Originally Posted by
AngryMiller
So it is nice to hear something positive about your organization. I traveled for a living on both sides of 9/11 and immediately noticed the differences when TSA came into existence in airport security. People who previously staffed security were polite while those that replaced them were quite often rude and brusque. Due to frequent short time frame flights (get called in the morning to travel that afternoon) I got the dreaded SSSSS on nearly every ticket. I got the pre induction to prison frisk at the security gate and then on every leg of my flight at the gate. Lots of fun eh? Within the first six months of TSA's inception, your management managed to do irrepairable damage to itself. Valid complaints were routinely dismissed as 'you don't understand how important it is do this.' Abuse from your coworkers towards travelers didn't help the PR situation at all.
When Evolution of Security came into existence we hoped that it would become a tool for the traveling public to provide feedback to TSA so TSA could fix broken things. After just a few months many realized that all EOS was was a Potemkin Village and nothing we said had any influence whatsoever on TSA. Had EOS acted on some of the things people brought up your organization would have been looked on in a positive light rather than held up for ridicule. Again a chance to improve things got lost, possibly forever.
Gsoltso, your management let you and your coworkers down. TSA management failed the American people as well. You've commented over at Trollkiller's site that you don't like coming over to FT because of all of the hostility towards your organization. When passengers face an unresponsive organization who do they lash out at first? Management? Hardly. They go after the people they come in contact with even if those people aren't responsible for the policies they enforce. Take a look at what people want TSA to do and in most cases we're on the same page. Take a look at what people want TSA to stop doing and we're diametrically opposed.
As to knowing about 9/11, my son flew SAR missions on 9/11 over the site of the WTC in the hope of bringing someone out alive. Constantly reminding us of 9/11 doesn't help your cause. TSA didn't exist on 9/11 and with the screening regulations in place then couldn't have prevented it from happening.
TSA Blog is not really a potemkin, it is a forum for anyone that wants to participate. I agree that the agency is not going to act on every issue posted on. The problem with expecting huge amounts of change based on a handful of posts on the blog page is the blog page is only a source of information and opinion at best. Bob gets the posts, forwards info up the chain and where it goes after that is based on the internal heirarchy. Some things get addressed, and changed, some get tossed because it is impossible to implement at this time. At least the blog is fairly balanced in that they allow anything within the guildelines to make it onto the page. I agree that there should be more information to the public, but there are things I am not aware of with the head shed. I really think there is a lot more positive press on the agency than you realize. I keep posting here that for every bad experience with the organization, there are a thousand that are either neutral or positive.
I am sorry that you had to go through the SSSSSs so often, it sucked and now the organization has changed a lot of the rules governing that process and the number of people out there getting SSSSs is miniscule. It took a while to get it right, but they did get it done. The ID issue is being hashed out at this time between headshed members. I understand both sides of the issue (the papers please stuff I ignore) the folks that think it is stupid to have to change all of their IDs to match each others, reservations a J. C. Smith now have to be Jason Complex Smith or there is a problem at the TDC. That is a valid complaint, changing your frequent flyer miles account shouldn't be required either, but that is a separate issue with the airlines. I also understand the importance of keeping certain individuals that are proven risks off of airplanes, by getting the correct info about the persons flying, it is easier to prevent them entering. I also understand the argument that no self respecting terrorist worth a penny would use his/her real name to fly. By causing them to obtain false documents, you increase your chances of catching the individual in several ways.
I am glad and sad that your son was flying SAR in NYC. Glad that he was there to help, and sad that he had to endure the situation in the first place. I do not use 9/11 like many people try to. It still means a great deal to me, even though by pure luck I had no friends or family involved in it (I think I am like 1 of 12 people nationwide that didn't), for that I am grateful. The fact that some souped up loonies with box cutters killed thousands of people in MY country really pi$$es and saddens me. It reminds of just how crappy some people out there really are.