Originally Posted by
Cat1099
I don't think procedures are being applied equally at all airports. When I opted out recently at Indianapolis, I was told to remove everything from my pockets, no one brought me my things off the X-ray belt, and I had to protest a bit in order to win the right to (sort of) keep an eye on my stuff abandoned on the belt during the pat-down.
This was my experience at IAH two weeks ago. See my post
here about it.
I strongly recommend that anything valuable be placed in your carry on bag in a hard-to-find location, at a minimum. Locking it is even better. I've got a small combination lock that works pretty well for my carry on bag, but my purse is another matter.