The latest TSA ridiculousness thread

[sexobon]

Originally Posted by chrisinhouston

... She looked me in the eye and told me that they can make up the rules as they go and also told me that my Constitutional rights are invalid in the screening area, both of which I really take issue with. ...

Police can also tell you to open the trunk of your car without probable cause even though you are Constitutionally protected from unreasonable search. The courts have upheld that it's perfectly legal for the police to tell you to do it and that it's your responsibility to know your rights and refuse to do it. If you comply and they find something illegal, it's admissible as evidence obtained via consensual search. Even if you say that you felt intimidated by the fact that a police officer was armed and you feared reprisal for noncompliance, the courts have upheld that unless the police threatened to shoot you your fear was unsubstantiated since the police officer was required to be armed.

This cat and mouse game with citizens' rights has been going on since long before 9-11 and applied to potential suspects of being gang members, drug traffickers, illegal aliens ... etc. long before being applied on a high visibility national scale in airports to thwart terrorism. Some people assert their rights through knowledge and perseverance while others cry rape and fall by the wayside. You seem to be among the former, congratulations.

[Undertoad]

They want the ability to make up the rules as they go along, so that terrorists can't just study the PSA website rulebook and devise plans to beat it. That I understand, but claiming that the Constitution doesn't apply in screening is an outrageous statement.

It is Constitutional for you to decline screening and leave the area. But that was one of the issues with the "Don't Touch my Junk" guy, who was threatened with a $10k fine because he left the screening process in the middle. It is Constitutional for you to film the screening process, but don't expect to be able to exercise that right.

[sexobon]

Originally Posted by Undertoad

... claiming that the Constitution doesn't apply in screening is an outrageous statement..

Here's a short explanation (dozen paragraphs) of why that claim has been essentially true, regarding the Fourth Amendment, since 1973: http://boardingarea.com/blogs/flying...rth-amendment/

Originally Posted by Undertoad

It is Constitutional for you to film the screening process, but don't expect to be able to exercise that right.

Some explanations and recourse from a CNET News article: http://news.cnet.com/8301-31921_3-20023773-281.html

"Do I have the right to record my checkpoint encounter with a video camera or a mobile phone?
The answer is, generally, yes. Not only do you likely have a First Amendment right to do so in the United States, but the TSA explicitly recognizes it. The agency says: "We don't prohibit public, passengers, or press from photographing, videotaping, or filming at screening locations."
Two potential obstacles remain. The first is that TSA screeners and local law enforcement may not be aware of the agency's own policy. This is what one blogger found out recently at Hartford's airport after being detained by a Connecticut state trooper for taking photographs. Two useful TSA numbers if you're being threatened with arrest for photography are (571) 227-2829 and (571) 227-1917.

The second obstacle is that a state law, a local law, or an airport ordinance may restrict either photography or audio recording. John "Don't Touch My Junk" Tyner was cited for violating an San Diego airport ordinance (PDF) saying "no person shall take still, motion, or sound motion pictures or voice recordings." Any such ordinance almost certainly violates the First Amendment, but you could still be cited and face significant legal hassles until you get before a judge--at least if the police want to demonstrate their authority to your detriment."

[sexobon]

Originally Posted by footfootfoot

If you check out her blog she comes off as an attention lady of the night.

Too bad her genitalia can't talk to tell us what really happened ... dumb cunt.

[footfootfoot]

Originally Posted by sexobon

Too bad her genitalia can't talk to tell us what really happened ... dumb cunt.

I imagine it would be something like this: