4 ms·

There's nothing overtly sexual about TSA patdowns, but I would not want to subject a kid of mine (if I had any) to TSA agents rubbing the back of their hands on

There's nothing overtly sexual about TSA patdowns, but I would not want to subject a kid of mine (if I had any) to TSA agents rubbing the back of their hands on their chests, legs, and tugging at their pants. We don't know enough about the story to know just how belligerent the mother might have gotten, but TSA should offer some kind of special program for people that are frequent fliers, special needs, and flying with children that can skip such security measures and just go through the usual metal detector/bag xray if they opt-into background checks and such. I've flown a dozen roundtrips this year so far and have a flight in a couple hours I need to catch, and that would make me so much happier. > Yelling at a TSA agent isn't one of the good ways. There's just no great way to communicate with TSA so I can understand people wanting to take it out on the agents because they're right there, giving you lots of grief. At the same time, one has to realize the TSA agent is only doing his/her job. It's a lose-lose situation for everyone. > I'm somewhat convinced that the new security measures don't really help much... Every time I go through patdowns and realize that I never took my baggy of >3oz "medical" fluids and sprays out of my carryon luggage, I feel so safe.

jamesaguilar 15y ago
The whole thing about the frequent fliers is a bit unrelated to this news piece. I haven't thought enough about your proposition to know whether I support it, but I thought that a trusted traveller program did exist in some airports where you could go through expedited screening. > 3 oz baggy I don't even take mine out of the suitcase any more. The worst that's going to happen is they catch me and make me put that part through again, but so far the expected value is time-saving. I can't say it makes me feel more in danger -- I think for the most part people don't really want to blow up planes, and even when they do, it's decently hard to get in a position to do so.
- silencio 15y ago
  I think the program would be useful for parents with (specifically younger) kids as well as frequent fliers. Register ahead of time, don't have to deal with the hassle of telling your super hyper 4 year old to stand still in the scanner. Convenience, not just avoiding the scanner/patdown controversy. As for trusted traveler programs, I don't think there really was a push until just recently for TSA to adopt their own, rather than dealing with 3rd party companies only at certain airports offering the service. > I can't say it makes me feel more in danger -- I think for the most part people don't really want to blow up planes I never ever want to do that, I just want to get to my destination. But I didn't mean my 3oz bottles of shampoo. I have a bag of that already. I'm talking about my second size-unlimited plastic bag full of medical liquids and aerosols that TSA almost never bats an eyelash at. I have travelled with 10oz bottles of contact lens solution and cough syrup this way that were in my carryon, undeclared, without being asked to take it out. My father, who is diabetic, takes bottles of soda/juice with him to the airport too and they never hassle him when he explains why (with a letter from his doctor as backup just in case). The idea that someone could stick a prescription label on a bottle and take on liters of liquid if they wanted to without screening is kind of disturbing after all the TSA's hassle about 3oz liquids.

jamesaguilar 15y ago

The whole thing about the frequent fliers is a bit unrelated to this news piece. I haven't thought enough about your proposition to know whether I support it, but I thought that a trusted traveller program did exist in some airports where you could go through expedited screening. > 3 oz baggy I don't even take mine out of the suitcase any more. The worst that's going to happen is they catch me and make me put that part through again, but so far the expected value is time-saving. I can't say it makes me feel more in danger -- I think for the most part people don't really want to blow up planes, and even when they do, it's decently hard to get in a position to do so.

silencio 15y ago
I think the program would be useful for parents with (specifically younger) kids as well as frequent fliers. Register ahead of time, don't have to deal with the hassle of telling your super hyper 4 year old to stand still in the scanner. Convenience, not just avoiding the scanner/patdown controversy. As for trusted traveler programs, I don't think there really was a push until just recently for TSA to adopt their own, rather than dealing with 3rd party companies only at certain airports offering the service. > I can't say it makes me feel more in danger -- I think for the most part people don't really want to blow up planes I never ever want to do that, I just want to get to my destination. But I didn't mean my 3oz bottles of shampoo. I have a bag of that already. I'm talking about my second size-unlimited plastic bag full of medical liquids and aerosols that TSA almost never bats an eyelash at. I have travelled with 10oz bottles of contact lens solution and cough syrup this way that were in my carryon, undeclared, without being asked to take it out. My father, who is diabetic, takes bottles of soda/juice with him to the airport too and they never hassle him when he explains why (with a letter from his doctor as backup just in case). The idea that someone could stick a prescription label on a bottle and take on liters of liquid if they wanted to without screening is kind of disturbing after all the TSA's hassle about 3oz liquids.