Are All Those 'Pat-Downs' Necessary?
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After the terrible events of 9/11, airline passengers found that their baggage was subject to greater scrutiny.
Things that were previously allowed on airplanes, including such deadly implements of war as nail clippers, were being confiscated at the gates by the newly formed Transportation Safety Administration (TSA). A few people grumbled, but there wasn't any serious resistance. After all, it was in the name of security.
After an odd-looking goomer named Richard Reid tried and failed to bring down an airplane with a bomb hidden in his shoe, airline passengers had to remove their shoes and put them into a grimy plastic tub to be x-rayed if they wanted to get on the plane. A few people grumbled, but there wasn't any serious resistance. After all, it was in the name of security.
After another set of screwups tried and failed to bring down an airplane with liquid explosives, airline passengers had to bring any liquids in little tiny containers sealed in little tiny plastic bags. A few people grumbled, but there wasn't any serious resistance. After all, it was in the name of security.
After yet another loser tried and failed to bring down an airplane with explosives hidden in his undershorts, airline passengers were given a choice: They could walk through a "full-body scanner," which showed everything under their clothes, or they could go through what was called an "enhanced pat-down."
Now, after all this time, people are doing more than grumbling. They're getting downright angry.
It started with the pilot's unions, who began to advise their members not to expose themselves repeatedly to the radiation from the so-called "backscatter" or "millimeter wave" scanners, which they regarded with suspicion, even though the manufacturer insists that the additional radiation is no worse than what they get from a few minutes at cruising altitude.
Let me just stop for a moment and pose a question to the readership which no one has yet been able to answer for me: Why the heck are we screening the pilots for weapons anyway? Are we afraid they'll seize control of the plane? I mean, if a pilot really wants to kill all the passengers and himself, he's not going to need to hold a box cutter to his own throat to do it.
But I digress.
Passengers also expressed distrust of the scanners, not just for the radiation, but out of a suspicion that TSA employees might be getting their jollies from watching their nekkid bodies as they pass through. Having seen the ghostly quality of the images, I actually find it a little hard to believe that anyone could find them arousing, but, you know, there are some really strange people out there.
The Internet and the airwaves are full of stories of people, including children as young as 3, having their intimate areas aggressively poked, grabbed and squeezed by ham-handed TSA officials who don't even buy you dinner first, let alone send flowers the next day.
Finally, it seems, American airline travelers have had enough.
A video of a passenger declaring to a TSA employee, "If you touch my junk, I'll have you arrested" went viral. A passenger's-rights organization declared the day before Thanksgiving "National Opt Out" day, suggesting that people bring the airports to a standstill on the busiest day of the year by demanding en masse that they be given the "enhanced pat down." More whimsical protesters have suggested showing up in the airport in a Speedo or a kilt (sans underwear).
Meanwhile, a Senate subcommittee began hearings this past week on the new policies, during which Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill immediately wedged her foot in her mouth up to the kneecap when she dismissed the "enhanced" searches as "love pats."
I, for one, am glad to see more Americans finally questioning the TSA and the increasingly ridiculous demands of what security expert Bruce Schneier has dubbed "security theater" - measures that claim to provide enhanced safety but do little or nothing toward actually doing so.
And it only took having the government try to look under their clothes or grope their unmentionables to get them to do it. Hey, it's a start.
Dusty Rhoades lives, writes, and practices law in Carthage.
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Comments
Ross 2 years, 6 months ago
I am thinking the prefect security policy would be to have everyone board the plane naked. This way security is satisfied and the passengers have a much more open environment to bond in.
On kinkier flights, passengers could have their hands and legs bound to the seat.
Now - if Israeli Airlines actually implements this I want some royalty :)
dustyrhoades 2 years, 6 months ago
Haven't flown El Al, but I've heard their security procedure involves someone actually talking to each passenger at several steps along the way and closely observing them. It seems to work, but then again, all their screened are well-educated, well-trained and well-paid, and god forbid we should ever spend the money on THAT.
dustyrhoades 2 years, 6 months ago
Sorry, that should be "all their "SCREENERS" are well-educated, well-trained and well-paid"
Zoey 2 years, 6 months ago
It seems that the government stole the main page from organized religion's ideolology. Instill FEAR, to obtain the best results !
Zoey 2 years, 6 months ago
minus the "lo". my bad
xemrac 2 years, 6 months ago
I wonder if this would be such an issue if it had been proposed on September 12, 2001.
Mark106 2 years, 6 months ago
Until you Lib's allow profiling get used to it!
dustyrhoades 2 years, 6 months ago
Oh, just stop the dark-skinned people, right Mark106? So all they have to do is find a blonde to carry the bomb. Brilliant. I'm amazed they haven't made you head of the TSA.
Bflat 2 years, 6 months ago
Complaints have already been launced against various airport "feelers" that went too far with urostomy bags and a woman was asked to remove her breast prosthesis. There are rules that apply to medical equipment and those are available online.
fugitiveguy 2 years, 6 months ago
Good column.
MikeNC 2 years, 6 months ago
DR Says..."Oh, just stop the dark-skinned people, right Mark106? So all they have to do is find a blonde to carry the bomb."
Not speaking for Mark...But, profiling does not automatically mean just stopping ALL dark skinned people. A successful program has already been established by the Israeli's; all America has to do is be legitamately concerned enough about our own welfare and not that of political correctness to appease our own far left Kooks and the rest of the world. When's the last time you saw a blonde terrorist following orders from Al-Qaeda? Mike
f8drvr 2 years, 6 months ago
I don't know for sure that she was blond but I know that she was Anglo-Saxon and that a middle eastern Muslim terrorist put his pregnant British wife on a plane at Heathrow with a "present" for his family that turned out to be a bomb. So yes; it happens. F8drvr
MikeNC 2 years, 6 months ago
F8drvr.....Sounds interesting, but I cannot find that exact story. Could you furnish a link please...Thanks, Mike
madstork 2 years, 6 months ago
Let’s look at the logic vs. the emotion of the pat down process. If you trigger the METAL detector, you are subject to the new enhanced pat down. TSA has stated they pat down to look for chemical type explosives. Think of the convoluted logic there.
Alarm for metal, but looking for chemical. Meanwhile, the successful smuggling of chemicals onboard would not trigger the metal detector, therefore a BVD full of explosives on a person could walk right through the metal detection. The whole process is flawed.
El Al uses state of the art relational database technology prior to you even getting to the airport. They do extensive 3-5way matching of names and alias’s to identify those on the no fly list. Those on the list never see a check station. Then they interview every passenger with random questions designed to expose nervousness, jitters and sweat if you are “packing”. This whole process takes 2-3 minutes per passenger. El Al has offered to pilot this process at a single US airport for analysis, but has been turned down.
Since it’s inception, the current process of tightening security after an incident has captured exactly ZERO terrorists. The terrorists have won. Profile NOW!!
MikeNC 2 years, 6 months ago
Good comments madstork. You said..." El Al has offered to pilot this process at a single US airport for analysis, but has been turned down." Political Correctness on our part at it's finest. As I mentioed above.... All America has to do is be legitamately concerned enough about our own welfare and not that of political correctness to appease our own far left Kooks and the rest of the world....Our leadership just does not have the cojones to do what actually works and at the same time not to put known innocents through an idiotic and useless process....Mike
dustyrhoades 2 years, 6 months ago
What El Al does, by the way, is not "profiling" as the law defines it. Sorry to disappoint all you racists who'd just love to see everyone darker than a Dairy Queen ice cream get shaken down while you breeze through the line feeling superior.
f8drvr 2 years, 6 months ago
Mike, this happened several years ago . There have been many episodes similar to this that do not make the news. This particular incident was reported to me/us as members of the Airline Pilots Association during regular security/safety training. As far as what El Al does for security: they interview every passenger/crew member with very well trained experts; they park their a/c away from gates at layover stations and guard them with armored and military personnel with loaded guns. They can do this because they have only 40 or so passenger aircraft and only one international airport. This would be impossible in the US.
dustyrhoades 2 years, 6 months ago
mauiman: as pointed out by other commenters, El Al screens using information and by closely watching people's behavior, not by hassling passengers because of their race or religion.
But that, I guess, is too "politically correct" for the racists and bigots who scream "Profile! Profile!" when what they really mean is 'harass anyone who looks or prays different from us."
As f8drvr (who actually seems to have a working brain) points out, the problem with implementing an Israeli-style system isn't "political correctness", it's scaling that "personal", hands-on approach up to America's much bigger system. I'm still not convinced that it can't be done. But it's not cheap.
bigD 2 years, 6 months ago
I could end the TGive protest in 30 min if I were in chage. Easy to do form two lines one for body scanners and another for pat downs. Travelers will get in the shortest line and get on with their day.
bigD 2 years, 6 months ago
I don’t often agree with President Obama but this time he is right. The enhanced security is necessary. Write it down I agree with BO and DR does not. Who would have thought?
nothingspecial 2 years, 6 months ago
Enjoyed the article, Mr. Rhoades. El Al are the recognized experts in airport security, have much less volume than our country and use some profiling, but you're right, you can't advertise that you're profiling or exclusively profile.
JER 2 years, 6 months ago
MikeNC: We're not concerned about the last time we knew of a "blonde (sic) terrorist taking orders from Al-Qaeda", we're concerned about the first time. And I see your government bashing continues with "our leadership just does not have the cojones to do what actually works". I know it goes against your background, but I prefer to have my leadership use their brains to solve problems. People with big cojones are what get us into problems. And on a similar but slightly different subject, can anyone tell me when the "family jewels" became "junk"?
MikeNC 2 years, 6 months ago
That's very interesting f8drvr. Hopefully they find a workable and less physically invasive technique here...that actually works. I would think by now, that the administration knows what and where the current threat comes from. The current technique seems to view the entire US population as the threat.
DR...Your "Sorry to disappoint all you racists who'd just love to see everyone darker than a Dairy Queen ice cream get shaken down while you breeze through the line feeling superior."...is laughable. You are the only one who says such things, and you make a habit out of doing so. You seem to enjoy using such language and then incorrectly placing YOUR words into someone else's mouth who said no such thing. I do believe you may be a latent racist who enjoys saying such trash; while inappropriately crediting someone else.
JER....Did you utter something? If you should ever have something credible, intelligent or noteworthy to say.....feel free to jump right in. Until then...You may go now :)
recondo 2 years, 6 months ago
Next time i fly ill just make alot of ohhh and ahhhs while they pat me down and say stuff like lower lowerrrrr oh yeah thats it right there baby. breaks the tension and unless free speech has been struck down theres not a darn thing anybody can do about it.
SoPinesNo1 2 years, 6 months ago
LOL recondo...
JER 2 years, 6 months ago
Thanks for your guidelines, MikeNC. I'll run all my thoughts past you before I post to be sure they meet your requirements. In the meantime, could you practice what you preach and honor us with your solution to airport security? If you have a technique that enables airport security to pick out only the actual terrorists for pat downs and screening, please let us know. In the meantime, we must proceed with the dreaded "socialist" principle of having all of us inconvenienced for the sake of all of us. It should come as no surprise that when we do come up with the perfect way to keep terrorists off airplanes, they will be using cars, trucks, boats and trains to keep us in the state of fear. When we address the REASONS for terrorism, we'll have a better chance for success.
pinehurstmom 2 years, 6 months ago
This country needs to get over this ridiculous notion of being politically correct when it comes to airline safety. There are times when this needs to be thrown away and safety at the airport is one of those times. EL-AL in Israel IS profiling, despite Dusty's comment. No, it's not based on race. It's based on behavior-just like an FBI profiler does. Are there certain races that may fit a profile based on information they have about terrorists? ABSOLUTELY. Most of our recent terrorists are Muslim, therefore they fit the profile and may be looked at more closely. This just makes sense. America needs to take the stance of Israel. If you don't like it, don't fly. Quit your complaining and shut up-they are trying to keep us safe!
dustyrhoades 2 years, 6 months ago
" No, it's not based on race. It's based on behavior-just like an FBI profiler does."
Then it's not the same type of "profiling" that the bigots are calling for. This behavioral profiling (as opposed to racial or religious profiling) is as "politically correct" as your imaginary "left" could ask for. No one would object to that.
"Are there certain races that may fit a profile based on information they have about terrorists? ABSOLUTELY. Most of our recent terrorists are Muslim, therefore they fit the profile and may be looked at more closely. "
Tim McVeigh?
And BTW, Muslim is not a "race." There are black, white, and Asian Muslims. So what you're trying to profile on is religion. That's where the bigotry comes in.
dustyrhoades 2 years, 6 months ago
Oh, and as for the geniuses here calling for extra security measures to be used against people who 'look Muslim":
http://www.nerve.com/archived/blogs/blonde-redhead-muslim-woman-sues-bar-over-conservative-red-dress
http://whybemuslim.blogspot.com/2007/12/yes-muslim-and-blond.html
http://www.trentonian.com/articles/2010/03/10/news/doc4b973f2667129077106222.txt
http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=29887
Good plan, guys! 'Cause we all know the Scary Mooslims look different from us!
madstork 2 years, 6 months ago
Now that Dusty has figured out that profiling is a behavioral tactic, perhaps he would like to elaborate as to why he made this thread a racial issue. Pretty durn good at following the liberal script. DR plays race and class card so predictably.
dustyrhoades 2 years, 6 months ago
Because when most people here are talking about "profiling" , they're clearly talking about profiling by race or religion, not behavior. See pinehurstmom's comment above.
Complaining about 'political correctness" is the tell here. When someone whines about "PC" it's pretty obvious what they're saying is "those bad liberals won't let me say something racist or bigoted" whereupon they proceed to do just that.
As far as I'm concerned anyone who gets up on the "PC" hobbyhorse is a bigot until proven otherwise.
dustyrhoades 2 years, 6 months ago
For crying out loud, not that tired old "why aren't more Muslims," etc.
Muslims have been doing this for years.
http://www.theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/muslim_voices_against_extremism_and_terrorism_2/
Since you're too lazy to use Google, I don't have much faith that you'll take the time to follow the encyclopedia of links provided to anti-extremist Muslim voices, but maybe someone else will.
Also:
http://www.freemuslims.org/
http://www.islamagainstextremism.com
http://www.unc.edu/~kurzman/terror.htm
dustyrhoades 2 years, 6 months ago
Heh. Bassman, you really don't see how hypocritical and self-contradictory that post is, do you?
I answered your question, "man." You don't need to get snippy because you didn't like the answer.
pinehurstmom 2 years, 6 months ago
Dusty, First, do not ever call me a bigot. You do not know me. The Pilot policy states, "It is possible to debate without engaging in personal attacks." Please follow the policy and let your argument stand on its merits without personally attacking me.
You are correct that I was wrong to call Muslims a race. I deeply apologize-probably due to the fact that I was upset! I lived in New York on 9/11/01 and experienced the devastation first hand. Everyone at the airport should be observed for odd or suspicious behaviors. Crazy people can come from any race or religion (ie-the Westboro Baptist Church members who protest at military funerals). All I was trying to say is that we need to be able to use whatever information is available to stop terrorism and keep us safe. If that means that our government has information about a certain group of people who are planning an attack, then they should be able to look more closely at people who fit that "profile".
I once flew on a one way ticket with my young son to attend a funeral. (My husband drove, so we were going to drive back with him.) The TSA agents pulled my son aside and questioned him about who I was and where we were going to be sure I hadn't stolen him. Sure it was a pain, but I understood why they did it. I was profiled based on the type of ticket I had and the fact that I was traveling alone with my son. I didn't throw a fit, accuse people of racism, bigotry or profiling-I was just happy to see that there were people at the airport trying to keep us safe.
dustyrhoades 2 years, 6 months ago
"First, do not ever call me a bigot. You do not know me."
Stop making bigoted posts and I won't.
"Dusty, please explain how hypocritical and self-contradictory the post is."
Figure it out for yourself. Everyone else already has.
my3cents 2 years, 6 months ago
All it takes is one person or one PIECE OF BAGGAGE to "fail" the screening and the whole plane goes down. That "one person" could be a "good 'ole boy" American man or woman in desperate need of money to pay medical bills for a family member, someone needing to put food on their table, or just another terrorist wanting to do their part in jihad against Americans!
In 1991, in less than 6 mos at my first overseas duty station, I had to help put together a memorial service for a member of my unit who had to take emergency leave during the holiday season (Dec. 21, 1988) to go to a family members funeral (don't remember exactly which, but it was his mother or father.) When flying over Lockerbie, Scotland, his plane (Pan Am Flight 103-google this!) was blown up from explosives in a suitcase evidentially NOT CHECKED very well during screening or smuggled on the plane. 270 fatalities fm the plane and innocent people in Scotland on the ground lost their lives that day. These people were someones mother/brother/sister/brother/aunt/uncle/grandmother/grandfather, etc. The bomber was released fm prison Aug. 20, 2009. Do you feel safe now?
http://www.google.com/images?q=pan+am+flight+103&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=univ&ei=zI7uTOZRhIKUB8CVwd0M&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=5&ved=0CFAQsAQwBA&biw=1024&bih=485
Maybe your life, nor your family have value to you, but if you don't want to "follow the rules" then DON'T fly. Drive, take a train, bicycle, boat, tricycle, unicycle, walk, etc.
FLYING IS NOT A RIGHT, IT'S A PRIVILEGE!