I am assuming that this is in response to my post so I will respond accordingly. I think the "idiot" is the person who hires incompetent people to do a job that could affect this country in such a way that a large percentage of our coworkers would be out of work. So is the passenger that I previously mentioned an idiot for being outspoken, obnoxious, arrogant, and completely out of line in the manner with which he expressed his feelings? Quite possibly... but I think that the majority of the people who work for the TSA cannot or simply do not think for themselves not because they want to keep their job or because they want to keep the traveling public safe but because it is the path of least resistance. And since when do they have the authority to designate self expression a safety hazard. I would rather have someone express their feelings in this manner instead of trying to physically harm anyone.

So the real question is... or at least it should pertain to the thread's title... do I hold great disdain for the TSA? You bet... and every time that I would be stopped for that special search( even though I had my airlines' ID and my SIDA badge for the city I was being searched in displayed) my contempt for this mis-managed, rag-tag, mentally challenged, and under-qualified TSA agent has expedientially grown.

 

I don't like the TSA guys. Nobody I know likes them. It's not that they are bad people. It's not even that they are dumb or poorly motivated that bothers me. It's that they hinder my getting to and from work, and have caused me to deadhead in uniform as opposed to my usual casual look, so that I don't have to continuously buy shaving cream and toothpaste (and at the same time, I don't believe they are a true impediment to the reason that they are there, in the first place.) That said, I appreciate their effort, regardless of how inept I personally feel they are. However, I don't agree that they should be disliked because they "don't think for themselves." On the contrary, I'm glad that they don't. I want them to follow the playbook, just like I do on a no-kidding Cat IIIB approach. There are times when I don't want someone "thinking for themselves." Perhaps it's the playbook that needs modification. Personally I don't think that the TSA effort is worth the money it's costing us taxpaying citizens, but I don't remember anyone else suggesting something better that doesn't cost more. I'm afraid it's a fact of life and life will never be the same. I suppose I should be happy that I'm not a road warrior and have to go through the process a dozen times a week, every week.

 

I know that they have a very important job, and the safety of our passengers depends on the competency of these people. It may be monotinous, and hard to go through every bag of every person that goes through the airport but I dont know of anyone who could care less about their job. I was lucky enough to get the "full search" with a 4'' pocket knife in my bag (I forgot to take out before my flight) that they thorourghly inspected but never found. How did nothing catch that? Makes me feel real safe.

 

HAA!! they were too busy taking the ice packs out of our coolers...

 

I can appreciate your opinions and respect the manner in which you have approached this topic. I can understand your perspective about following the rulebook but would you agree that someone who cannot think for themselves in a manner that would promote safety while not hindering those who do have to continuously go through security to go to work would ultimately be detrimental to the aviation community not even to brush on the security side of things? I agree with you but I say that those we entrust our lives to by screening people should be of the highest caliber and well paid. I believe that pilots are underpaid as well as those who ensure that no one is carrying any type of weapon onboard the aircraft that transport the public on a day to day basis. Off the topic a bit I know but I will also state that I think that the salaries of those at the tops of both regional and major airlines is a bit excessive. I encourage responses from anyone as I enjoy learning about others perspectives.

 

Why is it that these 7 dollar an hour knuckleheads have no sense of urgency. Last week trying to get catch a flight home there must have been a line with at least 40 people trying to get through security. Yet wheather black, white, or green not one of these bozos came up with the idea of maybe opening up a second line. And then of course their second job must be at Walmart or Home Depot because I can never get out of those operations quickly either. Lastly, while deadheading one morning from ONT I counted 24 TSA folks for 1 line of security. Zoiks!!!!!!

 

My favorite is when they put the x-ray trainee on the crew line. It's not exactly like I can catch the next flight because they can't figure out that our flashlights aren't deadly weapons.

 

As with all matters regarding governments and corporations, they will take as much power as we are collectively willing to give to them. When they hire TSA personnel from who knows where, many from the former private security companies, and pump them full of false notions concerning the American public and flight crew members it created a situation where friction is inevitable. TSA folks right off the street, are given power over flight crew, which in many locales have their own reason to hate you (mostly because of your success and their failures up to now), and bingo. Plus the kicker here is that to start, they make more that new hire pilots and will get a pension funded by the taxes that you and I pay!

The confrontations should happen but with TSA supervisors, and written complaints. Yes everyone here is absolutely right about the utter stupidity of many of their procedures and bans, but the place to take the fight is up the chain. We also have associations that are working hard to change the system and make it a real security system.

I witnessed an American Captain that handed out 4th Amendment Cards while being wanded, and he recited the 4th during the process.

"Amendment IV
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."

All I am saying is be careful. Right now they have all the power and are fairly ingnorant people without much education from my experience. My crew and I were once told while being wanded in BOI that this is what we got for "crashin them airplanes and killin them folks!" I asked for a supervisor, and they could not produce one, and they had no complaint/incident forms either. However I did file one online which never got a response. This was in 2002. I have seen pilots held for an hour or more after a confrontation so be careful and take an incident like this to a citizens organization that deals with this stuff.

 

I get stopped and asked which air force i'm in...the id card clearly states in english - USAF.

-LAFF

 

THAT was the problem. It was in English....