I can’t take Greyhound or Amtrak, because they will not allow me to bring my pet – who is the closest thing to family that I have.  I might try driving there – if I had a vehicle – and hope that I don’t experience a random ‘issue’ that causes the injuries or deaths of other, innocent drivers.

Or I can fly, and be sexually molested.

Which would you suggest?

So, Americans, if you liked the good old days when we WERE ACTUALLY “The Land of the FREE and the Home of the BRAVE”, I suggest you get off your lazy bums, vote the morons who created the TSA out of office, grow a pair of whatever you may be lacking, and get on the plane, because the TSA really doesn’t do much except be a bunch of “security officers”. 

More like “security blankets”, to make cowards feel better.

So basically you want to get rid of all airport security whatsoever. Just roll into the airport and get on your plane with absolutely no screening. Honestly, that’s a great idea and this is how it used to be. Of course, I don’t think that wish really melds well with the reality of the situation.

No, I said roll with 2001, Sept 10 levels of security… you know, the security level right before we pissed ourselves in terror.  You screen out the obvious and set the bar such that even if you are well funded and well planned, the best you can really hope to get onto an airplane with reasonable certainty are box cutters, not AK47s.  A metal detector and an X-ray for your bags is a reasonable amount of security.  Toss in a reinforced cockpit door and citizens with a healthy dislike of being hijacked, and you have security levels that are exactly the same as they are now, minus all the costs and freedom fondles.

If the best terrorist can arm themselves with is knives, we have learned on multiple occasions that, so long as the citizens realize that twiddling their thumbs is the wrong answer, the terrorist are fucked.  9/11 only worked because citizens were told to NEVER resist a hijacking.  Once we banished that idea and made it so that breaking into the cockpit takes more than a few seconds, taking over and airplane basically became impossible.  Hell, I don’t think  you could even crash an airplane because the passengers will murder you long before you can break into the cockpit to crash the airplane, and even if they don’t the pilot will murder you by throwing the airplane into maneuvers that will wound or kill anyone who is not strapped in.

Of course, the flip side is why should *your* cavalier attitude have an impact on the lives of others? Being that plane travel is generally not a solo excursion you are required to blend the desires of many people into a cohesive whole. This means that some level of security will happen on commercial flights.

If I asked my fellow citizens to endure the risk levels equal to commuting on a motorcycle for the sake of my liberty, they would not be total cowards for telling me to fuck off.  Commuting on a motorcycle, over time, does present a mild danger of death.  If I told my fellow citizens to endure the risk of being eaten by a shark, and they promptly pissed themselves in terror and demanded that we spend a few hundred billion dollars and strip Americans of their liberty to keep them safe from sharks, I would rightfully be pissed at the cowardice of my fellow citizens.  This is what we have done.  

A potential of death that ranks at around the level of shark attacks and lightening strikes has caused the citizenry to void their bowels, surrender their liberty and mine, their money and mine, and has bought them nothing in return.  Even if we could end the scourge of shark attacks and lightening strikes forever, I still wouldn’t be willing to add a few hundred billion in debt to this nation and force everyone to get a freedom fondle a few times a year.  I would point out that my fellow citizens are a bunch of fucking cowards, and be pissed about it.  Anyone who isn’t a complete fucking coward would feel the same.  

A 1 in a few million chance that a terrorist might strike you dead is not a reason to act like a fucking coward and surrender your, and more importantly, MY liberty and money.  If death REALLY scares you that much, STOP EATING SO MUCH FUCKING FOOD!  Seriously, nothing is more disgusting than an American mewing and pleading for the government to take their money and liberty to keep them from dying to the absurdly rare terrorist attack while they wedge another Big Mac up their fat asses while sprawling their rolls of blubber out in front of the TV for 5 hours a day.  When eating themselves to death stops being the leading cause of death, Americans can start bitching and moaning about more obscure forms of death, like shark attacks, lightening strikes, and airplane terrorism.  Until, Americans who put up with this shit and vote for politicians who allows this continued policy of cowardice are just a bunch of cowards themselves.

Press Release

October 3, 2011

Contact:
TSA Press Affairs
(571) 227-2829

Photo of an airport terminal.WASHINGTON – The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) today announced it will purchase and pilot new technologies designed to provide TSA greater ability to identify altered or fraudulent passenger identification credentials and boarding passes in order to further enhance travel safety. TSA plans to test the technology at select airports in early 2012.

“This technology will automatically verify passenger identification documents and boarding passes to further enhance security,” said TSA Administrator John S. Pistole. “This technology will help facilitate risk-based security, while making the process more effective and efficient.”

This technology, known as Credential Authentication Technology – Boarding Pass Scanning Systems (CAT-BPSS), will eventually replace the current procedure used by security officers to verify fraudulent or altered documents. It will be incorporated into TSA’s risk-based pilot that is slated to begin at four airports in the near future. This aligns with TSA’s latest efforts to enhance the passenger screening experience by moving toward a more risk-based, intelligence-driven counterterrorism agency.

The approximately $3.2 million award includes the purchase of 30 systems from three different vendors. TSA began testing travel document authentication technology at the TSA Systems Integration Facility (TSIF) in July 2011. TSA continually tests the latest technologies available in an effort to stay ahead of evolving threats and improve the passenger screening experience.

For more information about TSA and other technologies visit http://www.tsa.gov/ait.

..how do you figure?

Drones over the parking lot at shift change?

He could, however, ABOLISH the TSA.  That’s the outcome I’d prefer.  Actually I’m not sure he even has that power.

You do understand that the President doesn’t have a magic wand, right? You also understand that he isn’t a dictator, right?

If he can order summary executions in foreign countries, he can damn well fix the TSA.

It might require some juggling of how security checkpoints and gates work (ie, all of a carrier’s gates might have to be segregated to the same part of the airport so it could be isolated from other carriers with different security policies), but it could work, I think.

Highjackings do happen. Terrorism also happens. Now, while you are perfectly comfortable with the idea of possibly dying in a highjacking because there was no security many other people are not. You do have a valid stance from a libertarian perspective on the matter – Why should the fears of other people have an impact on *my* life. Of course, the flip side is why should *your* cavalier attitude have an impact on the lives of others? Being that plane travel is generally not a solo excursion you are required to blend the desires of many people into a cohesive whole. This means that some level of security will happen on commercial flights.

Personally, I believe that  some level of security in order to deal with these problems is appropriate. The problem with the security situation we currently have with the TSA is that the security provided is ineffective, overbearing, and reactionary. It is, as Bruce Scheiner puts it, security theater rather than true security. It’s not so much that there is security it’s just that the what is in place is stupid. This goes back to my original point – if you want effective security that isn’t stupid you have to be willing to pay for it. Of course, being that we live in a WalMart world I don’t see that happening.

Also, it’s good to hear that you bike. I was a bike messenger for a couple years in Philadelphia. That’s a good city to mess in – got hit a few times but that was part of the enjoyment of the job. The risk was a rush. In any case, I’m perfectly aware of the risks associated with air travel and understand that the possibility of dying in a terrorist related highjacking is very low. Of course, the problem is that we don’t have a control set. It could be that without security the chances would be greater. We could do some control tests but it would be unethical to put people in harms way for an experiment. However, we can look at pre- and post- screening incidents in the US for some idea. In 1972 there were 13 incidents resulting in 24 deaths. The next year screening went into place resulting in a total of 3 incidents and 4 deaths. Admittedly, 1972 was a anomaly in those terms – 1971 saw 4 incidents and 5 deaths. What is interesting is that starting in 1968 you saw a significant rise in the number of incidents (previously it was around 1 every other year). While security operations haven’t been able to bring it back to that level it does seem to be returning to that point.

The point of the previous is that it obvious that there is a risk and it can be argued that security procedures have reduced that risk. While we can’t really know what impact screening has had in terms of prevented incidents it does seem that it has prevented some. Which is a long way of saying that the current risk is absurdly low but without security the risk would be higher. However, my argument isn’t that we should do away with security entirely (as you seem to want to do) but that the security system needs to be reformed, at significant expense, in order to provide real security without idiocy like the above.

*If you’re not American, or suffering under the bullshit of American Freedom 2.0.

PS: I’m sorry to hear about Lori’s treatment by the morons who work for the TSA, I just can’t believe we’re up to case number 98234986239856235 of stupid-shit-done-by-TSA and yet the jaw-dropping cruelty and blind stupidity rolls on without challenge or mainstream commentary.

You’ve vastly exceeded your quota on saying the same thing.  If you have anything new to add, feel free.