Reason.TV has compiled this funny video (with a subtle jab at the Transportation Security Administration) in time for the holiday travel season. As you board planes this holiday, please be aware of 12 actual banned items from the TSA. :)
(via ABC News on YouTube)
You can steal but you can’t hide! Stupid thieves never realize that these days they can be easily tracked down after stealing a digital device. That’s exactly what happened in this case. ABC NEws did an investigation into this allegation that TSA staff are swindling gadgets and other valuables at 10 airports and found out that 9 out of time times their valuables (incl. money and iPads) made it back. Except at that one airport – Orlando, FL. Too bad the crooked staffer who stole the iPad didn’t realize that he was caught handling it on the surveillance system at the airport. To make it worse, ABC staff turned on the “Find my iPad” app that does exactly that – homes in on an iPad device – and ended at the front door of this TSA employee’s house. Too bad for him! His face after getting caught is one that he will never want to see ever in his life!
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Note: It is worth adding this bit – TSA says 381 of its officers have been let go for alleged thefts. For more on this story, click here.
(Source: Daily Mail, UK)
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Seriously, TSA should exercise some discretion when it comes to these pat downs. Interestingly, the video shows it was filmed during Spring 2010 at O’Hare in Chicago, and let’s hope TSA has changed some of its invasive procedures at least when it comes to kids. The look on the little boy’s face is really disheartening and the parent is doing all he can to assure the kid that it is all okay. Not sure what prompted the swabbing for explosive residues but it seems a bit too excessive given the age of the toddler. One may argue that TSA is simply doing their job and is just ensuring the safety of the flying public by subjecting everyone through the same batter of tests. But I think the swabs for a 3 years old is still a bit too much. The only saving grace here is that the TSA officer was as nice as he can be to the little kid and was not rushing or doing things that will spook the kid more upset/terrified than he already is.
(Source: TSAoutofourPants.wordpress.com via Reddit)
Blogger Jonathan Corbett is upping the ante in his protracted fight against the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) much criticized Transportation Security Administration (TSA). In the video below, he demonstrates the flaws in the nude body scanners widely deployed at US airports. Amazing to see how simple yet effective his strategy is as he clears the security check points at multiple airports with hidden materials completely undetected. TSA is going to have some serious explaining to do soon as this video is starting to go viral. It is already generating a brick ton of comments on Reddit.
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Image Courtesy: Imgur.com via Reddit
(Source: The Texas Tribune)
Image Courtesy: Theatlanticright.com via Google Images
A threat from the federal government to shut down Texas airports or cancel flights may have killed legislation, House Bill 1937, pushed by Tea Party conservatives in the Texas Capitol to prohibit federal Transportation Security Agents from conducting “invasive searches.”
The Texas Tribune has the scoop: The bill passed by the House earlier this month, would make it a misdemeanor offense for a federal security agent to “intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly [touch] the anus, sexual organ, buttocks, or breast of the other person, including touching through clothing, or touching the other person in a manner that would be offensive to a reasonable person.”
Two TSA officials visited Patrick at the Capitol earlier today to discuss the legislation. They warned him that the legislation “could close down all the airports in Texas,” he said. After their departure, U.S. Attorney John E. Murphy sent a letter to Speaker of the House Joe Straus and Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst saying the bill would “conflict directly with federal law” and that if it became law, “TSA would likely be required to cancel any flight or series of flights for which it could not ensure the safety of passengers and crew” until the agency could seek a court order stopping the measure from being carried out.
Click here to read the rest of the story.
Note: This is not the first time or the first issue the Texas legislature has butted heads with the Federal government. There is the legendary EPA vs Texas reg. the federal takeover of lax pollution standards in the state. And now a new issue looks to threaten the already fractured relationship and this one involves a brown, beady-eyed, two-and-a-half-inch animal – the sagebrush lizard. The Texas House this morning approved a resolutioncalling on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to rescind its proposal to bring the lizard under the Endangered Species Act. For the West Texas lawmakers, this federal proposal to protect the dunes sagebrush lizard could halt the production of millions of barrels of oil and gas. Is this another classic Texas story where greed reigns supreme or a genuine concern for the people who depend on the oil & gas revenue?
(Source: Washingtonexaminer.com; Slate.com)
After losing my mind reading/following all the mind-numbing accusations and chaos surrounding the issue of full body scanners/advance security pat down searches performed by TSA staff at airports, I was looking for something fun to read on this issue. As if someone read my mind, The Washington Examiner had a piece, in fact a cartoon, that just captured the essence of the issue at hand. Thank you, Nate Beeler, for giving me a good chuckle with this great cartoon. Loving it!
Image Courtesy: Nate Beeler - WashingtonExaminer.com
(Source: ABC)
Why doesn’t these things NEVER happen in my flights? Hmmm.. I am happy for these folks who had a bit of entertainment to cheer up during their long flight and a story to tell when they land. After battling the hassles of baggage check-ins and security checks, these folks probably appreciated this nice musical treat..
Note: Silly me can’t help but think aloud about these questions: what would the reaction be if these guys were a bunch of middle-eastern musicians wearing traditional robes – how would the airline staff react to such a spontaneous request to play music? Thank god, KLM staff were not so uptight about letting some musicians to get off their seats and play their gear..
