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TSA's gun policy: Confiscate it, Instagram it

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Re: TSA's gun policy: Confiscate it, Instagram it

#61

Post by jlgreco »

freehunter wrote: post #59
staunch wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Literally millions of Americans carry guns legally as part of their everyday routine. It's not surprising that dozens of them a week forget that they have it on them when they go to the airport.

Funny that they bring their toothbrush and remember that the white zone is for loading and unloading of passengers only, but they miss all the signs saying "Please don't bring a loaded gun through airport security".

Yeah, that is funny. People are funny. This shouldn't be a news flash.

Re: TSA's gun policy: Confiscate it, Instagram it

#62

Post by DanBC »

bathat wrote: post #54
DanBC wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> This would be a very easy statistic to publish, too (only 10% of the people we stopped were even licensed to carry a handgun!) As I understand it TSA only do the finding of the guns and it's local law enforcement who does the rest. So TSA have no idea about who's allowed to carry the weapon or not. I agree that these are just careless or forgetful people (or perhaps people making a point about their right to etc et…

> As I understand it TSA only do the finding of the guns and it's local law enforcement who does the rest. So TSA have no idea about who's allowed to carry the weapon or not. I have no idea if this is true, but let's assume it is. So what? How does that prevent TSA's Office of Public Relations from following up with law enforcement after the fact? Is there some law of which I'm unaware that prevents the TSA from aski…

Put like that there's nothing stopping them. But I was replying to a comment saying that it would be a very easy statistic to publish.

Co-ordinating with a variety of different law enforcement departments, in different states, with different laws, makes is a bit less easy.

> I have no idea if this is true, but let's assume it is.

It's something that TSA claim. I posted the URL and a quote earlier in the thread. Here it is again. (http://blog.tsa.gov/2013/07/tsa-week-in-review-30-firearms.h...)

> Just because we find a prohibited item on an individual does not mean they had bad intentions, that's for the law enforcement officer to decide. In many cases, people simply forgot they had these items.

Re: TSA's gun policy: Confiscate it, Instagram it

#63

Post by jlgreco »

freehunter wrote: post #57
nthj wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sure, happy to be pedantic. I meant "regular, non-malicious, normally law-abiding citizens, obviously in violation of the law this time, but not intentionally, because they got stressed out trying to make their flight on time and overlooked a (admittedly very serious) item in their bag." There are so many laws on the books these days I'm sure even my Grandma could be locked up for a couple decades.

I actually wasn't trying to be overly pedantic. Bringing a loaded weapon into an airport, a school, a courthouse, etc is going above and beyond "whoops". I could overlook running through a four-way yield intersection. I could overlook tossing my lit cigarette out the window when I'm finished with it. I could overlook parking too close to a stop sign. 999,999 times out of a million, nothing will go wrong. But that one…

These people are not overlooked, they are fined up to several thousand dollars. Without mens rea or any realized harm (potential? sure, but no realized), that is plenty.

Re: TSA's gun policy: Confiscate it, Instagram it

#64

Post by staunch »

freehunter wrote: post #59
staunch wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Literally millions of Americans carry guns legally as part of their everyday routine. It's not surprising that dozens of them a week forget that they have it on them when they go to the airport.

Funny that they bring their toothbrush and remember that the white zone is for loading and unloading of passengers only, but they miss all the signs saying "Please don't bring a loaded gun through airport security".

You really think less people forget their toothbrush?

Re: TSA's gun policy: Confiscate it, Instagram it

#65

Post by hga »

jlgreco wrote: post #60
freehunter wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A pocket knife tends not to have the chance that it could plunge itself into someone's heart from a distance. Hurting someone with a knife is a pretty active offense, especially a pocket knife. Guns can and do go off without a human intentionally pulling the trigger.

My point is that people accidentally forget to not bring / forget to bring things that are vitally important with no malicious intent. I've forgotten to bring my wallet/keys with me when I leave my place, I've forgotten to wear my glasses before driving somewhere, I've forgotten to turn on my headlights while driving (in a well lit city, to my credit). People accidentally carry pocket knives through metal detectors.…

Or forget them in the restroom, try e.g. this search https://www.google.com/search?q=cop+restroom+or+bathroom+lea..., it happens quite frequently.

Re: TSA's gun policy: Confiscate it, Instagram it

#66

Post by freehunter »

jlgreco wrote: post #60
freehunter wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A pocket knife tends not to have the chance that it could plunge itself into someone's heart from a distance. Hurting someone with a knife is a pretty active offense, especially a pocket knife. Guns can and do go off without a human intentionally pulling the trigger.

My point is that people accidentally forget to not bring / forget to bring things that are vitally important with no malicious intent. I've forgotten to bring my wallet/keys with me when I leave my place, I've forgotten to wear my glasses before driving somewhere, I've forgotten to turn on my headlights while driving (in a well lit city, to my credit). People accidentally carry pocket knives through metal detectors.…

I know what you were saying. I'm claiming that it's irrelevant. After enough driving on the highway, I can forget that the speed limit is 55mph and stop signs still exist. That doesn't mean that you can excuse me blowing through a four way stop at 70mph and hitting another car just because I didn't have malicious intent.

My point is, guns are a bit more dangerous than knives, and the responsibility of the holder should reflect that.

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