This is an old report, but the title is always true.

We all know the basic readout on the TSA: No one good, decent, honest, competent, moral, ethical or intelligent has ever been employed at the TSA in any capacity whatsoever.

And we haven’t had much to say about them since they walked a bunch of imams affiliated with the Moslem Brotherhood and other pro-terrorist groups through their procedures back in August.

You know what that means, right? It’s time to clear the TSA spindle.

Item: Texas Group Grope

Here’s a story from DFW, where mom of a special-needs kid, Jennifer Wilson, posted, as reported in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram:

We have been through hell this morning. They detained Aaron for well over an hour at DFW. (And deliberately kept us from our flight… we are now on an alternate) We were treated like dogs because I requested they attempt to screen him in other ways per TSA rules. He has SPD and I didn’t want my child given a pat down like this. Let me make something else crystal clear. He set off NO alarms….

I wish I had taped the entire interchange because it was horrifying. Somehow these power tripping TSA agents who are traumatizing children and doing whatever they feel like without any cause, need to be reined in.

Good luck with that. They’re untouchable, and you must not Question Their Authoritah.

Mrs Wilson said she was held for “over and hour” so the TSA group could grope her kid. The TSA’s six-figure PR officials, as competent as the rest of the agency, countered with “35 minutes.” The spokesman later admitted that was a lie, but now wants the public to believe “45 minutes.”

In case you ever wondered what happened to Joe Isuzu, the answer seems evident.

Item, 2016: Gross Mismanagement

In front of Congress last year, TSA workers complained about “gross mismanagement.” And they said that “more turnover is needed.” Since then, the TSA has turned over whistleblowers, not the mismanagers.

Item 2016: Over $70 Billion had been wasted on the TSA by this time last year, including $1B on the failed “Behavioral Detection Officer” program. This doesn’t cost the economic cost of the time Americans waste waiting on TSA, estimated in the same article as an additional $8 Billion. More people have actually died driving to avoid the TSA gropers than died on 9/11, given the greater per-mile death hazard of driving over flying.

Item Aug 16: TSA Cracks Down on Batarangs

Only the payroll patriots of the TSA can fight the fans of the masked man who fights crime. Or something.

The TSA has priorities, and one of them is making sure that the attendees of comic conventions don’t get their novelties home. TSA’s six-figure overpaid PR flacks:

Passengers are not allowed to bring anything on a plane that resembles a weapon, so anything like a boomerang or anything like that would not be permitted in the airplane cabin.

And

Every year during Comic-Con International, our officers have issues with the various items that people purchase and then either carry-on or place in their checked bags. These come in the form of figurines, costume items (including replica and real weapons) and other mementos that generally alarm our checkpoint and checked baggage screening systems and result in a bag check.

In other words, “We’re too stupid to tell toys from weapons.”

But maybe they’re on to something. Right around the same time, some nutball threw one at a police cruiser. Of course, that was in ever-weird Seattle. The cruiser, as you might expect for a steel thing that had a toy thrown at it, was unharmed.

Lord love a duck.

Item, Feb 2017: “Wave of Security Lapses”

A series of reports on leaked security documents from Stewart International (a reliever airport northwest of New York City) demonstrate both TSA overreach (on an airport that sees only occasional flights) and that TSA’s overreach vastly exceeds its grasp. One of the things it dropped the ball on was checking pax against the no-fly list.

Item, Feb 2017: TSA’s Legacy of Failure

As TSA waits for a new political-appointee director, a news story recounts the agency’s immediate history: nothing but a litany of failures and misconduct, just that month:

  • On Monday, 11 people walked through a security lane at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport without being screened;
  • Last week, TSA employees were indicted for smuggling cocaine from Puerto Rico
  • Earlier this month, a House Homeland Security Committee report indicated the TSA failed to properly vet and screen potential employees, uncovering examples of “insider threats” within U.S. airports.

If you really want to see the entitled incompetence of TSA employees, read the comments to that story where one of them speaks up to prove that no one good, decent, honest, competent, moral, ethical or intelligent has ever been employed at the TSA in any capacity whatsoever.

Shorts (clearing a large spindle)

  • Item Apr 16: There was the $50k spent on an app that alternately points “left” and “right,” for mouth-breathing TSA drones who can’t do that on their own.
  • Item Apr 16: Cutbacks in personnel add to pointless delays… at Congressional budget-writing time.  Indeed, a month later, then-TSA supremo Peter Neffinger was holding passengers hostage in TSA lines for more money.
  • Item Jun 16: TSA hired a wanted Somali war criminal as a guard. At Dulles International. Really. And they knew it when they hired him! (He’s one of those Somali refugees we’re supposed to welcome).
  • Item Aug 16: TSA banned a kid from flying because he had a cardiac pacemaker. A nine-year-old kid! They claimed to his distraught family that they’d caught 9-year-old terrorists with bombs in their pacemakers. (In actual fact, TSA has never caught a terrorist or bomber, juvenile or otherwise, in over 15 years of operation, but they do let 95% of dummy test weapons through).
  • Item Mar 17: TSA is finding record levels of guns in checked bags. That’s not too surprising, with more people than ever carrying guns, and probably a fixed percentage of them forgetting. So far, they’ve never found a gun that was a hijack attempt, or anything but an owner’s carelessness.

Conclusion: is it time to disband this thing yet?

This entry was posted in Don’t be THAT guy, Lord Love a Duck, Phonies and Assclowns on by Hognose.

About Hognose

Former Special Forces 11B2S, later 18B, weapons man. (Also served in intelligence and operations jobs in SF).

17 thoughts on “The TSA Excels Again.. at Power Tripping

Aesop

The title of that report was and is in error.

TSA Threatens The Security Of The Flying Public

FIFY.

One can only wonder when Reps. Gowdy, Chaffetz, and Issa will turn their trademark incisive inquisitive gazes and official interest at the entire agency. Both C-SPAN and Comedy Central will be on high alert if they ever do.

Jim Scrummy

“Conclusion: is it time to disband this thing yet?” We are well past that sell by/use by date on that piece of excrement. But, as a realist living in the evirons of Rome on the Potomac, nothing will be done.

Mike_C

Not surprised about the wanted Somali being hired at Dulles. I usually fly through Reagan National for all my Sodom-on-the-Potomac needs but recently went through Dulles for schedule issues and was frankly shocked, even given my LOW expectations of TSA. About half the Dulles TSA were MENA types (and most of the remainder from our own “vibrant inner city” demographic). The only place I’ve seen more headscarves on female screeners was in DTW the months right after 9/11 (when they hired loads of new people, many of whom were from Dearborn, MI — but at least those were American born, spoke fluent English, had good manners, and were reasonably efficient).

Back to Dulles. In contrast to the usual 10-20% standing around uselessly (I mean not even pretending to work, we’re not getting into whether they have any REAL value), about 20-35% were clearly loafing around, loudly joking and calling to each other and to in-line passengers of their own demographic. Yes, you too can experience (the theme-park version of) a third-world shithole without needing to have a passport. Sort of like going “on African safari” at Disneyworld. There was very obvious and in-your-face differential treatment of passengers by most of the TSA agents. Being brown got you better treatment. Wearing “Islamic” clothing got you better treatment. Being fat seemed to help too (though that was confounded by co-linearity with the first two conditions). Being white, trim and well dressed was not a predictor of civil treatment but rather the opposite.

And that’s a fairly disinterested observation. I’m neither brown, nor of MENA extraction, nor an adherent of the Religion of Peace (TM, and thanks for that misnomer “W” you f*cking idiot), but apart from having a normal-range BMI, nor am I white, nor well-dressed as a rule. (Unless I’m heading straight to a meeting from the airport, you should think of a hobo who’s been dumpster diving behind the local REI. “Hey, an Arc’teryx jacket, score!”) So I didn’t get an extra ration of attitude and authoriteh, but I didn’t get the big toothy grins and winks and jokes either. Interestingly, two young TSA men who looked very squared away, one black and one white, were doing their jobs with rather grim focused intensity, not interacting with their “colleagues” except when necessary. Must be hellish for them.

Docduracoat

The article linked on the confiscated guns said that 68 loaded guns were found with 21 having a round in the chamber

( no mention of safety, if present, on or off)

As I do the math, 21 divided by 68 times 100 = 31% of irresponsible gun owners carry loaded chamber

That means that 69% of irresponsible gun owners carry ” Israeli Style” with an empty chamber

I am in with the majority by carrying Israeli style!

You should see all the hate I get on concealed carry blogs when I admit that fact

Hognose Post author

Fact of the matter is, there is usually time to get your gun out and make it ready, in the real world. In cases where there is a gun pointed at you, you need a distraction, because the odds are against anyone trying to draw on a drawn gun. Hollywood and pistol-shooting sports notwithstanding.

I carry SA/DA hammer down on a loaded chamber, safety (if present) off, or old-school striker fired, locked and loaded. I tried Glock “safe action” and never warmed up to it.

Even when the Army mandated “Israeli Carry” over worry about NDs we ignored that and all carried hammer down on a loaded M9, before that usually hammer down on a 1911, requiring a manual cock to open fire. Never had a pistol ND, none of us.

whomever

“before that usually hammer down on a 1911”

I always thought that was a no-no. With the exception of Series 80 and recent Kimbers, isn’t that not-drop-safe?

Is my understanding wrong, or did you just think the drop risk was smaller than the empty chamber risk (or hassled for cocked and locked risk)?

Bill Robbins

Israeli style, 3 ways:

1. No tie, open collar

2. Chopped salad of tomatoes & cucumbers, minimal dressing

3. How to carry among fellow Jewish Israelis

John M.

I’m personally not confident that I’m going to have two hands available to get my pistol into the fight. I’m also confident that my holsters work well to keep things out of my trigger guard. So I carry with a round chambered. But I understand the appeal of Israeli carry.

-John M.

Bill Robbins

In my view (non-military, non-LEO, but particularly interested in this topic), the Israeli style of carry is a result of the uniquely Israeli philosophy of “havlagah” (Hebrew), or restraint, which grew out of pre-IDF, pre-state security doctrine. The goal is to avoid harm to the innocent and to avoid public (geopolitical) condemnation. Carrying with an empty chamber may help to avoid harm to the innocent, as well as to avoid putting the potential shooter (think of an IDF soldier operating among a mixed crowd of potentially hostile male adults, women (who may or not pose a threat), and children-ditto) in a murky legal situation and a potentially damaging public relations situation.

What I am saying is that “Israeli carry” has some justifications that may be unique to Israel’s security situation, and unique to IDF doctrine. Israeli carry may not be “better;” just different.

John M.

I have heard that it grew out of early Israel’s lack of standard sidearms. The IDF had to run whatever they got their hands on, and carrying empty chamber meant that everyone could train to one manual of arms regardless of the model of pistol they wound up carrying: Draw, rack, fire.

-John M. (expert on some things, but not this)

Tom Stone

The purpose of the TSA is to condition the populace to accept abuse.

Look at what they do and what the outcome is.

Does anyone with two brain cells believe it’s about security?

I could say the same thing about the “War on drugs”.

Cui Bono?, always a worthwhile question in regard to Government policies.

Cadre

I thought the same thing a few years back, after watching them confiscate hygiene items and make up from old ladies. Voice in my head: “You vill not neet thees vere you are goink.”

Tub Stacking Aboriginals.

Ratus

Yes it is way past due. I think it should be disestablished with a back date of November 19, 2001 with all monies returned.

Mondonico

The March 17 item should say that the guns were found in carry-on bags, not checked bags, no?

Haxo Angmark

the TSA is neither better or worse than any other current gubmint bureacracy. The entire Zionist Occupation Gubmint must be destroyed, liquidated, killed. And, when it/they runs out of debt to buy consent, it is going to be.

Alan S

Well said!