Here's a slightly different example that's still hopefully in the spirit of yours. You're walking in a busy area and a pair of cops stops you and asks you to s

Here's a slightly different example that's still hopefully in the spirit of yours. You're walking in a busy area and a pair of cops stops you and asks you to show your ID and the contents of your bag. 1) Show the ID (which you're required to in this country, if you're a non-citizen), but not the contents of your bag. 1a) Optionally, ask the policemen's ID and write down their names. 2) Show both the ID and the contents of your bag. This happened to me a while ago, in Tokyo. Apparently most people do #2. The cops were very surprised that I chose option #1a. It took 15 minutes for them to give up. Apparently most people either don't know that cops cannot search you without probable cause, or they know but don't care. I don't think you need to be particularly courageous to say "no" to a cop, when it's your right to do so and you live in a place where the law is upheld. Incidentally, I would never antagonize a TSA person or an US immigrant officer like that, as I have no idea of what laws (if any) would protect me, as a non-citizen.