This is from my trip through the SAN Commuter Terminal on Saturday.
For those of you that have not flown through the commuter terminal, it only has four gates, and one checkpoint with one WTMD, one bksx, and two bag x-rays. Naturally, the WTMD was r
ped off, and the BKSX was primary
I was the only person going through security at the time, so the clerk seemed to dedicate most of his attention to me. I really didn't appreciate his attitude, which reminded me of
Here is our exchange:
Clerk: <points to BKSX>
Me: I have a shoulder injury, and can not raise my arms
Clerk: Alright, then you're opting out?
Me: No, this is a medical issue, and we are allowed to go through the WTMD
Clerk: I don't know where you are getting your info, but that is false
Me: Oh, really? I've had to do it four times in the past week.
Clerk: If you don't go through the BKSX, you will receive a full body pat down
Me: Go ahead and ask a three-striper if you don't believe me.
At this point, it seems that the clerk was getting annoyed because I wouldn't play along with his little game.
He kept arguing with me, which led to the TDC to step-in and say "If he's ineligible for the "AIT"
, then you open up the WTMD.
It got more interesting as the clerk began to argue with the TDC
Clerk: He said that a supervisor allowed him to go through
TDC: Then let's ask the supervisor.
Clerk: He has a medical issue, and says that he is allowed to go through the WTMD?
Three Striper: That is correct. If he is ineligible, then let him through the WTMD. He'll only get a pat-down if he alarms.
Clerk:
:sigh:
After a couple minutes of back and forth, I made it through. It's just ridiculous to see how stupid some of these people are. If I were the three-striper, I would have pulled this clerk for his rude attitude, and for arguing with the passengers. When you have fellow employees telling you that you are wrong, it's time to admit defeat, not keep arguing.
Originally Posted by
cottonmather0
Which exemplifies the cynicism and hypocrisy of the whole system. If it's such a "key" technology that is more secure than WTMD's, then you should never bypass it without resorting to a patdown.
But if the scanners and the patdowns can just be bypassed whenever things get crowded or backed up, then it must not be that critical and therefore it's not needed at all. This is what seemed to be missing from coverage of Opt-out Day, that one final step of journalistic inquiry.
Bingo :-:
I went through ORD twice this past weekend, and noticed that only 2/5 Chertoff Irradiation machines were turned on, with the rest blocked with carts. Why even run two