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Booted From Airplane For Wearing Anti-TSA T-shirt
Cigarra writes "PhD student Arijit learned the hard way that in Brave New America you can't mock TSA's Security Theater and go on about your business. According to a recollection in RT.com: 'After being vigorously screened and questioned multiple times, Arijit says he was finally given permission, once more, to board his plane. The pilot of the aircraft, however, had had enough of the whole ordeal and asked the Delta supervisor to relay the message that, due to the discomfort the shirt had caused, neither Arijit nor his wife would be allowed to board the aircraft.' Just how much humiliation is the general American public willing to tolerate in the name of 'security'?"
I mean come on "Arijit" clearly a terrorist threat.
Add in the racial bias in profiling and the racist prejudices of some passengers (this can get you booted too if a passenger decides s/he is "uncomfortable" on the plane with you on it) and you have quite an ugly situation.
what kind of dipshit is afraid of a t-shirt? obviously this guy is being pushed around because of his name and genetic background. i smell LAWSUIT.
Remember kids, if you're not paying for the service, YOU ARE THE PRODUCT THAT IS BEING SOLD.
From the same site:
What would have likely been a routine flight out of a Florida airport this weekend ended with a woman being sent to the emergency room after TSA agents insisted on groping a traumatized rape victim in a security pat-down that put her in the hospital.
Live free or die indeed.
If the Miss Universe pageant had been boarding that plane, the TSA would have been to busy putting them through the body scanner to even notice this guy's shirt.
sudo make me a sandwich
Hi folks,
Just as a brief FYI, we're REALLY starting to worry about you Yanks.
Please get your house in order, before things get truly out of control.
If you wait much longer (and we may be talking seconds here), the choice will be gone.
With compassion,
the Rest of the World
Looks like the KKK renamed their acronym to something more paletable.
Science advances one funeral at a time- Max Planck
Freedom to wear the shirt, not free from the consequences of wearing the shirt.
>> Just how much humiliation is the general American public willing to tolerate in the name of 'security'?"
Quite a lot apparently, quite a lot.
"Life is not magic." Dr. Ron Weiss - "If we don't play God, who will?" Dr. James Watson
The TSA info chart is quite interesting.
Because someone who is that obvious about wearing an anti-TSA shirt will *totally* be the one who's going to not draw suspicion so they can bomb a plane....riiiight...
Arijit's actual blog Arijit Vs. Delta
I am Slashdot. Are you Slashdot as well?
Where can I buy that shirt?
America is the only country that gropes It's passengers. Israel profiles, & has no hijackings.
You guys are losing the plot.
Stop the brainwash
sure we have a few super rich billionaire tycoons but so does Russia and it doesn't stop Russia from being a shit hole either.
It's always been there, it's just more naked now.
I do have to wonder what he expected to happen. Wasn't this the exactly the outcome that the shirt itself predicted?
Point well made, he could have laughed it off and covered or removed the shirt, so that it could be taken away for controlled detonated by the Freedom Disposal Squad.
If you were blocking sigs, you wouldn't have to read this.
So, task for the Anonymous Legion: Who's the pilot of the airplane? What's his address? Who's the manager on duty? What's his address? Who are the TSA agents who were guarding the gate at that particular time? What's their address? Send them all a complimentary T-shirt.
I see no reason to submit to their bullshit. I have not flown in nearly 7 years, and don't see it happening any time soon.
If enough people simply refuse to fly, the airlines will go belly up, or they will lobby to remove the TSA. Though, the private thugs they replace them with probably won't be any better.
damned if you do, damned if you don't.
The guy was being a real life troll. I can only predict he would be pushing everyone's buttons on the airplane just so he could scream bias/ racism/ prejudice.
Kind of reminds me of the annoying kid who wouldn't shut up in the classroom in grade school because he's, "in america and have the first amendment rights to free speech." You also have the freedom to be a dumbass. Don't be surprised if you get beat up in the playground.
What kind of idiot wears a shirt that says "bombs" and "terrorists" and "gonna kill us all" onto a plane?
While some people grumble and complain about the process, I've also encountered many people who believe what the TSA is doing is actually protecting them from terrorism.
More to the point, they honestly believe that there are terrorists right around the corner just waiting to blow them up. Not in an abstract but THEM, specifically. You know, it could happen anywhere so it could happen to YOU and it could happen HERE!
Their lives are so boring and mundane they get a thrill over the possibility that something important could happen to them or someone they know. Even if it is something like a terrorist attack, it makes them feel special. As if the town of Bumfuck, Nowhere was chosen special for a target.
It gives them something to gossip about. "What if..." It is essentially one of the same motivations that drives people to buy lottery tickets. They can dream "what if..." and not have to face the dull reality that is their life.
It's really sad.
Learning HOW to think is more important than learning WHAT to think.
"Just how much humiliation is the general American public willing to tolerate in the name of 'security'?"
In fascist america, you tolerate it all.
As most of you, I only read TFS, but this wasn't the TSA to blame.
It's completly in a pilots discretion if he want's to have some prankster on board who doesn't care if the whole flight gets delayed because of a funny shirt.
He has the right to remove anyone from the plane. For anything else, complain to the airline afterwards.
This system works as long as you put somewhat reasonable and responsible people in the cockpit. And if he pulls that stunt too often, he'll be sanctioned by his employer. That's a completly different situation from some minimum-wage guy who only would get sanctioned for NOT bullying people around and gets paid (and perhaps rewarded) for strictly following procedures, not thinking about if that would be stupid.
Please note: I don't say what the pilot did was right, but he had the right to make that descision.
bickerdyke
Torture and butcher this monster now!!! How dare anyone speak ill of our government.
...we'll destroy what it means to be free. This song about the I.C.E by a Canadian folk singer applies equally well to any part of the security theater that exists in US airports: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4AH_YgN6os
$x = ($x * 10) % 10 >= 5 ? 1 + int $x : int $x
First, its important to know exactly what the shirt said. Neither the summary nor the article quote it, but the image printed on the shirt seems to say:
Now, it's always been pretty clear to me that just saying the word "bomb" in an airpot is a recipe for trouble. Lots of signs are posted everywhere saying that all statements must be taken seriously, even if they're said in a joking manner. In other words, you just don't joke about bombs in an airport.
Secondly, the summary doesn't make it clear that it wasn't the TSA who took issue with things, and ultimately kicked him off the plane, but that it was a guy from Delta. It seems completely plausible to me that some of the other passengers saw his shirt and really were "very uncomfortable". Maybe they shouldn't have been, but nonetheless they were. Given that there were customers who were uncomfortable, and the fact that this guy really should have known better than wear a shirt with "bomb" on it in the airpot, I can see why the Delta rep kicked the guy off the flight.
TCP: Why the Internet is full of SYN.
Freedom to wear the shirt, not free from the consequences of wearing the shirt.
The TSA is a government agency.
The First Amendment applies to Government.
The TSA is 100% in the wrong no excuses. Period. End of story.
That Delta pilot and subsequently Delta airlines, although being intolerant douche bags, are well within their rights.
Jesus F'n Christ! No wonder we're losing our Rights!
Basic Civics - people!
I'm going to say that most people 45+ don't know what ZOMG means. Therefore, seeing something that says "Gonna Kill US All ZOMG" would be a bit unnerving. Even though it is security theater, society has norms that state when people deem to be right and wrong. Wearing a shirt that has that message is wrong because it breaks those societal courtesies. Putting someone's grandma in a state of unease for something that is already not exactly the most fun doesn't sit well in my book.
I applaud the pilot. It is his job to get the plane safely in the air and back to the ground. He probably saw it for what it was, but decided he didn't want one the passengers beating the shit out of this guy mid-air because they felt threatened. Bruce Schneier has pointed out numerous times that the acts against the World Trade Center have empowered the average citizen to stand up and fight if they closely felt threatened. That could have been the case and may have saved the student further grief.
Crap! I just kissed my karma good-bye.
I think this guy got exactly what he wanted: publicity for the anti-TSA cause. Try "saying" something loud about bombs or terrorism in a security line or on a plane. You're asking for trouble, and you know it. I'm not saying it's good or justified, but I don't walk up to cops on the street with anti-police shirts with "robbery", "assault" or "weapon" on them, even though it's legal.
So let me get this straight.
Even AFTER the tsa boards the guy, the pilot, lord of his personal fiefdom, can expel a passenger just for wearing a t-shirt, and even after he already paid for his plane ticket?
The beatings will continue until morale improves!
The abuses will continue for exactly as long as we the people of the United States of America continue to allow our elected representatives to labor under the false assumption that we are cowards who place a greater value on our safety than our liberty, and on our security than our dignity. The TSA does not respect us because we allow them to show us blatant disrespect, and get away with it. Want to put a stop to the abuses, folks? Stop flying on the airlines. Call your representatives and tell them about your decision. Then BY GOD stick by it!!!
When enough people do this it WILL stop. If you refuse... expect the groping, racial discrimination, and other wanton abuses of power to continue and realize that if you acquiesce, YOU RIGHTLY DESERVE THE ABUSE for you are a coward! That's why I haven't traveled by air in years. I FUCKING REFUSE to be so treated.
Despite recent negative press, a majority of Americans, 54%, think the U.S. Transportation Security Administration is doing either an excellent or a good job of handling security screening at airports. At the same time, 41% think TSA screening procedures are extremely or very effective at preventing acts of terrorism on U.S. airplanes, with most of the rest saying they are somewhat effective.
http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2012/08/poll_americans.html
Someone needs to combine the tune "God Bless The USA" with some choice lyrics about the TSA to create "God Bless The TSA". It goes viral, everyone hums the tune while boarding and TSA employees start looking like kings with no clothes.
I come here for the love
This is a knee-jerk reaction, but I am going to just say it anyway.
My instinct tells me it is much more likely they were denied for just being jerks during the whole ordeal. I just find it highly unlikely that someone would decide to wear such a shirt in advance, arrive at the terminal, and not do or say other things to provoke. I suppose it's possible... in some alternate universe.
Everyone needs to realize that convenient travel is a privilege, not a right. The only guaranteed form of travel is on foot. The faster forms of travel (air, train, auto) are only available to us because of the good will of large corporations and governments. If we're not willing to follow their rules and pay a premium, we don't deserve to move around easily.
Not that I don't love a good TSA bashing (because they deserve it), but he got through TSA screening without incident. It was a Delta supervisor who raised a fuss, and then Delta who wouldn't let him on the plane after he was cleared by security a *second* time.
Lets make sure we blame the right people for this kind of nonsense. This is corporate bullshit, not government bullshit.
-- "So they told me that using the download page to download something was not something they anticipated." - Bill Gates
Don't know about US, but here in EU I managed to (first unknowingly) carry around a Walther 3.something inch folding tactical knife through 3 airport security checks. Had to show, find and pack in plastic some astray liquids though and throw away one forgotten-in-my-bag metallic lighter (such a fancy one they give away with two packs of cigarettes for promotion).
As I discovered it while already at my destination, I had the definite plan to try to take it back home with me. Worked like a charm.
... the Jews in Nazi Germany were free to be Jews. Just not free from the consequences of being brought to concentration camps and murdered.
(This is *not* comparing the event told by TFA to the shoah, by the way and just in case.)
But thanks for the brilliant demonstration of how dubious the term "free" sometimes gets used and probably is never going to stop to be used.
TSA:
Terrorists
Suppressing
Americans
Time to offend someone
Profiling is not politically correct! But poking our fingers into every of your holes so is :)
I'm sure something happened here, but all RT reports is a summary of the blog entry. I've watched RT (it is broadcast over the air in my part of the U.S.) and it is most certainly not a neutral source. Did anyone review the police reports? Get the scoop from a Delta spokesperson? Talk to his wife, or another passenger in the area? Surely the TSA and airline industry have earned their reputation. But there are also people looking to paint them all in a bad light. This is very disturbing if true. I want to see some independent accounts before I believe I understand what happened. Hopefully some other news sources will pick up the story.
RT is Russian state media, backed by the Kremlin.
What could possibly be their interest in stoking this kind of discontent?!
My god, that is a mess. And another reason why I just drover over 2000 miles for my last vacation.
I don't agree with the treatment that he received. And I'm highly critical of the TSA security theater as well. But I'm curious what kind of response he was expecting when he purposefully went through airport wearing that T-shirt.
Back in the '70s, people did this kind of shit expecting to get arrested - that was at least part of the point of civil disobedience.
If he wears a T-shirt walking through Harlem that says "PLEASE DONATE TO THE N*ERS NEED TO GO BACK TO AFRIKA FUND" I would expect that he would get the shit kicked out of him fairly quickly, free speech or no free speech. If the police are interviewing him as a person of interest (or me, or whoever) and he chooses to wear a T-shirt that says "ZOMG ARENT THE DONUTZ GETTING COLD PIGZ" I would expect that he would be harassed there (at a minimum), as well, rights or no rights.
I may defend the right of this dude to wear the shirt wherever he wants, but intentionally provoking the TSA will cause a reaction. And if he doesn't realize that, then either A) he's an idiot or B) being disingenuous about his civil disobedience, which loses him respect.
Light a fire for a man and he'll be warm for a day. Light a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.
America is the only country that gropes It's passengers. Israel profiles, & has no hijackings.
Profiling by ethnicity doesn't work; for one thing, it's vulnerable to proxy bomb attacks. I've posted links on this many times before; search for the "Carnival Booth" paper from MIT. I recommend Schneier's site or DuckDuckGo.
El Al's security apparatus (behavioral profiling, interviews, luggage depressurization, and tarmac security, off the top of my head) have been said to be infeasible due to scalability in a country of over 300 million. However, I haven't seen an data to back up this claim, nor have I done the math.
I'm not saying I support the current system; I find it deplorable and refuse to fly, going on six years. I'd like to see a return to sane, pre-2001-09 security procedures. At least, that's what it'd take to get me to voluntarily set foot on a commercial airliner again.
Thank you, Edward Snowden.
"Arguments from authority are worthless." —Carl Sagan
The moral of this story is: Don't fly with Delta.
They've screwed up every trip I've taken on their airline. Never giving them my business again.
When will you clueless sheep start taking back you rights and BOYCOTT THE AIRLINES until the economic pressure forces the TSA (tough sh!t a$$holes) to be disbanded? GET SOME BALLS!!!!!
Israel profiles, & has no hijackings.
Since I started walking with a rock in my pocket, I have never been robbed. Clearly rocks in pockets prevent thefts.
Dilbert RSS feed
In fact, lots of countries neither grope nor profile and they have no hijackings.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post_hoc_ergo_propter_hoc
Pilots have final say about what goes on their plane.
They are completely responsible for the plane.
Now it is a matter of common sense that they're going to let paying customers on, but if they say "No" then it is "No." There is no appealing their decision. It is final.
Now you might wonder why that is, but consider this - ultimately when you are 30,000' up in the air or more, they are sitting in the cockpit and they are responsible for your health and everyone else's. Plus the cargo. With that responsibility comes the ultimate choice of what they will and will not allow on their plane.
And yes, consider the plane the pilot's personal fiefdom. It is and rightly so.
Lets also not forget that israel will try to blow you up if you're carrying a bomb.
But I see your point. We refuse to officially "profile" people, to "protect our rights". And then we get groped "because it's necessary". So, they're protecting our rights, so a few feet down the line they can violate them anyway.
Wonderful system we have here. And so much less effective on top of it.
I work for the Department of Redundancy Department.
I bet his wife kicked his a** for wearing that shirt which cause them to miss the flight. Flying is stressful enough with "political statements' messing you up.
El Al's security apparatus (behavioral profiling, interviews, luggage depressurization, and tarmac security, off the top of my head) have been said to be infeasible due to scalability in a country of over 300 million. However, I haven't seen an data to back up this claim, nor have I done the math.
Oh, the math is easy.
Doing it THAT way would require them to actually train (as opposed to simply recognizing the threat color scheme) and pay skilled-worker wages, as opposed to giving a badge to -- well, to what we have now (See? I was nice)
Seriously? And you're wearing that shirt? Unless you're a genius at Einstein-level who can get away with breaking most social conventions, you're just acting like a trolling jerk, and an embarrassment to the department. You're 31 years old, not 12. Sure, you're flying an airplane and not receiving the Nobel Prize, but have some decorum and wear something sensible. Even professors wear tacky hawaiian shirt for casual days, but Arijit is just trolling and making the rest of grad students look like dipshits.
The pilot who threw this passenger off and the other authoritarians who harassed him claimed that the other passengers were "uncomfortable" with him being on the plane. I'm not sure what what the hell is wrong with them, but I feel pretty uncomfortable having such cowardly dolts living in my state, never mind being stuck on a plane with them.
I suppose it's one more benefit of my ongoing boycott of airline security theater and their disregard for the first and fourth amendments of the Constitution: not being stuck for hours with a bunch of assholes.
Thank you, Edward Snowden.
"Arguments from authority are worthless." —Carl Sagan
jack booted thugs are jack booted thugs, film at 11.
Got to love the K9 unit approval http://www.wmufradio.com/Archive08-19-12.html in Henry Tennessee that the article mentions. You will need to scroll down halfway to find the right section At least locals are being honest the fact they aren't after making the public safer, in some cases it is just pure greed. The TSA's existence is in some aspects motivated by the same.
"Henry Board approves K9 program, part time help for office
Henry, Tenn.- At the Henry Mayor and Board of Alderman meeting on Tuesday, board members decided to allow police chief David Andrews to institute a K9 program for the Henry Police Department.
Andrews told board members that the city is missing out on possible revenues that a K9 would bring. He said when you make traffic stops and the driver refuses to allow a search, their hands are tied. If a drug dog alerts on a vehicle, its gives officers probable cause to search a vehicle for drugs or illegal proceeds from drugs. More drug arrests and drug, cash, and vehicle seizures lead to more revenues coming in for the police department and city."
* Winners compare their achievements to their goals, losers compare theirs to that of others.
So your evidence that Israel's system doesn't actually prevent hijackings is what exactly? You do have something more substantial than a lame attempt at a "correlation is not causation" argument, right?
(guessing from your use of "Yanks")
A bunch of us agree with you. Between the traumas of 9/11 and our self-inflicted over-reaction to it, it may take us a generation to dial our national paranoia back to appropriate levels, but we'll probably succeed.
While we're working on that, could you please look into fixing your libel laws? The whole "I'm suing because you told people something true" thing has got to go, really.
Thanks,
USA
To a Lisp hacker, XML is S-expressions in drag.
you find it. No story here.
Rest of the World,
Please don't give up hope on us yet. The youth are willing to make massive changes, want to see things cleaned up, more rights taken back, more services for the needy, and all in all, a more enjoyable life that isn't being a slave to corporate or government wishes. We see ourselves as being *their* masters. We see both entities as being part of the puzzle to help each other reach a better quality of life. We have more compassion for people of all types, and want to see that better quality of life, and fairness, for all. Look at polls to see the shift in attitudes of the Millennial generation versus previous generations. The older generations are stuck clinging to their ways due to fears from intense cold war propaganda during their childhoods. It is unfortunate, but true. But the Baby Boomers are near retirement age, and so can't stay in control for much longer. As the younger generation becomes more politically active and reaches the necessary ages to run for bigger offices, there will be change. It cannot be stopped.
Within a decade or so we'll be able to put all this nonsense behind us, so you won't need to have concern anymore. There is a lot of hope for the future, even if it appears a little rough right now.
-- USA youth
/. managed to finally break the irony meter.
All the bitching about obummer, and sucking Ron&Rand Paul's "Libertarian" penis because they're anti-tsa.
Except it wasn't the TSA who caused this, is was a business exercising its right to refuse service, because the guy was a douschebag and work a t-shirt to make other paying customers uncomfortable. Rand and Ron have nothing against businesses enforcing their own set of standards and ethics. Businesses can do whatever the fuck they want under Ron and Rand.
And BTW If your going to try that kind of stunt; and least make sure you get a refundable ticket.
If someone is passing you on the right, you are an asshole for driving in the wrong lane.
Perhaps they didn't think it was 'legitimate rape' ?
As has been pointed out many times before:
The huge line waiting to be get cancer or get groped (or both) seems like maybe a good target if someone wants to blow up (or shoot) some folks. Also better prospects of escaping than on an airplane at 35,000 feet! Actually, anyplace large numbers of people gather could be a terrorist target. Remember the movie Black Sunday?
The point is that there are many potential targets easier to hit than a commercial airliner.
The TSA wasn't the problem, it was the privately owned airliner that offed him.
A private company can refuse service to anyone for any reason except where legally protected. (race, religion, physical disability, vetran, etc)
Shirt or no shirt. They could have done the same thing without citing any reason. Maybe their official line should have been "we won't let you fly 'cuz your momma dresses you funny". They're a private company, they're allowed to do that.
I don't personally like any of the above exceptions. I don't think the govt should be able to force you to provide services to any person or group. But too many people were being dicks to the same groups so we had to make laws to protect those groups from "stupid people in large numbers". *shrug* I suppose a small dent in my rights to prevent a significant number of others from getting a large dent in their rights is a sensible tradeoff.
I work for the Department of Redundancy Department.
...but he had the balls to risk some heat to exercise his rights and bring attention to the stupidity of the TSA.
It was not the TSA that were being stupid here - they passed him through all the security checks the first time without any particular issue. The problem here lies in the general reaction of US society. Yes the guy was being an idiot and living in the US should have known the likely outcome but why is it that nobody could recognise him for the idiot that he was and treat the situation appropriately? Blowing it out of all proportion like this only makes the authorities appear like idiots themselves and encourages more of this stupid behaviour because of all the attention their response gets. You would have thought that with a lesson like the Salem witch trials 300+ years ago US society would have learnt the lesson by now.
+1 you busted that failed comparison but good.
I think this is a hell of a lot more disturbing than some flamboyant dude who was testing the waters to see just what he could get away with. My own two cents' worth, let the roasting begin...
Where is the evidence that it does?
"... and if you don't want to pay your taxes, you're free to spend a weekend with the pain monster"
Isreal actually trains thier security to look for suspicious behavior instead of assuming everyone is a suspect. Profiling doesn't neccessarily mean "assume all blacks/arabs/hispanics/whater are guilty." I can also mean "the suspicious looking guy might be guilty so lets go talk to him." You will also notice that countries that are actually afraid of terrorist bombings don't have long lines outside security checkpoints because terrorists like to bomb the checkpoints. If you care about security you get everyone through the check point as quickly as possible. We just like harrassing innocent citizens.
To be honest, there was no way TSA could win here.
If they let the person fly, and he caused trouble (very doubtful, but possible), they are the devil for knowing he had an "anti-government" (I'll admit, that's a stretch) t-shirt on, and did nothing about it.
If they kick the person off the flight, you get this article.
It looks like multiple law suits against American and the TSA are going to be filed. Clearly, Arjilit has the right to wear a tee shirt that mocks the TSA as this is a freedom of speech and expression issue. As long as Arjilit was cooperative and non-combative, it will be a bad day to be the director of the TSA and have to answer for this. I can see the director of the TSA taking some Rolaids or Alka Seltzer over this.
He didn't claim it doesn't actually prevent hijackings. He pointed out that just because there have been no hijackings doesn't mean the system stopped them.
There have been no hijackings in the US since 9/11, does that mean TSA security theater works?
The general American public will tolerate enormous amounts of humiliation and discomfort, so long as its you that is humiliated or discomforted. Or that guy over there. Or one of those Tea Party nuts, or a freakjob Libertarian, or especially one of those dark-skinned foreigners. Until they are forced to stand aside and watch them take their 8 year old child to a special little space to be patted down, they do not particularly care how inconvenienced or violated you are. They are "safe" and that's all that matters....
"But we have to pass the bill so that you can find out what is in it,..." - Nancy Pelosi
1. The First Amendment relies upon the next four. Any of these being diminished, the First is diminished. I'm not at all hopeful that the TSA will be required to honor any of these Constitutional protections, but hope springs eternal.
2. Delta is not new to the customer disservice game. I haven't willingly flown them for 36 years, having been stranded in Boston too many times in the 70s. But this is a new low. I have no reason to believe the pilot acted outside of his authority, but his judgement is suspect in this matter. And that won't be a problem, since the arlines are stuck with the TSA, and play the game.
Any bets if Arijit is on the no fly list?
deleting the extra space after periods so i can stay relevant, yeah.
His behavior might have something to do with the fact that he is being treated for stage IV colon cancer. He probably cares less than the average person what society's long-term opinion of him will be, and hopes that his behavior (and any reaction to it) could be a force for long-term improvement of the world.
My best experiences traveling have always been when I have dressed like a business man to fly. Nothing crazy - nice slacks, shirt, sport jacket. Be neat, well groomed. They'll treat you like you own the place. Being white and middle aged also helps, so try that out too.
If you're quite sure something like this will happen if you decide to troll a government agency.... Do yourself a favor and just assume that you are indeed correct and that no matter the outcome, your t-shirt stunt will not change a damn thing. Want to really change things? Write/call/visit your state representatives in the House and Senate. Otherwise, stop being such a drama queen.
Making certain jokes in the inspection line was illegal even before 9/11. I almost got the 3rd degree for making a joke about carrying a weapon when boarding a plane to Europe in 1972. So I was young and dumb. Afterwards, I saw the sign explaining how certain jokes were illegal. The concept of an illegal joke was new to me at the time. Now we've all become much more sophisticated.
Sorry, but gray text on gray background is making my eyes bleed.
"And then, he decided to drop any façade of fair treatment: the veil was lifted, this was about who I was and how I looked: “And he looks foreign.”
Well, Buffalo is pretty close to Canada, so maybe he thought I looked Canadian. What does a Canadian look like anyway? Whatever it is, I’m sure that’s precisely what he was thinking. Certainly he wasn’t implying that dark-skinned people are not real Americans and that white people are the only true Americans. (I wonder what those who settled this land well before the arrival of Europeans would have to say about that.)"
http://xkcd.com/651/
"Century of the Self" a good documentary which is only an intro to the selfishness of Americans and why they are so gullible and ignorant. From there you can find on your own why they are so unjustifiably confident and optimistic and how that increases failure (including wars.)
FYI, I'm American but somehow I slipped bye being socialized into one of the herd.
Democracy Now! - uncensored, anti-establishment news
Why do you want me to prove something I didn't claim? Why didn't you demand proof from the person who actually _did_ claim something?
Dilbert RSS feed
How about if someone wore "I AM A FIRESTARTER" at a movie theater?
They may just be a fan of The Prodigy.
Brought to you by the author of such childrens' classics as "Some Kittens can Fly!" and "All Dogs go to Hell."
So is this America's message for people in other parts of the world who are protesting for their basic right of free expression?
You guys seriously need to sort this out, otherwise the Chinese government is going to treat your freedom talks as laughing stocks.
You say that like it's a bad thing.
If there was a magic field that caused any explosives to detonate it would be a great security device. Basically impossible though. They just leave the bomb disassembled.
You'd want a room with strong walls around it and no roof.
John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
But on the plus side if they have trained law enforcement professionals doing the job not as many are required.
The story going around is one "benefit" of the TSA with the low standards is that anyone with the right contacts can get right onto that gravy train as a manager, not be expected to have any sort of relevant experience and have subordinates that can't undermine you because they have less training and experience than the average security guard. It's not just a pointless show, it's also a way to funnel a lot of cash into the right wallets. The same goes for a lot of other branches of Homeland Security - don't expect to even find somebody good at judging horses in those high paying positions.
Really now, don't provoke "the man" unless you're willing to take it, and see it through to the end.
It's like wearing an offensive shirt elsewhere and getting called on it. Man up, or suck it up.
- - - Non Caffeine Drink or Drink Error
The TSA did not kcik him off the plane. It was the private company that did and it is within their rights to do so.
You got to fly a cheap, shitty airline. I was on an Allegiant Air flight and this woman across the isle from me flipped straight the fuck out at the Atlanta Intl. airport. Started screaming for her pills and went on about having vertigo. We had not even left the gate! She thought the plane tipped over, lol. Weak-minded individuals that haven't had enough drug experiences. If I could sit still in a seat and start flipping around in my own head, I'd pay for that shit. Anyway, they just made her assure the captain, a TSA guy, and a stewardess that she wouldn't flip out in the air. She assured them and that was the end of it. She did not flip out in the air. I told my wife (who was directly next to her across the isle) to just knock her out if she starts screaming again. We had a connecting flight to catch, and I wasn't going to miss it because of her stupid ass. Take a fucking train next time, I say.
At this time anyway.
The guy who said the election was rigged won the presidency with the second-most votes.
Just how much humiliation is the general American public willing to tolerate in the name of 'security'?"
Well, more than this, it seems. Poll: Americans Like the TSA.
"Money is a sign of poverty." - Iain Banks
Sorry, I don't see the big deal. Yeah, Delta is being pretty retarded. But is it really necessary to mock TSA in the open when you're planning on flying somewhere? Not advocating violating people's freedoms, but the airport just isn't the place for this nonsense. If you wanna mock TSA, without it being a burden to your plans, go to the airport and stand around mocking them with your clothing when you're not actually planning on flying anywhere. Stand out on the curb with a big sign, or near the lines. If you're not flying anywhere, if they mess with you, you won't be so inconvenienced when they respond to your taunts.
Taunting them and expecting them to let you actually proceed with your plans is pretty dumb. There's a time and place to protest and make fun of idiotic behavior of our government. When you want get on a plane, that's not the time.
I thought the whole thing was lame. It was a t-shirt and it did not even have pron or obscenities on it. I am surpised that Delta made it worse by kicking him from the plane. Then again a rude stewardess on a business trip in the 90s made me never to travel on delta again. FWIW, once I was an executive platinum on AA and I flew my family of four for free to China with my airline points. I really used to travel a lot and Delta missed out on a lot of business with me because of a rude stewardess. I'm pretty easy going and tolerant and I don't remember what she did, but it was so bad that I swore I would never use them again and I have not.
There is no politician that will ever get rid of the TSA because:
A: It doesn't bother them.
B: If an attack occurs, regardless of circumstances, they will be blamed.
C: This would be exploited as "weakness" or "sympathetic" by their rivals.
D: There is no downside for them to leave things as they are.
MC
/. finds me to be 20% Troll, 80% Funny
From when WOOT Shirts were a new thing. I can't remember If I actually went through airport security with it on, but it sounds like something I would do. The security personnel at my air port never seem all that observant or bright, but I don't fit the profile.
Bought the shirt back in the post 9/11 days and accidentally wore it coming home on an international flight. I saw it as a patriotic shirt, but wife saw it and flipped out while we were at the airport. Got asked about the shirt by TSA, explained that it was technically a patriotic shirt and was good. An anti-TSA shirt is technically a patriotic shirt as well. Sad day:-(
Yes,
only few countries that fly to the US actually have a TSA or anything like it. I boarded a plane in Tunisia carrying several 2l bottles of liquid, backpack, ... ...
Only one metal scanner, nothing else, no checks or anything, no taking off shoes,
(I flew to Brussels, home of NATOs headquarters among several other interesting places)
Why would a terrorist board a plane IN the US? He wouldn't, the TSA is not their to protect against terrorists, it's not even their to protect.
Isreal actually trains thier security to look for suspicious behavior instead of assuming everyone is a suspect. Profiling doesn't neccessarily mean "assume all blacks/arabs/hispanics/whater are guilty." I can also mean "the suspicious looking guy might be guilty so lets go talk to him."
I mentioned behavioral profiling (the details of which I am not very familiar with) in my second paragraph; perhaps you didn't see it?
You will also notice that countries that are actually afraid of terrorist bombings don't have long lines outside security checkpoints because terrorists like to bomb the checkpoints. If you care about security you get everyone through the check point as quickly as possible.
Yes. It makes me wonder if our government, through a plethora of distasteful, ineffective, and even harmful practices, in combination with a failure to implement at least some of Israel/El Al's cheaper/scalable practices, are intentionally leaving us vulnerable in order to implement additional authoritarian measures in response to future incidents.
We just like harrassing innocent citizens.
That much is clear. I know people like to bemoan those who "feel sorry for themselves," but I can't help but feel bad for how far we're falling as a nation.
Thank you, Edward Snowden.
"Arguments from authority are worthless." —Carl Sagan
This Arijit clearly presented himself as a provocateur and a trouble maker. What if he was going to cause a disturbance up in the air? Do you know how easy it is to cause a disaster? OPEN THE DOOR! It can be easily opened, if only someone is crazy enough. Wearing a t-shirt that says bite me to a dog convention, is pretty damned crazy.
Pilots have the right to refuse ANYONE who they think is going to be a hazard to either themselves, they other passengers or the crew. Because once up in their, calling the cops is not an option. So they refuse people who are drunk, in bad health or belligerent. Don't like that? Start your own airline, good luck getting insurance with your policy of "we take EVERYONE".
And it not just whether Arijit himself would cause trouble. I have seen another passenger punch a person who came in WAY to late right in the face for causing the delay. An aircraft is a very small confined space. people are already on edge at the best of times, taking someone on board who has no regard for anyone else (Arijit thought nothing of delaying over a hundred people for his temper tantrum) and expecting a smooth flight is a risk I would not take and I don't blame the pilot for not taking it.
Little kids on Slashdot think the world should all go their way, not how the world works at all. You upset other people, they will upset you. And there are more of them then there are of you.
Want to make a point? Be prepared to be hauled away. And this fucktard just protested because he was inconvenienced and is now whining about missing a flight. 3 girls in Russia are in jail for 2 years at least for protesting a dictator. Get your priorities straight slashdot.
MMO Quests are like orgasms:
You may solo them, I prefer them in a group.
I have but one thing to say LAWYER!!!!!! Thats a violation of free speech.
I suspect that the TSA and homeland security would have more success with behaviour profiling, no matter the scalability issues, than all the profiling they currently waste their time on. Speaking as someone who takes up significant resources every time I visit the US for having the same extremely common name as someone who does not match my description in any other way.
I was just in the UK and when I set off the metal detector I was patted down. Still not sure what set it off, but it's not only the US that pats down passengers, as I found out.
Canada does neither and has no hijackings, what's your point? We have a metal detector. Done. Well, we also have the retarded no-liquids thing, and no nail clippers or whatever stupid rules in there, but at least it goes quickly and generally without a fuss.
As the infinitely-mentioned meme states, all problems have long since been solved since they threw a locked door between the passengers and the pilot.
I avoid delta like the plague. their customer service is abysmal.
A lot of Americans don't seem to understand their country. You only got freedom of speech protection from your government. NOT from your fellow citizens be they people or cooperations. See that church that celebrates dead soldiers AND in turn the bike riders who block them from view.
Free speech does NOT mean everyone has to let you speak.
Or else you let me into YOUR house to hold my speech in your face for 14 hours straight.
If you can't even understand your own freedoms, how can you possibly hope to keep them?
MMO Quests are like orgasms:
You may solo them, I prefer them in a group.
After 15 years of business travel related to Information Security, I took a personal time-out this year and have promised myself a year (minimum) where I do not get on a commercial airliner. I'd really love it if I could make that "never again," but we'll see. Mickey Mouse B.S. like this is a huge part of why I have wanted to do it for a long time. The 'security' industry built around fear today is a multibillion dollar boondoggle that buys us an infinitesimal increase in actual personal safety, and people just tamely accept it like cattle.
no, I was serious. They're already doing this.
http://imgur.com/gallery/jTtev
I work for the Department of Redundancy Department.
If you're a white male, and you were there, would you have offered this guy your shirt to wear, and then worn his shirt? Looked the pilot and Delta employees in the eye while you put it on?
Michael J.
Root, God, what is difference?
I've flown into Israel several times. In a country where more than 75% of it's population looks (and is) middle eastern and more than 20% is Arab, most of their passenger facing security is behavioral profiling.
They put you through a 5 minute interview asking basic questions and some random ones as well and watch how you respond. If you're inconsistent or edgy, you get bumped up into a longer interview. The reason this approach won't work in the US is that the Israeli system relies on their agents being smart and perceptive where as the US system relies on technology manned by absent minded TSA folk.
My God can beat up your God. Just kidding...don't take offense. I know there's no God.
You are wrong.
Czech Republic airport security groped me twice leaving. OTOH, it was a Delta flight to JFK, so they were probably following USA requirements. ;)
Leaving Hong Kong, I was groped just outside the aircraft. I think they were looking for drugs. It was a UAL flight.
Leaving Buenos Aires, security seemed lax, but I was amazed when my luggage arrived with me, unoppened. Going into and out of Argentina at the time, we expected things to be stolen from the checked luggage.
Flying into Spain, I don't think they even x-rayed our luggage. Customs was handing a form and passport, nothing more.
Japan has been nice - no lines that I recall on multiple trips there.
Costa Rica - RUN for customs or you will be in line 3 hrs snaking through room after room after room. Maybe that has been fixed for aliens. It has been a few years.
Arriving back in the USA, I've only had any issues once out of perhaps 50 times. It was coming from Canada. Sure, there were lines and delays, but customs has been professional towards me.
JFK customs and security was odd. "say your name .... your full name" - seemed like he was looking for accents to me. Is that profiling? I have an ethinic name, but no accent.
I hope you're wearing a T that says "I'm a moron" so people can save themselves the effort of having to listen you.
This is surprising? Gallagher informed everyone in the '80s that Delta was an acronym. "Don't even let them aboard!"
Israel has ONE International airport. It's the size of New Jersey.
El Al's security system just won't scale.
Even if it did, you would see a big backlash in this country. Israeli security officers will detain you for any reason they feel like. For hours if they feel like. They are polite but essentially hostile. If you are of a Middle Eastern background (or even look like it) you WILL get questioned further than if you are lily white.
I have real respect for them, they seem to know what they're doing, but horses for courses.
Is Slashdot getting its news from RT? I mean seriously? Pravda not biased enough for you?
I was in my seat on a plane, waiting to take off for NYC for a work event.
Had settled in and was reading my kindle when the Jet Blue stewardess tapped me on the shoulder. "Nice shirt," she said.
Thanks. It was a present from my brother.
"Are you coming back from a conference?"
Um... No. Flying out to one, in fact.
"Can you take it off?"
Uh... what? The shirt? Um... Of course I could. But... that'd be weird. I'm on a plane.
"That's from a movie, right?"
Yep.
"I thought so. But can you take that sticker off of it?"
No, it's not a sticker. It's silk-screened or something like that.
"Some customers feel threatened by it."
Uggggghhhhhh. Now it all makes sense.
http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/9f70/
So I say "Sure, no problem" and start to get up to get a spare shirt out of my carry on to change into.
"Sir, the fasten seatbelt is lit!"
Um, you just asked me to change my shirt.
"You'll have to wait until we're in the air"
Really? We hadn't even left the departure terminal.
Time passes. Noise-cancelling headphones on, asleep, a tap on the shoulder. We're in the air and the seatbelt light is off.
"You can change your shirt now"
Having had time to think about it prior to dozing off, I'd decided this whole thing was ridiculous. "To whom on this plane do you report?"
Had to repeat that a few times, and it was all downhill from there. I was nothing but polite and civil, whereas this raving stewardess was just about foaming at the mouth. On her side, it got pretty heated. Passengers around me were seemingly all incredulous; comments ranged from "this is ridiculous" to "it's not worth getting arrested over".
With a heavy heart, I relented and said I was willing to change my shirt. I remained seated, though- she was blocking me from getting up as she continued to berate me for my fashion sense.
Finally I pointed out that I couldn't get up as long as she was standing where she was. She moved, I got up to grab my bag from the overhead bin and, spare shirt in hand, headed toward the back of the plane to change in the bathroom. Whoa, nutcase was back there. Went to the restroom in the front of the plane instead.
And who should I see up there? A new stewardess- one that doesn't look angry or insane!
"Excuse me, may I trouble you for your opinion on something?"
She readily agreed, so I described the situation. As I recounted the insane hassling about the shirt, the threats, etc, her jaw dropped. Her face went pale. People seated within earshot said things like "People need a sense of humor" and "This is completely absurd". She said "Sir, this is completely not a problem. You can just go back and have a seat, there's no problem at all." And then the maniac sprinted up to us and freaked out again. Sane stewardess roared her down.
I went back to my seat and had the most uncomfortable flight of my life with the lunatic stewardess looming and glaring. Haven't flied JetBlue since and have in fact gone to great lengths to avoid flying at all.
I'm not saying I support the current system; I find it deplorable and refuse to fly, going on six years.
Before the current policies (groping, irradiating, etc) began: What has been the rate of *successful* terrorist attacks over the previous 10 years? (I'm asking about actually successful attempts. I'm not talking about idiots who almost won a honorary darwin awards by setting their pant on fire, or got zerg-rushed by the rest of the passengers. Or the crazie raving lunatics who got encouraged by a cover agent who had to provide them the whole (fake) material and an actual plan, just so they would act out something [stupid] and get caught because otherwise they would have kept mumbling things and drooling alone)
How does their annual death toll compare against victims of car accidents and victims of cardio-vascular diseases ? (To take the 2 leading causes of death in the developed world). Or even compared to victims struck by lightning (to take another example of dramatic and rare cause of death) ?
My opinion is that such common sense analysis will prove that we aren't gaining much by all this theater appart from inconvenience, and that (no matter how much tragic and traumatic it has been for the victims of 9/11 and their families) the impact of terrorism is a very small and insignificant occasional bump in the statistics.
It's as useful as the simpson's tiger repellant rock.
We would gain much more by a "War on cars!!!!" and "War on burgers!!!!" than a "War on ter'rists!!!" But we still have to wait longer for those.
"Sufficiently advanced satire is indistinguishable from reality." - [Tips: 1DrYakQDKCQ6y52z6QbnkxHXAocMZJE61o ]
Everyone grab your favorite TSA Mocking t-shirt, and let's fly...
http://www.despair.com/tsatouching.html
http://boingboing.net/2010/11/16/tsa-tee-we-get-to-to.html
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Funny-TSA-T-Shirt-If-You-Touch-My-Junk-Ill-Have-You-Arrested-Rude-Tee-/380429542286
In Des Moines there's a t-shirt shop that sells one that shows two pictograms next to each other.
One a common pic used to explain bad touch to children.
The next one that uses the same pic, with the text saying "TSA Touch".
Self explanatory.
I mentioned behavioral profiling (the details of which I am not very familiar with) in my second paragraph; perhaps you didn't see it?
That you did. Sorry. I failed reading comprehension.
call your local flying club or flight school.
Most of them are hurting for students enough that their instructors are glad to take a charter flight.
The plane is a lot slower, so the flight will take a couple hours more, but thats okay since you wont be wasting those hours in security.
You'd be surprised at how expensive it isnt.
Plus they can usually get you a LOT closer to your final destination.
seems like they were foolish for thinking anyone who was a threat would so blatantly call attention to themselves, and more foolish for continuing to think so after screening. but he was foolish for needlessly drawing attention to himself, too.
not that we live in a country where common sense prevails, alas
They have a airport the size of New Jersey? Wow.
Slightly OT, but if you think this is bad, just do a search on all the hassles people who like to take pictures go through. Legally, you can pretty much take a picture of anything with certain obvious exclusions (federal buildings, nuke plant interiors, etc). Yet, there are numerous occasions where a person taking a picture is harassed: threatened with physical harm*, arrest, seizure of the phone. *In a suburb of Grand Rapids, MI, a man was seen taking a picture of a water tower. Apparently, this tower had some interesting designs on it. Anyway, a few construction workers noticed and came over to him an demanded to know what in hell he was doing, where he was from, his name. The gentleman protested that he did not have to answer their questions and walked away to a diner. The men followed him there and then called the police. Police came, checked the man out and decided there was no cause for alarm or justification for them to do anything other than take his name down. The next day, after it was reported in the local news, the mayor of Wyoming, let me repeat that the MAYOR said those men had done nothing wrong. I don't know if the man ever sued but I would have. I would have sued those construction workers and thrown in the mayor as one condoning intimidation and possibly assault.
How about if someone wore "I AM A FIRESTARTER" at a movie theater? Or how is that different than just plainly shouting "FIRE" at the theater? They're both within free speech rights, but neither explicitly says "there's a fire in this theater right at this moment."
Simple, one is a pop-culture reference and the other is a clear attempt to create havoc by making a theater full of people believe their lives are in imminent danger.
I don't think that we intentionally like harrassing innocent citizens. It's more a point of we have to make it look like we're doing something about the problem even if we don't really know exactly what to do. Profiling has sociopolitical implications on almost the same scale as having no security at all. So what we wind up with is security theater that doesn't really solve the problem, but makes everyone feel better while minimizing the ruffled feathers. It's what you get when you send gutless politicians to solve a problem.
The main thing I'm getting out of TFA has nothing to do with TSA or my country's increasingly high tolerance for tyranny.
What I'm seeing here is strong evidence that Delta doesn't honor the tickets that they sell. Delta (not TSA) kicked him off, and for no even half-sensible reason, to the point that it almost sides like an excuse (did someone else happen to board and take the seat?). It was totally arbitrary.
I don't happen to have any anti-TSA T-shirts, but I do own T-shirts, and some of them have words, and I have no fucking idea what some random employee might find offensive. ("Eek! Your shirt has the name of a metal band on it! That's the devil's music!") This time it was a comedic/mocking logo. It could also be for a competing logo (your shirt contains the word "southwest" and that's making me uncomfortable) or a political party, or the fact that you wore a T-shirt at all instead of something with buttons (yes, people who care about such things really do exist and I have no way of knowing whether or not Delta has hired one of them), or hair length, or a beard style, or skin color, or whatever.
If it happened to this guy, it could happen to anyone. It could happen to me. And for no good reason.
If you buy an airline ticket from Delta, the ticket might not "work," and not for reasons beyond anyone's control (e.g. weather) but some jerk's arbitrary whim, and you can't reasonably predict or prevent it. That sounds like an untrustworthy business. Hopefully this guy will at least have the sense to report the fraud to BBB.
And hopefully Delta will be tripping over themselves to assure the public that the guy got paid back, with a lot of extra to cover his trouble and embarrassment, and do anything and everything they can to assure people their ticket sales business is not some kind of fly-by-night scam.
"Believe me!" -- Donald Trump
After all, now there's a level of rape in this country that's acceptable, and maybe she didn't really reach that yet.
Home of the free, Land of the brave?
Wow, you guys sure are a funny bunch.
If telephones are outlawed, then only outlaws will have telephones.
What was the point of your post if not to point out the possibility that Israel's system is not preventing hijacking's?
That will fix the problem. What are you gonna do if someone hijacks a train? Make it go slower? You can't really steer it into anything.
I'm sick of this whole airplane thing. It's a joke. It's way too expensive to fly, you have to go through shit like this, and it's just not worth it anymore.
It is pitch black. You are likely to be eaten by a grue.
So I had a similar experience. It was the first time I had to op-out. After the pat down, I tested positive for explosive residue. So I had to go to their second level pat down. At this point I was pretty frustrated, and started to belittle the TSA. When they open handed my junk, I said "Did you go to school to learn to give hand jobs like that?"
Needless to say they were not very happy, but I passed their second level screening. Since they couldn't do anything more, they called AA's manager, who just came in and said "Your not flying with us today." and left.
I went out bought another ticket with Continental, and talked to their manager about what happened. He expressed how he hated the TSA. Before my ticket was even confirmed with my agent. He gave me a pass to get through security without a ticket. I go through TSA wink and the officer who I made the comment to, and flew that same day.
When I got to my destination, I went to AA's counter and asked for a refund, on my non-refundable ticket. She said the notes said "You failed TSA's screening." I said well I made it here didn't I? She called head quarters, and they gave me a full refund.
Don't you guys get it? Clearly it was how he stole their TSA logo and put it on an unauthorized t-shirt that got him in trouble.
Yeah, but this has nothing to do with TSA. Delta wasted their time just as much as the rest of the passengers, including Arijit. I don't question the validity of your claim, though. Just seemingly unrelated to yell at the TSA when they weren't at fault here.
The pilot always gets the last say because he's responsible for the hundreds of lives on every flight he takes in the air. It doesn't even have to be about a terrorist. A pilot might kick someone just because he thinks they're mentally unstable and might cause an incident of another kind that would endager the flight. If I were the pilot and there was a bunch of TSA activity and commotion surrounding one of my passengers before boarding, I'd kick him too. I don't even want to know the details, or who's really right, or who's really at fault, or who's really a terrorist. Problem person -> go away, not worth the risk to everyone else. If you're not sane enough to just fucking blend in for half an hour and board a plane like a reasonable human being, then GTFO.
I'm as tired of the security theater as the next guy, but, Arjit's a dumbass. If you want to protest the TSA situation, do it somewhere else. The airport guys (TSA, airlines, pilots) *do* have real threats to deal with, and thousands upon thousands of lives to protect every day. The current apparatus is the only one they have available to deal with the real situation, so they work with it. Planes are launching out of these airports minutes apart (or less, depending on the airport). It's a high volume, high risk situation.
Wear your shirt downtown, or go to the TSA's business offices and protest them there. Don't be a dumbass and wear a provocative shirt about airline security to the airport and expect to make your flight.
From Arijit's blog:
Having been booted from our flight, the transit police now began to aggressively question us. At one point, I was asked where my brother lives (he was the one who gifted me the shirt). A bit surprised by the irrelevant question, I paused for a moment before answering.
“You had to think about that one. How come?,” she asked. I explained he recently moved. “Where'd he move from?” “Michigan,” I respond. “Michigan, what's that?,” she says. At this point, the main TSA agent who'd questioned me earlier interjected: “He said ‘Michigan’.” Unable to withhold my snark, I responded with an eye-rolling sneer: “You've never heard of Michigan?”
This response did not please her partner, a transit cop named Mark. Mark grabbed his walkie-talkie and alerted his supervisor and proceeded to request that he be granted permission to question me further in a private room. His justification?: “First he hesitated, then he gave a stupid answer.” Michigan, my friends, is a stupid answer. And then, he decided to drop any façade of fair treatment: the veil was lifted, this was about who I was and how I looked: “And he looks foreign.”
Clearly Mark meant "this guy is annoying me" when he said "then he gave a stupid answer". Including that as a reason for asserting special authority over someone should be highly forbidden, carrying jail sentences in especially heinous circumstances (though I wouldn't call this especially heinous). The problem is that it is hard to prove because the kind of people who make asses out of themselves will usually also open themselves up to other kinds of bad things that can be used as a cover - if nothing else such things can be made up. What should really happen is that they should send undercover people in whose job it is to make an ass of themselves in a 100% legal and allowed way. At that point anyone who inappropriately uses their authority to interfere with them in an inappropriate way will be on the hook. For example getting into an interview in an innocent way, then proceed to mock the interviewer while giving completely innocent answers.
It's more like wearing a t-shirt at a theater that says "Water sucks."
Ben Gurion airport handles 12~13 million passengers per year
JFK International* in New York handled ~47 million passengers last year.
Atlanta International handled ~92 million passengers last year and they are #1 airport in the world.
Naked racism aside, El Al's security methods are not trivial to scale up 5x.
Especially not in old airports like JFK/Newark/LaGuardia which were built in the 30s/40s/50s and do not have space
*Adding Newark and LaGuardia gives you #2 traffic in the world and the #1 most crowded airspace. /I don't include London's network of airports because they're very spread out compared to NY // http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World's_busiest_city_airport_systems_by_passenger_traffic
[Fuck Beta]
o0t!
First sensible post.
If they didn't like TSA Sucks shirts, I'd go with Fuck Delta shirts next time.
Be seeing you...
The TSA is a symptom of a government that recently realized the chains of checks and balances, of democratic feedback and public accountability, and of the constitution are off. It's a symptom not a disease. Whatever you do about the TSA you'll have an out-of-control government passing patriot act number 5.
If video games influenced behavior the Pac Man generation would be eating pills and running away from their problems.
from http://shirt.woot.com/offers/threat-level-doctorow: Wear this shirt to: reassure your fellow citizens with a message of anxiety and suspicion. Don’t wear this shirt to: an airport security checkpoint, or anywhere near a secure federal installation.
I wrote a complaint to Delta suggesting their behavior was anti-american and disrespectful to our rights. There are already enough violation of our rights occurring on our way to the gate. Airlines, especially American born and bread, should have more respect for that. Use the online comment form or just mail it to corporate headquarters if you are against this behavior.
fish
I been asked:
Where are you from?
Are you Jewish? Did you have a bar mitzvah? On what date?
Why are you coming to Israel?
Where are you staying? For how long?
Do you know anyone here? What are their names? How do you know them? Will you visit them?
Do you speak foreign languages? Which ones? Can you say something for me?
I see you've been to X country in your passport, what did you do there?
What do you do? Once I had a drum with me and they asked if I could play something for them.
They will sometimes get combative with you; I think it's part of the test to see how you respond.
My God can beat up your God. Just kidding...don't take offense. I know there's no God.
Israel does horrible things to people that hijack airplanes. Their families, their friends... anyone involved...dead. That is why they don't have hijackings anymore.
...the TSA doesn't believe that they have the ability to control the problems at hand.
due to the discomfort the shirt had caused
and would have been left wondering what shirt was being discussed, and why it had caused discomfort.
systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
May I present to you today a new form of security theatre: I put my hands onto the wifes cunt; my assistant feels the husbands cock, I squeeze the daughters ass and the touch sons balls - then we start on the baby...
Jesus! What do do you call a service like that?
The Security Aristocrats
They told me if I voted for McCain, we'd see companies refusing service to those who question the government... and they were right!
http://arijitvsdelta.blogspot.co.uk/
He mentions on there that the shirt was designed by Cory Doctrow, and can be acquired here:
http://shirt.woot.com/offers/threat-level-doctorow (it's currently sold out, though).
There's no place I could be, since I've found Serenity...
That's odd. In the America I grew up, on a military base surrounded by F-4 Phantom jets and armed men ridiculously overqualified to kill you, on the school on that base I was taught to QUESTION AUTHORITY, to HOLD AUTHORITY ACCOUNTABLE, that my father and his colleagues practiced the bloody art of mayehm to KEEP US FREE, not to kowtow to those in authority.
I was taught that we routinely hold elections so we could hold elected officials, referred to as PUBLIC SERVANTS, accountable for their actions. I grew up among armed men in uniform who took me to national monuments and proudly declaimed that We the People were the source of authority, that men in uniform always, always, ALWAYS deferred to a civilian commander in chief.
Reading your post sounds odd to someone raised by the sound of Phantom and Tomcat jets. Respecting authority for authority's sake was something we said the Commies and the Nazis did. :-) Americans were born free and bowed to no one. Give me Liberty or Give Me Death. Don't Tread on Me.
Of course, I'm sorry. Reading your post, I assume you must come from some tragic country like Burma or North Korea where you have to bow and scrape just to get by. Please send our warmest regards and deepest repect to Aung San Suu Kyi, who knows more about what it means to be an American than you ever will.
Hey, wait a minute. Cartman? Eric Cartman?! Is that you Cartman?
He put his boots up on the table and made a face. "The sig," he smirked. "You can waste your life in search of the sig."
Israeli security is a PITA for non-Jews. I will never go to Israel again, anyone I have business with can come visit me in a civilized country.
The Mormons have anti-TSA slogans on their magic underwear.
Also kind of ironic you guys have to read about these things on a Russian site. Oh how the mighty have fallen.
If all else fails, immortality can always be assured by spectacular error.
Isn't it about time somebody sued those a-holes?
I was scheduled to fly from Boston to LA on 9/11, but cancelled the day before to go to a meeting at Oracle's office up in Nashua.
With the mess I wasn't able to book a flight for my CA trip until the following week, and the security lines were unlike anything I'd ever seen. I was in the middle of a line well over a hundred passengers long, with my colleague Arun. A security guard strolled down the line, stopped at Arun and said, "Sir, you have been chosen for a random security check." "I'm with him," I said. "Do you want to do me too?" "That won't be necessary," the security guard said. Arun was a good sport about it, but they picked him out because he was the only brown person in the line. Isn't it kind of useless to pat down the brown suspect when his white companion gets a free pass?
Anyhow I suspect the issue here is the same: flying while South Asian. If this were a white man it wouldn't have been an issue. We haven't come far from September 2001. Americans are still suspicious of people who look different. Sikhs still get grief because even after eleven years still we can't get it through our fat heads they aren't Muslims.
Post may contain irony: discontinue use if experiencing mood swings, nausea or elevated blood pressure.
I'm sure that you can understand that there's a big difference between "pointing out that X is possible" and "claiming X is true".
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You should at least mention that RT is a Russian government funded entity that is pro Kremlin and anti-U.S. Their particular brand of shit stirring is to exacerbate ethnic tensions and point out how badly the U.S. is run and how Moscow is the beacon of justice.
I have the same shirt, bought it years ago from woot.com .... the shirt was a joke. http://shirt.woot.com/offers/threat-level-doctorow
What I experienced in Israel was dedicated security lines/areas for a single flight.
1) Domestic flight took me 90 minutes to clear once I got to the front of the line (About 2 hours total to clear security)
2) International departing flight took me 4 hours to clear security from near the front of the line.
The security was certainly comprehensive. It did include plenty of touching with a chemical pad, though not a full pat-down.
Yep, another reason I refuse to fly. It use to be in the USA, you were FREE to travel as you wish. But, now we have the TSA goons groping everyone, now they are checking trains, some bus lines etc. How long until on toll roads you are asked "I want to see your papers!" Until the American public fights back, the government will keep infringing upon your rights as an American citizen. Those that give up liberty, in the name of freedom, DESERVE NEITHER!
Silly you indeed. "Rule 1" applies to the government as relates to those inside USA territory (whether citizens or not). It has nothing to do with a private company or other people.
One thing: While they may refuse to let you on a flight, you have a legally binding contract with them (you should really read those plane tickets and the laws related to them sometime), and they are legally required to complete their contract. Either with them or on another carrier. There are situations in which they can break that, but none of those apply here. And in those cases they are required to cover the costs (including any reasonable hotel, restaurant and incidental costs) to make you whole and get you to your destination. So it's not analogous to a Starbucks. They can't just "kick you out". Also, if Star Buck had already taken your money, but not yet delivered your drinks and whatever else you purchased, thay can't just kick you out. They would have to:
a) refund your money, or
b) fulfill the contractual sale.
But airlines can't just refund your money and leave you potentially stranded far from your home, or your destination. Unless you are on a no fly list, or for other legal reasons. They can refuse to allow you to board if not properly attired. But since he consented to change his shirt, they didn't have that for a reason. Too bad he didn't know his full rights, and make them put him on a competitors flight at their cost.
If you are in the military and a general comes, you salute him even if you hate his guts, and you don't give him the middle finger.
Nope. You absolutely don't salute Him. Unless he has personally done something that has earned your respect, you're never saluting him.
You're saluting the uniform. You always, always, always salute the office, not the man. The office, again, is a function of the People of the United States, and a symbol of our highest ideals. That uniform is a walking implementation of the idea that "All men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights..." That's why it's worthy of a salute, because it carries an Idea, not just Power. That's why the Oath you swear when you pick up a gun is always to the Constitution, never a man.
If all that uniform carries is Power, if the only thing a uniform has to offer is Force, then "it is [your] right, it is [your] duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for [your] future security."
It chills me to my bones to hear an American claim that a government official should be respected simply because he has brute force behind him. Whatever happened to "the Spirit of '76?"
He put his boots up on the table and made a face. "The sig," he smirked. "You can waste your life in search of the sig."
The TSA isn't at fault on this one.
BUT:
TSA agents are tasked with making US citizen feel safe. It's a show.
TSA agents are underpaid.
TSA agents have a very stressful job. (ask any level1 help desk guy....)
AND
TSA agents have guns.
TSA agents have more legal power than cops.
Am I the only one to see something wrong here?
Unfortunately, that's not true. Having enjoyed the pleasure of both, I would rank Germany's groping procedures to be roughly on par with America's. Probably slightly worse, actually. Also, they're jerks about it. American TSA agents at least pretend to be nice.
You are being attacked. Defend yourself. Carry a device capable of recording audio, and preferable video, at all times and upload the interesting and unusual to the web. Once we have 10K of people's experience being sexually assaulted, assaulted, harassed, embarrassed and demeaned something will be done about it.
They are only getting away with this because The Public doesn't know or doesn't care.
If you have a moral objection to an order, you are obligated to make your concerns known. However, making your concerns known does not have to happen immediately.
Were you asleep that day? Does "Nuremburg" ring a bell? How about "My Lai?" If you have a moral objection to an order, you PUT YOUR DAMNED WEAPON DOWN! Your official scripted response is "I'm sorry, sir, but that is an unlawful order and I cannot follow it." The military makes it crystal clear that not only do you have a duty to refuse an unlawful order, but you will be prosecuted and punished if you follow that order and commit a crime. You absolutely do not "wait until later." You refuse that order right then, right there, or pay the price later for following it.
Seriously, you can't tell the difference between saluting the office and saluting the man? It does have a touch of subtlety, I grant you. Were you an Aggie by any chance? :-)
He put his boots up on the table and made a face. "The sig," he smirked. "You can waste your life in search of the sig."
Bear with us, Lucratius. We're young, just over 200 years old. It seems every nation has its fits of insanity -- Germany/Japan 1930, France 1793, Spain 1480, etc..., and this seems to be ours. Most of us don't even remember our own core values of Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness, let alone the sister declaration of "Liberté, égalité, fraternité." I hold out hope that one day we will read the inscriptions chiseled into stone on our monuments and try to rediscover what they mean.
We seem to have lost our courage as well as our heart. We tell ourselves that deciding to be craven bastards is merely being "realistic." We're so terrified we'll break even our own rules to bow down to anyone who will promise to keep us safe. We're so insecure that we attack even the idea of expertise, lest it make us feel even more inadequate.
We follow people who exploit that fear to steal amounts of wealth so obscene it's a blasphemy against God. We're so afraid of the demands that God Almighty would place on us that we've decided to bow down before the idea that we're the only people God loves, and He loves us so much He no longer requires us to feed the hungry, heal the sick, clothe the naked or visit the imprisoned.
It's bad, but we've been worse. We came through the Civil War with most of our ideals intact, though Lincoln did basically try to cancel civil rights for a time. We seem to be repeating the Great Depression, and the shoots and beginnings of a new "New Deal" are starting to show through the cracks. We may yet drag out and dust off the old Frank Capra, Audie Murphy, and Woodie Guthrie that can show us the way back to the light. We may yet find our courage, we may yet remember our heart.
At the very least Lucratius, try to remember that some of us are trying.
He put his boots up on the table and made a face. "The sig," he smirked. "You can waste your life in search of the sig."
I was just in the UK and when I set off the metal detector I was patted down. Still not sure what set it off, but it's not only the US that pats down passengers, as I found out.
Only because you set off the detector. That happens at every airport. What the US airports do is pat you down regardless.
I was all set to agree with you guys completely, until I saw the shirt. It repeats the acronym ZOMG a half-dozen times. As someone who has never sent (and will never send) a text message my first thought was that ZOMG is a variant of ZOG, Zionist Occupation Government; which is the acronym neo-Nazis use whenever they're pissed that the Feds won't let them murder Jewish people. I googled it, and found it's harmless, solely because I couldn't figure out whether it meant Zionist Occupied Military Government or Zionist Occupation Military Government. To anybody a) knowledgeable about white supremacism and b) not knowledgeable about the new variant of OMG going around this shirt does not look like a joke the ZOMGs that are supposed make it more whimsical look like a threat.
Don't get me wrong. I love the guy. Poopstrong's ability to get health insurance to actually cover his cancer treatment was great. And he probably wouldn't have been in trouble if his name had been John Freeman. But sometimes you just got to understand that humor does not translate generations, and making a joke old people won't get about blowing up a plane is not adult behavior.
And how much extra time did it take to kick them off. And, last I checked, this is America - or what is left of it.
You can't yell fire in a crowded building as a joke and you can't wear a inappropriate shirt onto a plane if you want to fly!
Ok, so there are morons working for our airlines and many of us have experienced travel issues associated with this. I find them and the TSA frustrating. Actually, I'm torn on who is more obnoxious from a travel inconvenience perspective at this point (seriously bad experiences with United)... and that is really saying something given how idiotic a lot of the security inspections are.
However, what I am wondering is if people question the things they see posted on state sponsored media outlets like RT at all. Just like the US engages in propaganda overseas, other countries do too. They would be stupid not to, especially since the internet makes it so easy to reach people. There was a time in the US when people learned about this stuff in public schools and were told to think critically about propaganda. Unfortunately, with the erosion of public education, we don't see this anymore. This site seems to be a pretty transparently obvious anti-US propaganda site from Russia. Maybe they're sharing stories that will hold up to a little fact checking and maybe they're sharing stories that are biased, exaggerated, and cherry picked to convey the most negative view of the US possible, especially to US citizens. As their tagline says: Question More. It applies to their site and motivations as well.
I can see an 18 year old college freshman pulling this kind of stunt, but not a 31 year old doctoral student.
It's his own fault for testing the authority of the TSA and the airlines.
Personally, I will not willingly fly commercially ever again because of the indignity of it all, but if circumstances dictated that I must, I would certainly keep my views to myself during the screening process.
We live in a democratic republic and there are more effective ways to express one's opinions.
Perhaps the student was not a citizen and did not fully understand our laws and system of government.
Israel has ONE International airport. It's the size of New Jersey.
... Given New Jersey is slightly larger than the Nation of Israel, this seems unlikely. Did you mean it's the size of Newark?
"Freedom of Speech" is NOT FREE. If people don't like what you're saying, you should expect to pay the price or shut up.
distract from the very real issues.
I hope this guy, who is clearly a douche, was inconvienced, didn't get a refund for the tickets, and got his ass kicked for royally screwing up everyone else's travel plans.
Flying sucks bad enough nowadays without jerks like this making it an even more miserable experience.
If not, keep voting Democrat and Republican. They will find the limits to your tolerance eventually. If you want to be safe and stable, try a dictatorship. Oh wait, that's what we have. We just have multiple dictators.
Grar II
so, two things. you are responsible for your actions and you must understand others rights in what you do on public transportation. freakin walk.
that TSA would have shit fit if somebody wore a shirt with Arabic words written on it. It could say "I Love TSA" but their inability to use proper judgement would hinder their ability to know that there was no threat.
TSA needs to be abolished. It's a bullshit billion-dollar tax-supported organization that's a waste of time and money. Their primary purpose is to provide jobs to people that can't get normal mall-cop jobs.
Problem is that the people that run the country all fly private. Only us plebs have to fly commercial.
On the other hand I wouldn't entrust America to do profiling either. They would surely get it wrong, too.
I presume this was nothing compared to what his wife did to him later.
Then being censored for doing nothing more than mocking suposed censorship. Thus proving its gone way to far.
I also don't understand what a slogan on a t-shirt has to do with security. Its not a knife, a gun, a bomb. Words on a t-shirt don't jump up and kill anyone.
I don't have to fly. So I don't, a pitty for anyone who does.