Comments on: “What kind of pie is that?” the TSA agent demanded

By: Jeremiah Johnson

Jeremiah Johnson — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 16:48:00 +0000

I realize that the TSA has a job to do but sometimes they get a little ridiculous. I think the people we put in the TSA as security check personnel have to have some degree of common sense which seems to be greatly lacking in the TSA.

By: not a hope in hell

not a hope in hell — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 21:31:34 +0000

TSA is ridiculous no doubt, but organic materials all show up same colour on many xray machines, thus making technicians rely on consistency and density to determine threat level.

IE plastique can look similar to pie filling on a organic/on-organic filter scrren image

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 02:23:00 +0000

The Viagra TSA Experiment | ZUG http://bit.ly/qGLAOI

By: Kevin M

Kevin M — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 06:15:44 +0000

Darlene, first, try some punctuation, capitalization, and
attention to spelling. Your argument *might* (and I stress *might*)
have more credence then. Actually, no, it wouldn’t. No one is
suggesting that there be no security screening whatsoever – so your
“point” is irrelevant. What everyone is suggesting is that not only
is the security screening we are getting intrusive and expensive,
it’s also failing to work. Why should we spend tens or hundreds of
billions of collars on “security” that makes people throw away a
sealed package of fruit cocktail, but allows a pair of knitting
needles through? We aren’t allowed to carry a plastic dinner knife
through security, but we can pick one up at any of the food court
restaurants on the other side. And the latest outrage – forcing
people to choose between a groping and an invasive body scan that
reveals the naked body – is especially infuriating as there already
exists technology – in use in other countries – that can do the
body scans and only display the “problem areas” detected,
superimposed over a generic human form. Imagine our surprise and
shock (ha!) to learn that the intrusive machines were being pushed
for by a host of former government officials turned lobbyists -
former DHS secretary Chertoff, former Sen. Al D’Amato (R-NY);
former TSA administrator Chad Wolf (who is a former aide to Sen.
Kay Bailey Hutchinson, R-TX, who sits on the Transportation and
Defense subcommittees of the Appropriations Committee; and others.
The kicker, of course, is that even the GAO says the machines can’t
necessarily detect even the threats they are SUPPOSED to be good
at; and they’re useless at detecting anything in a body cavity. So,
Darlene, if you’re all for these, prepare for the next step,
whereby you will step behind a screen (hopefully), drop your pants,
and allow a TSA agent to probe your rectal and vaginal cavities to
make sure you don’t have anything hidden there. I’m sure you’ll be
all for that as well, right?

By: darlene

darlene — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 17:26:36 +0000

let me put it this way everybody that thinks tsa measures are over the top can all get on a plane w/ no security and hope for the best that the terrorists have to offer. I’ll get in the long line, let them scan me and all my belongings and be happy to know that my chances are 1000 times better of getting there. moaning and complaining get you nothing, try flying El al( hope thats right) now thats security. suck it up people. there has got to be a good side to this, hey thats right your alive after your flight.

By: Dan

Dan — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 19:22:14 +0000

At JFK, they made me throw away a container of my grandma’s
rice pudding.

By: Moda

Moda — Thu, 30 Dec 2010 07:43:04 +0000

It comes by way of Jessica Bruder, a writer for the Portland Oregonian who flew to Illinois over the Thanksgiving holiday and almost had her apple pie confiscated by a federal screener…

By: Bobbo

Bobbo — Sun, 28 Nov 2010 06:08:27 +0000

It seems that requiring every passenger to be given the once over by an explosive sniffing dog would be more efficient, definitely less invasive, and certainly more pleasant to deal with than a TSA employee. The savings taxpayers would see would be astronomical, as last I checked, the cost of dog food paled in comparison to multimillion dollar irradiation machines, salaries of TSA bureaucrats, and the pittances that are doled out the vastly undertrained TSA “officers” that are charged with identifying and detaining a threatening or suspicous person until someone that actually has police powers arrives to take over. While dogs are typically used in a general sweep of airports, they would be just as, if not more effective, than all the “security screening” if used in a more specific sense.
Personally, I would feel much safer knowing that horribly overworked, and vastly underpaid people were not in charge of keeping terrorist threats off the airplanes. I would put my faith in the 220 million scent receptors in a dogs nose any day of the week before a TSA employee to ensure my safety.

By: Frazzled Mom

Frazzled Mom — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 20:45:04 +0000

@ Marco

You seem to forget that even in the case of the alleged shoe bomber or underpants bomber, The Stupid A——- STILL didn’t do anything. It was the other passengers and flight attendants who reacted. Nobody stopped them from boarding. Also in the case of the underpants bomber, the flight originated in AMSTERDAM, remember? As far as I know, the Netherlands is NOT a US state, The Stupid A——- have no jurisdiction there.

TSA exists only for one reason. To fraudulently divert billions of dollars in tax money directly into the pockets of corrupt private contractors while providing nothing more than the ILLUSION of security. They couldn’t pour piss out of a boot if there were instructions written on the side. They’re nothing but overpaid shopping mall security guards, and probably couldn’t even handle that job.

BTW, I do take Amtrak, because I’m usually not in that big a hurry, but sometimes you can’t avoid the airlines, as much as they suck.

By: Marco

Marco — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 19:37:35 +0000

Everyone complains about the TSA until someone like a shoebomber or the underwear bomber shows up. Then we complain that they aren’t doing enough!
Go with the flow! What’s a little inconvenience for a safe flight.

There’s always Amtrack :)

By: Ituri

Ituri — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 17:14:50 +0000

I just flew from San Diego to Indy, then back again to San Diego. While I had no exploding pies, I did have a fresh experience with the body scanners, which they installed in Indianapolis before last Christmas.

-I flew months before last Christmas, walked through the metal detector and went through “normal” security. (NO pat-down!)
-I flew days after the Christmas incident in 09, Indianapolis now had the body scanners, and was lightly patted down when I refused to go through it. (They were still new, many people refused so an easy pat-down as they were introduced?)
-I flew yesterday, and asked to go through the “normal” screening. Indianapolis nearly gave me my yearly Pap Smear since I refused to go through the body scanner. (No incident days before as with Christmas, yet an insanely thorough pat down?)

It seems clear to me that, at least at Indianapolis, they seem to want to make the “normal” screening so invasive that the people feel no other choice but to go through the body scanners. What choice do people have then? Do I give up flying into/out of Indianapolis, since I’ve not had this problem at other airports? When other airports join the “make it as invasive as possible” club, what then?

I seriously feel there is no recourse for the average flier here… I don’t fly for business, but I MUST fly, as I live 2,000 miles from my family for military duty reasons. Flying is no longer an option for many nowadays, so what do we do when we don’t want to be pumped for milk by the TSA? This sort of thing makes a pie issue seem small, even for how absurd that still is…

By: Thomas Wells

Thomas Wells — Fri, 28 May 2010 16:04:59 +0000

What about dentures? What if granny goes for the jugular? Even stark naked, there are numerous ways to kill somebody. Will we have to rope passengers to their seats, with a guard on each of them to achieve security? And remember-no pie fights.

By: Christian

Christian — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 23:18:22 +0000

I was told by a TSA agent that I could not bring the stone that I had picked up at the beach as a souvenir in my hand luggage. I could only throw it away or check it in because it could be used as a weapon in the aircraft. The stone was about the size, shape and weight of a hamburger patty. In the same hand luggage I had my camera with tele zoom lens on, weighing about 2 and a half lbs. Yes, I agree, with a lot of phantasy and force even a stone from the beach can be use as a weapon, but which thing could not be used as a weapon, even with a pillow or with headphones you can suffocate somebody.

By: Bryan

Bryan — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 14:48:48 +0000

This is the same government that can’t run the post office, can’t run home security, and now they want to run our health care…we are in big, big trouble…

By: MarcoN

MarcoN — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 15:33:38 +0000

After reading the stories above about TSA and having dealt first hand with TSA, FEMA and three other government agencies, all I can say is, personnel at all of them have competency “issues”. I have lost all faith in the federal government managing anything effectively, much less efficiently. Perhaps George Will was right when he said that the last truly successful government program was WWII.