Originally Posted by
FliesWay2Much
I've got to believe that, in addition to using SSI to hide information from the public (and Congress) that SSI is also used as a clerkforce motivational tool. You create SSI, tell the clerks that this information is essential to national security and can't be disclosed, and they respond by feeling important. SSI and cop-like uniforms are two key ingredients in the TSA's social engineering approach.
It also provides a sort of 'cover' for the unchecked exercise of 'screener discretion'. Screeners can claim that there are SSI rules for confiscating medical nitro pills, for example, and there is absolutely nothing a pax can do to challenge the confiscation.