saulblum

That arm lifting must have triggered her SPOT micro-expression radar.

goalie

Which is why I am very careful not to raise my arm above my sore shoulder when putting my jacket back on but I'm vlso ery surprised that she just walked away didn't snag you for a secondary screening right then and there. Makes me feel real safe that she only knows part of her job

chollie

I can't raise and hold my arm.

Sometimes it's kind of silly. When I get directed to the NoS, I explain my limitations, get told I'm an 'opt-out', and a groper is summoned. Sometimes the 'traffic director' tells the groper that I'm an 'opt out' because I can't raise my arm.

We march over to the shoeprints, I spread my legs, lift one arm shoulder high, move the bad one away from my body and....the groper tells me to raise both arms.

The silliest gropers are the ones who stop, look at me, and then say 'You have to raise both arms for the patdown'.

If they're not going to be allowed/required to think and exercise common sense and good judgment on the job, then their training (joke) should be a lot more comprehensive than it is. This 'we never see anyone with this problem' doesn't (pun intended) fly at major hub airports.

I feel for our returning wounded vets if they start flying regularly. Many of them are going to be either unable to assume and hold the position for the NoS or for the grope, or they're going to be Pre-check'd, only to get groped when they alarm the WTMD because of shrapnel, prosthetics or replacement joints.

RadioGirl

I don't think there's any doubt about this, is there? It appears that they are actively discouraged from thinking or exercising common sense and good judgment.
The sad thing is that their training probably enforces the stupid behavior you experienced, rather than eliminating it. The groper is probably "trained" to tell the passenger "you have to raise both arms" regardless of how the groping came about: regular opt-out, medical-can't-assume-position exemption, random feel-up or post-NoS resolution.

Despite their idiotic excuses about being unpredictable, TSA seems to value a foolish consistency in things like this. "Step 1 of the patdown is to tell the passenger to raise both arms." Not "If they're exempt from the NoS because they can't raise their arms, you'll have to work with whatever position is comfortable for them."

The stupidity of patting down bare arms/legs or bald heads is another example. Various people here have justified it on the basis that it's "easier" for the screener - meaning they don't have to do all that tricky "thinking" - to do the same patdown on a passenger in a tube-top and short shorts that they would do for someone in a sweatshirt and cargo pants.

chollie

You're right, of course, although that approach can be risky.

If you dumb the job down to complete auto-pilot, the chances can actually end up being greater, rather than less, that something significant will be missed. If the job is too routine and boring, the TSO can sort of 'zone out' too much.

It is possible to 'zone' and still snap back to alertness when something odd registers, but that takes a skill that I'm not sure can be taught.

bdschobel

Many TSA employees are incapable in the first place of learning skills -- the ones needed to do their own jobs or any other jobs. They are pretty close to the dregs of society. No offense intended; it's simply the truth. Let's not pretend that this problem could be corrected with better "training."

Bruce

InkUnderNails

You are quite correct. It took me years to figure this out.

This is what my job requires. I have to look at and inspect hundreds of possible failure points on a machine before I find one that is actually in failure mode. It requires an incredible amount of attention to detail, but that is part of my makeup, so it seems easy. I have tried to teach it, and it is almost impossible to learn. It is human nature to get bored looking when seemingly nothing is wrong.

I think this explains part of the TSA madness. The trainers know this. So, they make innocent things into catches, just so they do not get bored looking and quit looking. Bottles of water, tiny knives, simple little non-dangerous things are part of the "good catch" routine because they are common and allows them to always be finding stuff. It may not matter, but they feel it is important so they continue to look.

Fredd

The same concept as used on the CBP beagle brigade, right?

Now they are cute.

RadioGirl

Oh, believe me, I'm not advocating dumbing down to a one-size-fits-all approach. Mainly because one size doesn't fit all (you shouldn't be told to raise your arms after you've just said you can't) but there's also the boredom problem.

But with the people TSA hires, getting them to do anything more complicated could be a struggle:

InkUnderNails

Asking a beagle to look for bacon? He will be there 24/7, ready and willing. He will work tirelessly as long as there might be some bacon. If he ever finds any, he will never stop.

Not only cute, but he looks smarter than most........oh, never mind.

FearFree

Key phrase is "raise and hold" my arm in that position. While you may have the dexterity to physically move your arm above your shoulder, it may cause some slight pain to do so, and you are not physically able to hold it in that position for any length of time greater than a moment.

mikeef

Just be glad you don't have an amputated arm. You might never be able to fly.

Mike

Darkumbra

Depends if you had it with you or not.

MichaelKade

Let them know at JFK I was unable to raise and hold left arm. They told me it was OK and that I could just leave left arm down and they would clear it after. I was caught so off guard I said OK and ended up getting blasted. :-(

FriendlySkies

I don't even specify which arm. Just say that I can't lift my arms, and the WTMD is magically opened up. Have not been groped since July ^ (combination of SDOO, 100% on Pre-Check, and shoulder trick).