tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post1859500616360677232..comments2010-11-15T18:33:44.763-05:00bredahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00216098318849287384noreply@blogger.comBlogger41125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-32154621009869077802010-11-15T18:33:44.763-05:002010-11-15T18:33:44.763-05:00I am an amputee and have metal in femurs, spine, shoulders, and remaining ankle foot. My thought is maybe the body scanner will make the patdown unnescessary? That would be nice. THe two handed patdown from the past two weeks is much more intrusive and does &quot;touch one&#39;s junk&quot;. I already have to endure a cast scanner that is a small scope that takes 14 shots of my prosthesis each time I fly. It is so weak it cannot seen through the carbon-fiber of the socket. Maybe it will be a little better for those of us enduring the patdown each time.stossahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15377788850606547226noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-75181366119831060872009-05-23T02:33:27.295-04:002009-05-23T02:33:27.295-04:00It's not about a "right" to travel, it's about the fact that we're supposed to have a presumption of innocence until proven guilty in this country that has been mostly whittled away. There should never be that kind of inspection of a free citizen without clear an convincing evidence that they pose a threat.jaegan438http://jaegan438.livejournal.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-17164147632591408882009-05-21T14:00:51.559-04:002009-05-21T14:00:51.559-04:00So you waited until AFTER you'd set off the monitor several times before pointing out your prosthesis? And you're surprised that they treated you like you were up to something?<br /><br />I can't begin to imagine how embarrassing having a prosthetic leg is in certain circumstances, and I'm not going to pretend to try. However, it does make you different, and that means that there are things you're just going to have to do in order to be like everyone else in some situations. Things like declaring that you have a body part made partially of metal before going through a metal detector can only make things easier on you.Squeaky Wheelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01119645829480810524noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-34232280947343105122009-05-19T15:57:00.000-04:002009-05-19T15:57:00.000-04:00I hate flying because of the "screening" process. I've actually had TSA folks ask me to take my leg OFF and WALK thru the thing again. I was like, uh, what? My wife just about got arreseted after she heard that, she went off on them for a bit. Had to be escorted out of the area by the police and wait for me on the other side. A fiesty one, I married her!<br /><br />Hope you had a great time here in the desert.Chris H. in Phx.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-80086674157679320222009-05-19T14:18:00.000-04:002009-05-19T14:18:00.000-04:00I think a few people misunderstood tanksoldier's comment about constitutional right to air travel. I would say it a bit differently, each of us have a right to go get a pilot's license (assuming we can pass a reasonable test of course) and fly ourselves somewhere. <br /><br />I feel we should not have the right to demand that someone else (a commercial airline for example) fly us somewhere. If they choose to not have us as a passenger, I feel that is their right. If you can't fit in one seat, they should be able to make you pay for as many seats as you fill. <br /><br />Demanding that someone else must do something for you rubs me the wrong way. Of course, I also think taxi drivers have the right to refuse customers when they feel threatened as well.Fahnzienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-81691696465275614522009-05-19T09:30:00.000-04:002009-05-19T09:30:00.000-04:00I know several years ago the <A HREF="http://blog.joehuffman.org/2005/05/17/MyCommentsOnAirplaneSecurityGetWiderAttention.aspx" REL="nofollow">explosives sniffers weren't picking up explosives that I had made</A>. And I wasn't even trying to clean up my bags before the TSA got their hands on them. In some cases I deliberately "salted" the bags that were later tested. No hits.Joe Huffmanhttp://blog.joehuffman.org/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-15038172216463482052009-05-19T07:15:00.000-04:002009-05-19T07:15:00.000-04:00Folks... the swabs test for EXPLOSIVES... and smokeless powder is NOT an explosive. Now, if you'd been out shooting black powder, I suspect that you'd get a positive, since BP is considered an explosive.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-8461504888044942132009-05-18T23:10:00.000-04:002009-05-18T23:10:00.000-04:00Brenda I was just wondering if after all this time reading your blog I missed the fact that you have a prosthesis? cuz i was just wondering if has ever been bought up before?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-21998634267158169032009-05-18T12:53:00.000-04:002009-05-18T12:53:00.000-04:00When they were done - did you at least remove the prothesis and then pound them to the ground with it ? - Bunch of Jackasses.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-75274261085970433042009-05-18T11:08:00.000-04:002009-05-18T11:08:00.000-04:00Remember, the terr-ists hate us because we're free, so give up more of your freedoms.Natenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-87142848145268376312009-05-17T13:35:00.000-04:002009-05-17T13:35:00.000-04:00Breda, is sounds like the only thing that they actually did wrong was not offering you a private screening, as soon as you said "prosthetic." <br /><br />It is preferred if you say things like that before entering the walk-through, but we can't make you, and understand that some folks are reluctant to mention things like that. Which is why they're supposed to say "Would you like a private screening?" <br /><br />And Joe Foss was not traveling to the NRA Convention with his CMH, he was traveling to WEST POINT--that was the incident that made me decide to take this sorry, thankless job, to keep things like this from happening, after retiring from the military I had no interest at all working for the government anymore. <br /><br />Otherwise, I agree that federalizing security down tot the checkpoint level was a mistake, although moving oversight responsibility for security from the FAA, which was also <I>required</I> to "encourage commercial aviation" was a good idea.<br /><br />You might be interested to know that the TSA has tried to make screening even less invasive, but the airline industry has a cow every time, especially the stewardesses union. And the airlines in this country are not interested in being responsible for screening; after all, they were responsible for screening pre-9/11, and look where that got us...<br /><br />The US government will never go "whole hog" Israeli, since it is based on ethnicity, religion, and national origin. (Well, President Unicorn could probably get Con-gress to make the necessary changes to the relevant laws to allow profiling if anyone, but I don't see that happening.)<br /><br />And as I tell my friend Dave Workman whenever he harasses me over my job and says "We should be able to carry on board!", well, that doesn't prevent bombs in baggage, which is trivial compared to the way that Chicago and New York, among other places, would react to the idea of all those subjects walking around armed. (Yes, I know it would reduce crime. Don't tell me, tell Con-gress.)<br /><br />Gun Nut in the TSAAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-63619670776777999582009-05-17T12:25:00.000-04:002009-05-17T12:25:00.000-04:00I was surprised, I flew in 2002 &amp; it was no fun at all.<br />Left Dayton Thursday,via Denver to Phoenix, left Phoenix on Friday via Denver to SLC, left SLC via Denver to Dayton on Saturday, nary a problem, I did expect a hassle, but there were none. I didn&#39;t take a firearm with so many plane rides in such a short period of time, but did have my blades, Kuboton etc in my checked luggage.<br />Sorry to hear you had the hasslesThe Duckhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15373439094429321148noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-15274811601748818012009-05-17T04:34:00.000-04:002009-05-17T04:34:00.000-04:00Well, breda, I am sorry you had to go through that experience. I for one will never fly and if more people would just quit flying then maybe this s.h.i.t. could be stopped. Old Tanksoldier one of these days your children will turn you in and that should be ok with you since the .gov will mandate it.tjbbpgobIIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12456342500825653657noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-59720784142422264732009-05-16T21:36:00.000-04:002009-05-16T21:36:00.000-04:00Don't feel bad. They wanded #2 Son down. 4 years old.<br /><br />Security kabuki.Borepatchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05029434172945099693noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-8781470279368540362009-05-16T20:13:00.000-04:002009-05-16T20:13:00.000-04:00Welcome to my world... sigh... At least enjoy Phoenix!Old NFOhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16404197287935017147noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-51849504793782693852009-05-16T17:08:00.000-04:002009-05-16T17:08:00.000-04:00Santa Maria!<br /><br />T.S.A. wonks,<br /><br />What a bunch of Richard Craniums!!!!!!<br /><br />(Hope that is polite enough, it was the best I could do)Michael W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/09400333370979393240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-86262881403182228972009-05-16T14:28:00.000-04:002009-05-16T14:28:00.000-04:00I always wondered why we didn't just adopt the Israeli model, which (from what I've heard/read of it) uses focused questions, behavior analysis and, yes, profiling to screen out potential attackers. Of course, it would require that the people doing the screening actually have more than a 10th-grade education. <br /><br />FWIW, I flew cross-country and back a couple months ago and didn't have any problems. Then again, when my parents were on their honeymoon (1982) they specifically told the screener about my dad's leg brace and he had to walk through anyway.Joannahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10952078709114872197noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-91887817613303766922009-05-16T13:49:00.000-04:002009-05-16T13:49:00.000-04:00Not surprised. I travel with a guy who has some steel screws in his leg and he always tells security ahead of time. <br /><br />I suspect, as the one commenter noted, it would have been a less intrusive experience if you gave them a heads up beforehand. <br /><br />As to the others, I often time just fly with a simple duffle bag carryon - my hunting/range bag. <br /><br />Its been covered in range residue, but has never set anything off (and I travel a hell of a lot - it seems like once a week at least).Countertophttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01059405469013648135noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-39092765567822737912009-05-16T13:10:00.000-04:002009-05-16T13:10:00.000-04:00"However a prosthetic limb is a nice vehicle for implantimg explosives."<br /><br />Look, <A HREF="http://blog.joehuffman.org/2007/08/01/WhatTSAReallyStandsFor.aspx" REL="nofollow">I could blow up a plane with a couple cups of flour, a balloon, and a match</A> (watch the video). And I wouldn't even have to be on the plane when it went off. Do you think you can keep that off a plane without getting false positives for anyone that spent some time in the kitchen in the last few hours?<br /><br />You can punch through two inches of steel with a half ounce of explosives. I can hide that much explosives in my mouth if I didn't didn't want to use some other body cavity.<br /><br />You cannot search people to a sufficient extent that they cannot find a way to bring the plane down while in flight. The only way you can make the plane safe is to strip the passengers completely naked and render them unconscious for the flight. And I'm thinking I could still bring the plane down if I really wanted to.<br /><br />The entire purpose of TSA is to make some people <EM>feel</EM> safer. And the higher up in the organization know that. You can tell from <A HREF="http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2007/07/conversation_wi_4.html" REL="nofollow">the cagey answers they give when asked questions</A>. That they may be reducing safety, at a tremendous cost (~$2B/year), is irrelevant. People don't want to <EM>be</EM> safe, they want to <EM>feel</EM> safe. And they are willing to pay that price in both dollars and in loss of freedom.Joe Huffmanhttp://blog.joehuffman.org/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-19321394769390930372009-05-16T11:25:00.000-04:002009-05-16T11:25:00.000-04:00Your story is indeed a sad commentary on the state of travel and freedoms in our nation today. But, humiliating as your experience was I cannot help but think that it still does not equal that of the late NRA President, Joe Foss. Does anyone remember how when he went to the airport to return to South Dakota from an NRA convention, the TSA insisted that he first dispose of his Congressional Medal of Honor, the one pinned on him personally by FDR? Luckily for him, other NRA members had escorted him to the airport and offered to take his MoH and mail it to him so he could board the flight.Chris Mhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12730570977897344874noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-10328645223000277932009-05-16T11:04:00.000-04:002009-05-16T11:04:00.000-04:00Sorry that happened to you. <br /><br />I was worried a few years back when I got pulled aside and my bag swabbed. That bag would be of course my large hunting bakcpack. After we get done hunting we start to burn up large amounts of ammo. I very carefully emptied the backpack of everything and checked it twice to make sure nothing "bad" could still be inside. I was so worried when they swabbed it thinking that I would have a long day in a small room.<br /><br />I wish I had seen a comment like that from Joe before that trip so I wouldn't have had to worry as much.Army of Dadhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05387586702890914065noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-2731364959140816952009-05-16T02:44:00.000-04:002009-05-16T02:44:00.000-04:00I'm so sorry you had such a harrowing experience, Breda. I hope the fun you're having now alleviates some of the sting.Christina LMThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03260505524676910667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-87301214958788654792009-05-16T00:42:00.000-04:002009-05-16T00:42:00.000-04:00TSA = Thugs Strangling Aviationfarmisthttp://openid.aol.com/farmistnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-81814192161450525552009-05-16T00:31:00.000-04:002009-05-16T00:31:00.000-04:00How absolutely humiliating. Curse TSA and their intrusive regulations.Reesehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08761243602674261472noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32278169577563552.post-43867870539218938432009-05-15T23:16:00.000-04:002009-05-15T23:16:00.000-04:00I have two knee replacements, so I go through this every time I fly. Now I wear shorts if possible. When I set off the beeper I just point to my knees and they send me to the pat down area (no having to walk through the detector multiple times or explain why I'm setting off the machine).<br /><br />It's a pain, but that's life.<br /><br />Looking forward to your reports, Breda!<br /><br />TimAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com