I agree - that's the work around for most situations. But what about people who are SSSS'd? I say again, this is a BAD policy that could have serious privacy implications (both practical and legal) for those with medical conditions or valid reasons for bringing "excluded" items.

The sample videos don't show the TSO writing on the boarding pass, but using some pad of sticky paper to presumably "authorize" the items to go through the x-ray. That is better than writing on boarding passes - but still seems unnecessary. People should be able to keep the items in their bags, and then if they get detected on the magical x-ray machine the citizen or guest of the US should be able to explain the item privately with a TSO.