Originally Posted by Bart

In some things yes and in some things no. For example, (and I don't want to lead to this turning into a merged thread), the TSO who patted down the six year old girl followed procedure to the letter. However, I believe that she should have had a degree of latitude specifically for patting down small children. Example: I agree that patting down the inside of the waistband was not necessary, and that patting down the waistband from the outside would have been sufficient. However, the TSO does not have that latitude.

As for prohibited items, yes, should be pretty black and white. On the plus side, you have to admit that this is far better than when we originally had to prohibit scissors, small screwdrivers, cigar cutters and other similar items. Of course, we took a step backwards when we decided to prohibit liquids, gels and aerosols.