TSA and the War on Drugs
Dec 22, 2015, 8:23 pm
#77
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Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: An NPR mind living in a Fox News world
Posts: 14,165
I don't trust anyone in the TSA for a nanosecond who claims you don't actively look for drugs because you bought the hardware to do it.
Last edited by TWA884; Jul 19, 2016 at 9:19 am Reason: Terms not used in this forum
Dec 23, 2015, 8:15 am
#78
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Location: Finally back in Boston after escaping from New York
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Dec 1, 2016, 6:59 pm
#80
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Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 38,410
TSA agent in effect admits to looking for drugs
LAX, terminal 5.
They go digging through my bag, the item of interest turns out to be a bottle of lite salt. The agent explains the x-ray can't tell the difference between salt and certain other powders.
Afterwards, I realized that the only powder they should care about is gunpowder and the lack of anything that could serve as a pressure vessel would mean it was of no threat, either. Thus he must have meant drugs.
They go digging through my bag, the item of interest turns out to be a bottle of lite salt. The agent explains the x-ray can't tell the difference between salt and certain other powders.
Afterwards, I realized that the only powder they should care about is gunpowder and the lack of anything that could serve as a pressure vessel would mean it was of no threat, either. Thus he must have meant drugs.
Dec 1, 2016, 7:39 pm
#81
Join Date: Dec 2010
Posts: 2,425
LAX, terminal 5.
They go digging through my bag, the item of interest turns out to be a bottle of lite salt. The agent explains the x-ray can't tell the difference between salt and certain other powders.
Afterwards, I realized that the only powder they should care about is gunpowder and the lack of anything that could serve as a pressure vessel would mean it was of no threat, either. Thus he must have meant drugs.
They go digging through my bag, the item of interest turns out to be a bottle of lite salt. The agent explains the x-ray can't tell the difference between salt and certain other powders.
Afterwards, I realized that the only powder they should care about is gunpowder and the lack of anything that could serve as a pressure vessel would mean it was of no threat, either. Thus he must have meant drugs.
Dec 2, 2016, 6:13 am
#82
Join Date: Aug 2012
Posts: 3,526
LAX, terminal 5.
They go digging through my bag, the item of interest turns out to be a bottle of lite salt. The agent explains the x-ray can't tell the difference between salt and certain other powders.
Afterwards, I realized that the only powder they should care about is gunpowder and the lack of anything that could serve as a pressure vessel would mean it was of no threat, either. Thus he must have meant drugs.
They go digging through my bag, the item of interest turns out to be a bottle of lite salt. The agent explains the x-ray can't tell the difference between salt and certain other powders.
Afterwards, I realized that the only powder they should care about is gunpowder and the lack of anything that could serve as a pressure vessel would mean it was of no threat, either. Thus he must have meant drugs.
OTOH, maybe TSA assumes that most of its screeners already know what drugs look like so they forego that part of the training.
Dec 2, 2016, 10:18 am
#83
Join Date: Apr 2015
Posts: 396
Do you have proof they are trained to look for drugs?
Dec 2, 2016, 10:35 am
#84
Join Date: Apr 2015
Posts: 396
LAX, terminal 5.
They go digging through my bag, the item of interest turns out to be a bottle of lite salt. The agent explains the x-ray can't tell the difference between salt and certain other powders.
Afterwards, I realized that the only powder they should care about is gunpowder and the lack of anything that could serve as a pressure vessel would mean it was of no threat, either. Thus he must have meant drugs.
They go digging through my bag, the item of interest turns out to be a bottle of lite salt. The agent explains the x-ray can't tell the difference between salt and certain other powders.
Afterwards, I realized that the only powder they should care about is gunpowder and the lack of anything that could serve as a pressure vessel would mean it was of no threat, either. Thus he must have meant drugs.
PETN
potasium nitrate
Dec 2, 2016, 10:51 am
#85
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Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: An NPR mind living in a Fox News world
Posts: 14,165
One of the screening clerks who posts here posted fairly recently in another thread that he had been trained to look for drugs.
My personal experience was a couple of years ago when Mrs Flies and I were flying home from SEA. For some reason, she had a container of bath powder with her. Sure enough, she was flagged for a bag check and the container of powder was the only item pulled. (FYI, it was a non-metallic container and the powder was loose.)
The clerk opened the container and saw the white powder. The conversation between us went something like this:
Clerk: "Be careful when you travel with powder like this because you know what it looks like, right?"
Flies: I feigned ignorance and said, "No, I don't follow you. What DOES it look like?"
Clerk: "Cocaine..."
Flies: Feigning ignorance once again: "Wow, so you guys search for drugs?"
Clerk: "We know what to look for..."
My personal experience was a couple of years ago when Mrs Flies and I were flying home from SEA. For some reason, she had a container of bath powder with her. Sure enough, she was flagged for a bag check and the container of powder was the only item pulled. (FYI, it was a non-metallic container and the powder was loose.)
The clerk opened the container and saw the white powder. The conversation between us went something like this:
Clerk: "Be careful when you travel with powder like this because you know what it looks like, right?"
Flies: I feigned ignorance and said, "No, I don't follow you. What DOES it look like?"
Clerk: "Cocaine..."
Flies: Feigning ignorance once again: "Wow, so you guys search for drugs?"
Clerk: "We know what to look for..."
Dec 2, 2016, 12:00 pm
#86
Suspended
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Location: Watchlisted by the prejudiced, en route to purgatory
Programs: Just Say No to Fleecing and Blacklisting
Posts: 102,095
Dec 2, 2016, 12:43 pm
#87
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: DFW
Posts: 28,113
One of the screening clerks who posts here posted fairly recently in another thread that he had been trained to look for drugs.
My personal experience was a couple of years ago when Mrs Flies and I were flying home from SEA. For some reason, she had a container of bath powder with her. Sure enough, she was flagged for a bag check and the container of powder was the only item pulled. (FYI, it was a non-metallic container and the powder was loose.)
The clerk opened the container and saw the white powder. The conversation between us went something like this:
Clerk: "Be careful when you travel with powder like this because you know what it looks like, right?"
Flies: I feigned ignorance and said, "No, I don't follow you. What DOES it look like?"
Clerk: "Cocaine..."
Flies: Feigning ignorance once again: "Wow, so you guys search for drugs?"
Clerk: "We know what to look for..."
My personal experience was a couple of years ago when Mrs Flies and I were flying home from SEA. For some reason, she had a container of bath powder with her. Sure enough, she was flagged for a bag check and the container of powder was the only item pulled. (FYI, it was a non-metallic container and the powder was loose.)
The clerk opened the container and saw the white powder. The conversation between us went something like this:
Clerk: "Be careful when you travel with powder like this because you know what it looks like, right?"
Flies: I feigned ignorance and said, "No, I don't follow you. What DOES it look like?"
Clerk: "Cocaine..."
Flies: Feigning ignorance once again: "Wow, so you guys search for drugs?"
Clerk: "We know what to look for..."
Dec 2, 2016, 4:39 pm
#89
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Arizona
Posts: 5,689
Potasium Nitrate is a powder and very can be made to be very dangerous. Once ignited it is deadly in many forms. Depending on what you mix it with or even on its own. Im going to stop now and you can do your own research. If you have not terrified yourself you have not done enough research. There is another powder that would fly thru any current security screening that is even more scary. I think we should limit what is discussed. I do not want to make it easy for some crazy person or wanna be terrorist. That said you should report anything suspicious when you travel.
Last edited by Centurion; Dec 2, 2016 at 4:49 pm
Dec 2, 2016, 10:12 pm
#90
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 38,410
Potasium Nitrate is a powder and very can be made to be very dangerous. Once ignited it is deadly in many forms. Depending on what you mix it with or even on its own. Im going to stop now and you can do your own research. If you have not terrified yourself you have not done enough research. There is another powder that would fly thru any current security screening that is even more scary. I think we should limit what is discussed. I do not want to make it easy for some crazy person or wanna be terrorist. That said you should report anything suspicious when you travel.