Originally Posted by NoVaRS

Four years ago, my then 11 year old son was selected for a pat down while traveling with his younger brother and my wife. As my wife describes it, as she complained the first response was DY...? and with further complaints the pat down became more thorough (granted - her description, I wasn't there). The TSA clerk then asked my son where the bomb in his backpack was.

My son didn't cry or say anything then - no, he saved the crying for the plane - and then was withdrawn during the trip (his words later to me - "why did they do that to me? why did they think I was a terrorist?"). The younger boy was also upset because he didn't want to be taken away. Now, both have been reluctant to fly (because of TSA checkpoints) and told me this weekend that they will NOT fly if it means the TSA touches them or sees them naked. I'm not claiming my kids were psychologically damaged for life by the TSA, but an event four years ago had an impact. - they both remember the event vividly.

My points in bringing up this old story? 1) A child not crying or speaking up doesn't mean there isn't damage - and not all potential damage is sexual 2) Parents can speak up but see their child pay the price (we know now we should have escalated) 3) I'm sure someone could tell me that this wasn't SOP or was an isolated incident - but when there are humans involved (who may or may not be qualified) there are always exceptions and 4) With enhanced pat downs this gets worse.