA needs to profile, pure and simple. They need to train people to look for suspicious activity and to ASK QUESTIONS instead of just stripping people down.
This who enhanced pat down just opens the door for trouble. A reporter had a TSA agent put her hands down her underwear and feel around. DOWN HER UNDERWEAR. TSA LATER apologized. But LATER. I don't want that to happen to me (or my CHILD) at all. It's abusive. And you have no recourse if they do something like that at the time. You can only write a letter and hope they "apologize." And that's wrong.
There is certainly no other reason for an increase in airline SECURITY!!! Geez!
Messed up gibberish indeed.