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"The problem with all the security theater is the poor production values" --Tim

Today's news is about a woman who was allegedly forced to remove her nipple piercings to board a plane.

The TSA's statement about this shows a picture of a bra bomb that may be used in the future to train TSA officers.

Um, yeah, no. Scarecrow argument. Harassing people with body piercings is neither ok nor a significant contribution to actual security. Especially not with the sniggering.

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I'm finding myself mildly outraged by this.

I encourage you to follow the link to the TSA and lodge a complaint.

♥ icon love ♥

Thanks. That one and this one are my "I'm quite pissed, thank you." icons.

(Plus I'm really Gaz at heart.)

For the love of...

I am waiting for the day that they decide you can hide explosives in breast implants.

well, and, you know, you can. I mean you could. Parts of one anyway. You can do all manner of things it is not reasonable for the TSA to inspect people to check for. The fact that I could implant a trigger underneath my fingernail does not mean it would ever be ok to pull out everyone's fingernails looking for them. Or anyone's, really.

Yep, dead right. But they won't do these things, because the PR fallout would be horrible. Nor will they stop people taking glass clubs full of inflammable liquid (i.e. alcohol) onto planes. Security always comes second to PR. So they make a show of persecuting people that they think will not get much public sympathy to show how "security conscious" they are.

I was detained once for nearly an hour over a Lip Smacker's cherry vanilla lipbalm that I forgot to remove from my pocket during the security point check.

I was patted down and asked to remove my outer-layers of clothing in front of a female officer (basically to strip down to my panties/bra) which I refused because in MY mind there was no need to strip after the pat down revealed NOTHING concealed on my person. (plus, there was not a concealed area in which I could comply without being exposed to dozens of travelers) Because I refused they attempted to delay me past the point when my plane would board. Luckily (I guess), this all happened near shift change and a new shift supervisor came by to "check-in" on this security station at which point I was hastily let go (amid claps and cheers from the other passangers who were witnesses to my ordeal over fucking Bonne Belle. I lodged several complaints over the course of several months and was repeatedly told that I was "non-compliant" during the security check-point and that my failure to disclose the lip balm was a security threat that had to be checked out.

Nevermind that it was 3am when I boarded the plane, that I was dead fucking tired and forgot that I had anything in my pockets (they were pajama pants...I forgot I even HAD pockets on these pants!), that I COMPLIED with everything they asked of me save for the stripping (because there was NOT a secluded area, basically they wanted me to strip in a corner where I would be entirely visible to all of the passangers waiting in line).

Ultimately it took me 18 months to get an "apology" (which I have kept in the file with copies of my complaint letters) but they never indicated a change to their policies or admitted any wrong-doing. So it wasn't really an apology at all, more like a letter that stated they were sorry for my distress but it's their job and here, have some free travel coupons.

I'm enraged for this woman. I heard this story on the radio this morning, and already filed a complaint with TSA (via the link) regarding this incident. I doubt they will do a damn thing, but at least I voiced my concern.

Wow, that's awful. How quickly a little power makes bullies of some people.

Yeah...and that power acquired them my cherry vanilla lip balm too. ;)

Just think what might have happened if you'd gotten into the cockpit with that lip balm and moisturized everyone's lips ... I shudder at the terror.

Pilots with kissably smooth and sweetly flavored lips? My GOD, it's possibly as terrifying as someone using smuggled-on nail clippers to give the whole plane a manicure! ;)

The pilot and co-pilot could start macking and crash the plane.

And hey, do you know PAINFUL it is if a terrorist were to hold you hostage with a clipper and cut your nails too closely? Not to mention anyone's Lee Press-on Nails getting utterly ruined?

Ah! Not my nails! (I have beautiful nails naturally, and I hate when they're too short (or too long).)

And now I'm imagining cock-pit porn...shame on you! ;)

Harassing people with body piercings is neither ok nor a significant contribution to actual security.

Well, fortunately for those implementing this sort of thing, "actual security" has almost nothing to do with it.

The sad truth is that most people don't even realize -- let alone accept -- what the real costs of freedom and liberty are. Until someone steps up and says it outright, we'll forever be trapping ourselves.

Some how I just can't quite see a bunch of TSA people making a guy take out his PA. I've got one friend whose PA ring is 4 times larger than my nipple rings combined!
Also the "response" the TSA posted just annoys me even more -- we didn't do anything wrong, but we'll make sure we don't do it again!

Umm, yeah. Plus, implant-grade surgical steel or titanium shouldn't trigger alarms anyway. Otherwise, everybody's granny and grampa would have to remove their artificial hips and knees every time they went through security.

Idiots.

Shouldn't and what really happens are two different things... my fake knee and elbow occasionally set off metal detectors.

I'm not 100% certain about this, but i believe most metal detectors use EMI (electromagnetic induction), which should (in theory) detect any highly electrically conductive metal, not just para-magnetic materials like iron. I know that most EMI systems i've been exposed to would pick up any sufficiently conductive components regardless of their composition.

Why airport metal detectors may not pick up implanted metal i'm not sure. It could be that they're tuned to pulse frequencies that wont permeate water well (or flesh), and would therefore be specialized for picking up metal outside the body. I should ask one of my in-laws who has a large titanium rod in her arm if she ever has trouble.

A magnetometer is a passive device that will only pick up para-magnetic materials by measuring the disturbed gradients in magnetic fields that they create. Perhaps airport systems are modified versions of these? That would seem risky, tho... couldn't one make a knife out of something other than iron or steel?

Interesting stuff...

in parallel with your comment, Alex commented that they sometimes detect the artificial parts inside his elbow...

Well you might be an evil Terminator... they really have to start looking for what I'm sure will be al-Qaeda's next metal-under-skin evil.

The day that we had to declare our lip balm and tiny bottles of water ... was pretty much the day the terrorists did win.

Amen!

I just took the train to Chicago (and back). No security check - I had TEDDY GRAHAMS and WATER and was allowed to keep my lip balm. ;) Ahhhh, smack-tastic.

The ironic thing is that over the course of about a year, I flew three or four times with a small Exacto knife in my backpack which I kept forgetting to take out and leave at home. It was never spotted by any of the security people. You just have to love how selective they seem to be at times about enforcing their own rules.

(I did finally remember to leave it at home before going to Boskone last month... and, of course, I got patted down and had my bags searched because - gasp! - I'd bought my ticket about ten days before the con.)

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