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> Some people have said (on HN as well as other places) that the TSA have never stopped weapons getting on board a plane and if they had they would have heavily

by jlgreco 13y ago

> Some people have said (on HN as well as other places) that the TSA have never stopped weapons getting on board a plane and if they had they would have heavily publicised it I believe the standard claim is that they have never discovered and apprehended a terrorist, preventing an attack. Everybody knows they steal shit from people who, although perhaps stupid, are not terrorists.

DanBC 13y ago
(https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3810785 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3810785)
- jlgreco 13y ago
  Yes and? Google search for "tsa never caught a terrorist": http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/2010/11/does_the_tsa_ever_catch_terrorists.html http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/20... (Slate pointing out that the TSA doesn't catch terrorists, making special note of the fact that they have not bragged about doing so.) http://disinfo.com/2012/03/has-the-tsa-ever-foiled-a-terrorist-plot/ http://disinfo.com/2012/03/has-the-tsa-ever-foiled-a-terrori... (blogspam about an economist article written by Bruce Schneier about the TSA never catching terrorists. Bruce Schneier is likely the most prominent person that points out that the TSA never brags about bagging one. I would wager that he popularized the point.) http://tsanewsblog.com/3160/news/tsa-executive-admits-not-a-single-terrorist-related-arrest-has-resulted-from-whole-body-scanners/ http://tsanewsblog.com/3160/news/tsa-executive-admits-not-a-... (TSA official asked directly if they have ever caught a terrorist.) Google search for "tsa never found a gun": (Fuck all.) The popular question is "if the TSA has caught a terrorist, why haven't we heard". "If the TSA has never found a gun, why haven't we heard?" is foolish and as far as I can tell almost never asked.
- yew 13y ago
  Some people do, of course, believe that the TSA has literally never caught a weapon. Some people also believe that the TSA is secretly protecting us from the lizard-men from Mars. It is fairly easy (even here) to find someone on most any side of a debate who's arguing from deranged criteria. We can argue about what qualifies as 'standard' - although I don't think any of us have access to much in the way of quantification regarding arguments for and against the TSA. Proof to the contrary would be a pleasant surprise. I hope it suffices to say that most people who are concerned about the TSA are concerned about rates of detection and perceived effectiveness of techniques versus cost. Even if not everyone would be so wordy.

by jlgreco 13y ago

DanBC 13y ago

(https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3810785 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3810785)

jlgreco 13y ago
Yes and? Google search for "tsa never caught a terrorist": http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/2010/11/does_the_tsa_ever_catch_terrorists.html http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/20... (Slate pointing out that the TSA doesn't catch terrorists, making special note of the fact that they have not bragged about doing so.) http://disinfo.com/2012/03/has-the-tsa-ever-foiled-a-terrorist-plot/ http://disinfo.com/2012/03/has-the-tsa-ever-foiled-a-terrori... (blogspam about an economist article written by Bruce Schneier about the TSA never catching terrorists. Bruce Schneier is likely the most prominent person that points out that the TSA never brags about bagging one. I would wager that he popularized the point.) http://tsanewsblog.com/3160/news/tsa-executive-admits-not-a-single-terrorist-related-arrest-has-resulted-from-whole-body-scanners/ http://tsanewsblog.com/3160/news/tsa-executive-admits-not-a-... (TSA official asked directly if they have ever caught a terrorist.) Google search for "tsa never found a gun": (Fuck all.) The popular question is "if the TSA has caught a terrorist, why haven't we heard". "If the TSA has never found a gun, why haven't we heard?" is foolish and as far as I can tell almost never asked.
yew 13y ago
Some people do, of course, believe that the TSA has literally never caught a weapon. Some people also believe that the TSA is secretly protecting us from the lizard-men from Mars. It is fairly easy (even here) to find someone on most any side of a debate who's arguing from deranged criteria. We can argue about what qualifies as 'standard' - although I don't think any of us have access to much in the way of quantification regarding arguments for and against the TSA. Proof to the contrary would be a pleasant surprise. I hope it suffices to say that most people who are concerned about the TSA are concerned about rates of detection and perceived effectiveness of techniques versus cost. Even if not everyone would be so wordy.