TSA humiliation - You could be next

8. December 2010 by Frank Goad.

I am absolutely furious and know there’s not one damn thing I can do about it. A person close to me - one of the sweetest, most gentle people on earth - was humiliated in an airport recently. It was uncalled for and showed how dangerous our government is getting. Why dangerous? Because we’re putting systems in place that have inadequate quality measures. Put another way, we’re putting incompetent, untrained people in positions of authority without proper guidance and oversight, then wonder why there are so many stories of abuse and humiliation in public places.

The person was going to board a plane, hence had to go through TSA security, and opted out of being irradiated in the x-ray machines (not the real device name, I know, but the effect is the same). They chose the manual search instead because this person has an ostomy bag – a huge burden unto itself – and didn’t want that displayed on a screen for all to see. The TSA agent feels the bag and takes them into a room for a search. But wait, it gets much worse.

In their infinite paranoia, the TSA agent orders them to put their clothes around their ankles and under their arm pits with everything inbetween exposed. They decide to swab for gunpowder - yes, gunpowder on an ostomy bag - get in the middle of the procedure, leave the room for another swab and leave the door wide open exposing my friend to everyone passing by. That is unforgivable and humiliating. If the agent were working for a private company, they’d have recourse. Since they’re a government agent, all the aggrieved can do is file a complaint, and that has all the impact of a paper fan in a hurricane. Even if the complaint is filed, it’s quite likely the employee will hear nothing whatsoever, meaning their incompetence will be perpetuated.

Now, imagine if that was you or someone you love. Who deserves that sort of rank humiliation? How totally incompetent or stupid can someone be? What’s worse is that, if you raise hell, then they lock you up and further humiliate you for hours to spite you for daring to show anything but ultimate patience in the face of unreasonable or incompetent behavior. We are at the mercy of employees who are often not suited for dealing with the public, much less security issues. To be sure, the TSA has some good employees, but what recourse do we have when dealing with those like this person had to deal with?

What’s worse is that, now that I’ve dared to speak up about this, it’s not unlikely that I’ll be put on some sort of watch list. I could well be the next person humiliated by a TSA agent and subjected to harassment. To be honest, I sort of expect it now. Why? There are myriad stories of folks who speak up and find themselves in the situation they protest about. As an American, this galls me.

This is bad, folks, and we’re the cattle they’re herding. Please spread this post because our liberties and right to dignity are going down the tubes. Perhaps George Orwell was right.

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