Originally Posted by
cordelli
What is your source that the TSA was involved in the spread of measles?
The same source as your question.
Originally Posted by cordelli
It's nice to blame the TSA for everything, but it's a bit over the top to assume they are spreading a virus so far there is no indication of an outbreak at all (granted it's still too early to know, but considering most people in the US have either had it or were vaccinated against it, there's little chance of an outbreak).
For a virus to spread, there need not (yet) be an indication of an outbreak.
Whether or not the TSA is spreading measles, there is no reason to doubt that the TSA is contributing way more to the spread of viruses by way of its selection of procedures than would otherwise be the case if the TSA were to behave like airport security in most parts of the world.
Originally Posted by cordelli
Measles is not spread through skin contact, you can't get it because somebody touches an infected person and touches the next person.
While outbreaks of measles are usually the result of airborne transmission, physical contact of some sorts could be involved in some circumstances of the virus transmission too.
Originally Posted by cordelli
If there is an outbreak, it's far more likely it was to those sitting around them at the gate or on the plane when they coughed or sneezed then it was from the TSA screening.
The prime candidates for immediate exposure to such a virus are indeed those whom you mention, yet the TSA employees handling passenger boarding passes and IDs and doing "enhanced" pat-down gropes are prime candidates for being force multiplier vehicles of communicable diseases as they have more time in closer face to face proximity with many more passengers than any given passenger does with most people on the flight. Hopefully those TSA employees have been MMRd before this month and none avoided the vaccine (whether for religious reasons like the UA passenger or otherwise).
Cutting out the TSA's boarding pass-ID checks and enhanced pat-down gropes would actually reduce the risk of the TSA spreading communicable diseases and be better off for the well being of passengers.