151–160 of 255 posts
Sounds like this will be less damaging for photographic film? Not that the carry on x-ray scanners were bad in the first place but the less damage potential the better.
If xray is damaging, this will be more damaging.
It's fascinating how the security theatre has gotten so big that now it basically just rolls forward under its own momentum. It's been around long enough that people accept it as normal, it serves no other purpose than to employ the unemployable and fill contractors' coffers, and it seems that no entity is able to stop or dismantle it.
It's also interesting to compare the prevailing opinion here on the TSA with that of the FAA, given that they serve the same industry. It appears that most people on HN feel that TSA regulations are pointless theater and should be weakened or eliminated, while the FAA is to be blamed for not exercising their regulatory power strongly enough (especially in light of the 737 MAX). Both agencies seem to follow a similar…
Because that's not actually the case? Only a small part of the FAA's activities is post hoc incident analysis. They do quite a bit of scientific studies, certification, licensing etc. And in fact the most recent outrage against the FAA has been the feeling that they have bene derelict in their duties in regards to the 737-MAX by adopting the problematic self-regulatory approach used by, say, the Department of Agriculture.
By contrast, the TSA (which is much smaller than the FAA and has, for all intents and purposes, only one responsibility) on has never demonstrated competency, clearly awards contracts based on cronyism (the millimeter wave system have no science supporting them), engage in absurd scope creep (checking bags on some train or bus stations, pretending to be law enforcement) and reducing security from where it was before the agency was created (e.g. "TSA locks" which have permitted an increase in theft from bags) etc.
Not at all the same.
Just get TSA pre-check. It's so freaking easy and it makes airport security checkpoints not a big deal at all.
I refuse to pay TSA for "solving" a problem that they created. More customers paying for pre-check incentivizes TSA to make the regular experience comparatively worse .
It's fascinating how the security theatre has gotten so big that now it basically just rolls forward under its own momentum. It's been around long enough that people accept it as normal, it serves no other purpose than to employ the unemployable and fill contractors' coffers, and it seems that no entity is able to stop or dismantle it.
This is a pretty cynical viewpoint but I agree. It’s clear that TSA doesn’t do much. Someone I know has acidentially brought a pocketknife through security multiple times without it being found. They keep it in my backpack as a regular item and just forgot to take it out.
https://www.schneier.com/news/archives/2008/11/the_things_he...
My wife was also wearing my son in a wrap at the time and just walked through a metal detector, no searching pockets or taking off the wrap or anything like that. Anyone trying to sneak contraband through could just carry it through with the baby knowing it won't be searched and then just leave after exchanging the contraband past security and walk out. You could easily sneak 10lbs worth of contraband through so long as it wouldn't set off the metal detector.
About a year ago I was at an airport (Boston? New Jersey?) outbound that had a sign or TV monitor saying "Great news, you no longer need to take your laptop out of your bag!" I read this sign as a TSA worker shouted every 30 seconds to the shuffling line about how everyone needed to take out all laptops, "ipads", cameras, etc. I wonder if it was a pilot program. Or more likely, just part of the constantly shifting fa…
Yeah, it's always up to the whims of the underpaid TSA agent who happens to be there that day. Back when iPads were new, I got scolded for taking it out of my bag, and scolded for leaving it in my bag, by agents at the same airport on two trips a few weeks apart.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I was flying form Twin Falls to L.A. and when I went through the metal detector I set it off. So, what to the TSA people do? They don't use the metal detector wand, they take some paper and rub it on my hands and put it in a machine to detect for explosive residue/powder...
I got pat down by an older gentleman. I jokingly said "I wish my girlfriend touched me like this" and then I was threatened with assault.
"Whoa.. whatever you just did, do it again."
or
"Can I have her give me the pat down instead?"
And you can really irritate them if you say the little spiel along with them. It rattles them.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
How do you react to petty authority figures in general? How much did it bother you when, for example, elementary school playground monitors enforced arbitrary rules capriciously? It bothered me a lot , to the extent that I still have vivid memories of it, and I also hate the TSA with every fiber of my being. So I think it might just be a personality thing.
I've been thinking about this lately because I also hate the TSA way more than is even remotely rational. Even for frequent fliers, the TSA is pretty far down on any rational list of complaints about government. I fly almost every week, but in the past 12 months I have probably spent a lot more time at city hall on a stupid residential parking permit than I did in (non-customs) airport security lines. In addition to…
Only if focusing exclusively on direct interactions.
From an ideological perspective, I don't think it's projection (your wording) to observe that in their current form they align closely with both general government authoritarianism and the exercise of federal power over the states.
From a pragmatic perspective, I think it's perfectly reasonable to be alarmed about how such security measures seem to normalize invasive government behaviors in general. Societal norms and values aren't static, so how we do things in the present can and does affect how the public views things in the future.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I got pat down by an older gentleman. I jokingly said "I wish my girlfriend touched me like this" and then I was threatened with assault.
My favorite lines to use: "Whoa.. whatever you just did, do it again." or "Can I have her give me the pat down instead?" And you can really irritate them if you say the little spiel along with them. It rattles them.
Instead, write your congresscritters. Nearly all of them fly every week, so they feel your pain.
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I've seen this sort of things in videos of police encounters, too. "I suggest you do X" or "would you mind doing X" is some officers' way of being polite, but it leads to dangerous misunderstandings. When people say no, taking the statement literally, cops see them as trying to start a fight. I'd love to see law enforcement trained in using basic, declarative sentences: "Sir, regulation X.Y.Z says you have to take yo…
Don't say "no," don't be confrontational, don't say anything. They'll be obvious about it if it's not optional.
I don't believe this is required (or even typical) in the US. Law enforcement is generally allowed to make non-mandatory requests and hope that you comply with them. A prime example is needing to explicitly invoke your right to remain silent (https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=127352...). You might also look up videos of people refusing to cooperate with the immigration checkpoints in various states along the Mexican border.
But when are we going to have the real discussion about security theater?
I guess by "theater" you mean that there's no actual purpose to taking your laptop out of the bag other than making people feel better? I have a hard time believing that's true. There's people who spend their whole career understanding airline security and (since I know nothing about it) I'm inclined to trust they aren't wasting my time.