TSA Changes Screening Based on Blog Suggestion

hhavensteincw writes "Less than a week after it launched a new blog aimed at gathering suggestions from air travelers to improve airport security processes, the Transportation Security Administration changed a practice where some screeners were requiring passengers to remove all electronics, including Blackberries, iPods, and cords from carry-on luggage. Seems the TSA didn't know this was going on, and after the question was raised on its blog, it clamped down on the practice. The TSA also provided a detailed description of their reasoning behind the liquids policy. We discussed the opening of the blog last week."

Airline travel made amusing

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm a frequent flyer, and fly around the world. By far, and I really mean by a far far way, the U.S. has the WORST experience you can ever have in an airport, and it's not just the security. I've been stuck in Dhaka Bangladesh without being told what was going on, and didn't feel as screwed as I sometimes feel in the U.S. (Full disclosure, I'm an American living in Japan, I might think twice about pulling off the same thing in the U.S. I did this in Japan.)

Long story short, I got really fed up with the way they handled my carry on, and insist on going through my personal belongings. I fly out of a local airport, and I KNOW that they know me (they see me once a week) and I know them. One day when I had time to spare, I went to the airport early on, and had sweet revenge. I had a laptop in my carry on... along with 3 rather vigorous vibrators, rigged to turn on at full speed when they opened the bag. Inside the bag I also had a homosexual porno magazine, along with a few tubes of personal lubricant, condoms, and latex gloves. Apparently dildo vibrators do not show up in that exact shape on the X-Ray machine, but the motors, wires and controllers, along with the batteries, sure do.

Security: "Can we open your bag?"
Me: "As if I have an option?"
Security: "Sir, this is security. We must open your bag for security purposes."
Me: "Like I said, I don't have a choice now do I. Just make sure you put it all back in place."

The following expression of the officer, along with his mixed reactions as to what to do next, were pure Kodak moments. I really, really would have paid good money to get a copy of the surveillance camera video!! He first tried to close it and just return it to me, then he realized that he better check it out since he was the one that said it had to be done. I think he took about 0.8 seconds of a "thorough" inspection, then closed the bag. However, that wouldn't turn the dildos off, and they were still buzzing away, quite audibly. I gave him the "turn them off. All of them." look, and he fumbled again attempting to get all 3 turned off. Next Monday I fly out again. I can't wait to see what they'll do this time.

Re:Liquids

[Dracos]

The given reasons (August 2006 Heathrow plot) for the liquids restrictions are bullshit. The real reasons are highly classified.

Re:No win situation

[Silver Sloth]

Surprisngly no. I'm a Brit and my first wife was an American. When her parents wanted to visit my mother in law wasn't keen on the transatlantic flight and, as I'd made the trip in the QE2 back in 1959, I suggested looking at going by boat. To my surprise there was nothing that suited. Air travel has completely killed the transatlantic pasenger trade. Ok, so I know that someone will reply to this with a link to 'EasyBoat' or whatever with regular sailings bu when my father in law looked back in 1989 he couldn't find anything.

Re:Mountain moving.

[aurispector]

I found the blog post to be fairly persuasive. Sure, I could poke a few holes in it, but the last time I flew, the TSA folks were efficient and courteous despite being obviously stressed. A long-looking screening line turned out to be less than 10 min delay - not much worse than before 9/11. The screeners are PEOPLE - some are good, some are bad, most all will respond positively to cooperation that makes their job easier. I laugh every time I hear about some arrogant asshole getting hassled mainly because he was acting like an arrogant asshole.

Hell, The screeners at Glasgow airport were genuinely upset having to take a liter of top shelf scotch I had stupidly shoved into my carryon.

The blog is a good thing - didnt know the bit about vapor concentration in the baggies. People should save their complaints for things that really matter.

Re:Problem is with hijacking, not bombing.

[aembleton]

If hijacking is the real threat, then the cockpit is what needs to be secured. Have it lock automatically prior to boarding, and have it unlock automatically after the plane is emptied

Agreed. Or, for new aircraft remove the door and give the cockpit its own entrance from the outside, so that there is no way of going in without having to get outside first.

Re:Liquids and a /. car analogy.

[lucifuge31337]

Bacardi 151. Or anything else that actually has a flame arrestor on the bottle. You need little more than to take off the flame arrestor and/or pour it into something with more surface area than the next of the bottle and the vapors will ignite with matches or a standard lighter.

Re:Didn't know?

[Anonymous Coward]

I just came through London Heathrow last week. Shoes stayed on and laptops stayed in the bags. Also, I did not pull out my liquids - not sure if I made a mistake there or it was OK. They definitely told us to keep the laptops in the bag and shoes on. However, you were more likely to get pulled aside and frisked/searched at random there.