Originally Posted by
LeeAnne
I have a very difficult time understanding how a terrorist could use either a wound or a tattoo to somehow smuggle a weapon onto a plane.
Why should anyone have to expose their wounds to a TSO? Why should a TSO have to "visualize" the area? What is the logic there? What could possibly be smuggled under a BANDAGE? And what purpose would be served by anyone actually touching the area, whether it's the victim or the TSO? I'm baffled. What would they be looking for? Isn't it obvious that ANY touching of a wound would hurt, regardless of who's doing it?
I will never understand why two TSOs felt it necessary to physically manhandle an elderly woman's breast with a recent surgical wound on it. What could they possibly be looking for? Is there any reason, other than to exert power, cause subjugation, and inflict pain?
LeeAnne, you are - of course - 100% correct. However, the OP is traveling TODAY and the current pat-downs are so aggressive that he must take special efforts to ensure that he is not physically hurt. What happened to your mother is terrible and I hope she will file a formal complaint with TSA and her congressional representatives, also the chairs of the congressional committees that oversee DHS and TSA.
I agree with
exbayern that the current procedures are horrendous. What's going on with the TSA at airports is antithetical to our way of life, the Constitution, and the laws of this country. I'm not so sure that the public thinks what's going on is fine, to paraphrase exbayern. Certainly nearly all of the people who frequent this particular forum think nothing of the kind.
The OP asked for advice regarding his problem as of today's trip. He is wise to be concerned that he could be injured by the aggressive searches going on in American airports. Hopefully, the practical suggestions in this thread will assist him in traveling safely today.
I do believe that the hue and cry will grow so loud that it cannot be dismissed. I've looked in vain for a political cartoon picturing an airport security area with the founding fathers watching, in tears, from the sidelines.