Live Q&A With Ex-TSA Agent Jason Harrington Tomorrow 3pm ET

Jason Harrington's story pulling back the curtain on life as a TSA agent was an uncomfortable revelation to some, and a confirmation to many frustrated travelers. His descriptions of a typical day on the job highlighted why few in the security line were happy, including the agents: 'I hated it from the beginning. It was a job that had me patting down the crotches of children, the elderly and even infants as part of the post-9/11 airport security show. I confiscated jars of homemade apple butter on the pretense that they could pose threats to national security. I was even required to confiscate nail clippers from airline pilots—the implied logic being that pilots could use the nail clippers to hijack the very planes they were flying.' Jason will be sitting down with us tomorrow Friday, February 28th starting at 3pm ET (20:00 GMT) to talk with you live about security theater and life after the TSA.

Comments

Not surprising at all

[rikkards]

None of his revelations were surprising. Granted there are probably some that got sadistic glee in doing the job but I am sure most are in it for a paycheck.

Re:Not surprising at all

[i kan reed]

I wish there was some objective test that would help us identify those that enjoy hassling others. Sadly the best metric we have is childhood essays on how they want to go into law enforcement.

Re:Not surprising at all

[N1AK]

Have you seen how many people are queuing up to work as barely tolerated drones in Amazon warehouses for piss poor wages? If you think people won't do just about anything in return for a wage then you're naive.

Re:Not surprising at all

[CanHasDIY]

Have you seen how many people are queuing up to work as barely tolerated drones in Amazon warehouses for piss poor wages? If you think people won't do just about anything in return for a wage then you're naive.

Fulfilling Amazon orders for minimum wage != finger-fucking toddlers and grannies.

Talk about comparing apples to Boeing 747s.

Pilots hijacking planes

[QuasiSteve]

I was even required to confiscate nail clippers from airline pilotsâ"the implied logic being that pilots could use the nail clippers to hijack the very planes they were flying

"Ethiopian Airlines co-pilot hijacks plane to seek Geneva asylum" - http://www.bbc.com/news/world-...

Of course security theater would still be in effect regardless, considering he didn't even need any weapon. Maybe as 'ongoing efforts to strengthen air transport security', cockpits should have private restrooms ;)

Next Week

[sexconker]

Be sure to HTTP GET next week when have a live Q&A with former DMV worker Latisha Lathishus. What secrets will she reveal? This report promises to be our most revealing since Dave blew the lid off of the secrets of the Post Office!

Ask him about the five data collection centers

[WillAffleckUW]

There are more than the two you know of in the US and the one in Mexico, at least in North America.

Re:Ask him about the five data collection centers

[Minupla]

Yes, because an entry level TSA employee would know about the secret data collection centers. That'd be like saying that the NSA would allow a low level sysadmin access to top secret plans to spy on Americans... er, carry on!

Min

Advice on how to play the game

[noh8rz10]

Presumably you're fielding questions. I would like some real world advice on two things:
1) how can I get through security as fast as possible?
2) how can I minimize my chances of getting my nuts grabbed?

I'm not going to throw a principled fit at the security checkpoint because I know it won't accomplish anything at all. I'll fight my battles elsewhere. I'll play the game in line, yessir, yes ma'am, whatever. Just get me through an don't grab my nuts! I have a plane to catch and want to leave with my dignity intact.

So any advice on playing the game? That would be nice.

Re:Advice on how to play the game

[Soulskill]

We'll post a new thread when the Q&A actually starts -- he's much more likely to see your question there.

Re:Advice on how to play the game

[CelticWhisper]

As best I'm able to tell, there is no answer. I stopped flying 3 years ago (well, more now - October 2010) when they started with their policy of sexual assault because I realized that there is no way to guarantee I won't be touched. Strangers do not have my permission to place their hands on me for any reason, ever, and it was clear that there was a long list of secret reasons why these pig-thugs would take it upon themselves to force physical contact on a traveler. I've been taking Amtrak for all my long-distance trips (except for one in which my wife and I drove) and not only are there no security checkpoints (DHS poisonous-snake teams notwithstanding but I haven't run across those scum myself), the onboard experience is vastly superior to that of a plane. Definitely worth the tradeoff in speed.

The only winning move is not to play.

We heard that before

[Anonymous Coward]

I am sure they are told that this is the law, and they are doing what supervisors told them to do. We heard that before, in Nuremberg. And, by the way, did you know that if you work for the government, and you are part of a certain special class, you are not subjected to searches? Straight from George Orwell animal farm: "Certain animals are more equal than others". Also, if you are from the list of countries where US government does not have a good relationship, you are automatically patted/scrutinized. So right now Cubans, Syrians and citizens from other 6 or so countries are automatically discriminated, as Jews were. If you are part of inner party (a privileged government employee), you get Nazi rights, you can pass through without any scrutiny at all.