[Keith_McClary]

This isn't TSA, it's the 'National Counterterrorism Center'
U.S. Terrorism Agency to Tap a Vast Database of Citizens
WSJ paywalled, but click on "Video" to see the 5 minute video (after the commercial).

[jupiters_release]

Anyone have recent anecdotes of TSA, are they still harassing people on opt outs or is the gloved grope option finally a "respected" thing now? My grandmother's dying and may have to fly to see her.

[jupiters_release]

Here's the recap from my flights. First time guy asked if I had any sensitive body parts, I replied genitals to which he repeated under his breath in disgust. Unintentionally pissed him off but he performed the pat down professionally and respectfully. Return flight, the agent looked much more friendly, asked same question about sensitive parts to which I replied none this time. He applied more pressure in his pat down and repeated every sweep twice unlike the first time, but nothing unprofessional until the very last sweep which started at the ankles and rocketed up into my crotch hitting my respective testicles twice. Dude had a huge grin on his face at the end of it too.

Moral of the story - say genitals.

[Keith_McClary]

TSA employee to security theater skeptics: "You don't have shit for rights"

[Keith_McClary]

Fake TSA screener infiltrates SFO checkpoint, gropes women$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'H')e was allegedly drunk, and had at least two victims before SFO's crackerjack private aviation security outfit, Covenant, noticed (they're the same ones who smashed my brand new camera some years ago and refused to take responsibility for it).

Because all his victims had already flown by the time anyone noticed that the guy in khakis, a blue polo, and blue gloves who'd been steering women into the private screening booth wasn't actually airport security, they can't charge him with anything except being drunk in public. Meanwhile, the woman travellers whom America has systematically trained to defer to aviation authority or face brutal punishments apparently didn't notice anything amiss.

[Oneaboveall]

The guy was a private equity executive:

http://blog.sfgate.com/matierandross/20 ... rs-at-sfo/

[Keith_McClary]

ISIS fighter killed in Syria worked at Minneapolis International Airport$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'M')uhumed had a security clearance at the airport, access to the tarmac, and access to planes, as his job was to clean aircraft, Fox 9 in Minneapolis reported. It is yet unknown what level of security clearance he had.

[Subjectivist]

Must see video!

http://youtu.be/XrLy-ncP3WI

[Keith_McClary]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'S')omeone in the waiting area for AA's LAX-London flight created a network called "Al-Quida Free Terror Nettwork," so "out of an abundance of caution," everyone ran around like headless chickens for a while trying to figure out where the network name was coming from (cue horror music: "He's broadcasting from INSIDE THE TERMINAL!" Dun dun DUUUUN!).

Then they realized that making dumb Wifi network names wasn't a crime, that they couldn't find the person with the dumb network, and that they were being dumb, and the plane took off.

When in trouble,

Or in doubt,

Run in circles,

Scream and shout.
http://boingboing.net/2014/10/28/lax-de ... -some.html

[Keith_McClary]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'I')n August 2009, I was planning to fly through the Philadelphia airport to start my senior year at Pomona College in California. I was carrying a set of English-Arabic flashcards that I had put together for one of my classes, as well as a book critical of U.S. foreign policy (written by a former secretary of commerce under President Reagan– not exactly a radical treatise). It should go without saying that this is perfectly innocuous, First Amendment-protected activity.

Turns out, it doesn't.

At the metal detector at airport security, Transportation Security Administration agents asked me to empty my pockets. I took the set of flashcards from my pocket and handed them to the officers. After I cleared the metal detector, they asked me to step aside for additional screening. One of them started rifling through the cards, and another took the book out of my carry-on. The minutes ticked by, and I got more confused about why I was being detained and more concerned that I would miss my flight. One of them called a supervisor.

After a half-hour delay at the security line, the supervisor showed up, and things turned from annoying to surreal. After looking at the book and flashcards, the supervisor asked me: "Do you know who did 9/11?" Taken totally aback, I answered: "Osama Bin Laden." Then she asked me if I knew what language Osama Bin Laden spoke. "Arabic," I replied. "So do you see why these cards are suspicious?" she finished.

Imagine going from being in line at the airport to having a TSA supervisor imply you had some connection with the worst act of terrorism ever committed against your country – all over the course of a few minutes.

She was in mid-sentence talking to me when a Philadelphia police officer appeared behind me and ordered me to put my hands behind my back. He cuffed my hands, grabbed my arms, and, in full view of the rest of the passengers, walked me through the entire Philadelphia airport and into the police substation.

No one informed me of my rights, and no one would tell me why I was being not just searched but arrested by police, when I was in violation of no law. I had never been arrested, and no one knew I was there.

The police officer left me in a cell at the police station for several more hours. He did not uncuff my hands from behind my back. He did not tell me what I was being held for. He did not tell me how long I would be there. After about two hours I asked to go to the bathroom, and on the way back I again asked why I was being held. He answered me with the same attitude the TSA agent had shown me: "I dunno, what'd you do?"

[Oneaboveall]

Damn! That's insane. I shouldn't even be surprised anymore.

I saw this awhile back, but forgot to post it. It's from Cracked of all places, but it's a blistering critique of the TSA:

7 Reasons why the TSA Sucks

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'F')or a bunch of people in snappy uniforms patting down crotches, the TSA is remarkably unpopular. Nobody likes going through security at the airport, but you probably figured most of it had a point. All those hours spent in line with other shoeless travelers are a necessary precursor to safe flying. It's annoying, but at least it wards off terrorism.

That's all bullshit. The TSA couldn't protect you from a 6-year-old with a water balloon. What are my qualifications for saying that? My name is Rafi Sela, and I was the head of security for the world's safest airport. Here's what your country does wrong.



Read more: http://www.cracked.com/blog/7-reasons-t ... z3PmUvllcY