Another nightmare at PHX
Just received call from Mrs. EX. She was leaving PHX this morning with her mother. Mother is 89 years old, has terminal cancer, weighs 67 pounds, has a colostomy bag and English paperwork from Japanese Government stating so. She speaks no English. They herded everyone through the new machine. Then they select Mother as well as Mrs. EX for extra pat down. Why? No one knows. They get separated, Mother understands nothing. Mrs. EX is not allowed to translate or assist. They call for a Chinese speaking screener, which of course is totally unhelpful. They touch this 89 year old Great Grandmother everywhere. Imagine, how that feels for a Japanese citizen! The same with my wife. My goodness, these two little Japanese ladies are going home to Japan, for crying out loud. Incidentally, now they have no view of their belongings in the tray. After ten minutes of touching, groping and needless questioning, they are on their own to look for their belongings. Mrs. EX had two trays, one had her Rolex wristwatch inside. Now there is only one tray and the watch is missing! No help, no assistance, nothing. On top of it, now they have to rush to board. The two ladies are completely upset, crying. Mrs. EX called after arriving at LAX and from the lounge and she still is completely besides herself.
First the unpleasant experience as described in another thread in SFO, now this. It is embarrassing to have foreign guests visiting the U.S. It really is unbelievable what fliers have to go through just to catch a flight. And the return stateside is no picnic either. TSA and CBP is just the same, give these people an uniform and they sense power. When I got in this time and presented my U.S. passport to the officer, he asks me what nationality I am. How do they expect me to deal with such a stupid question???
Can someone give me some advice where to go to file a report for the missing watch?
Sorry for the rant, but these things just get to me.