This article suggests that maybe what they should do is collect all sorts of information on passengers--itinerary, traveling partners, travel history, etc--and do one hour interrogations and searches on "suspicious passengers."

I can understand the objections to the body scanners and to the pat downs on children. But on adults, they are reasonable and proper. I think that what I actually experienced--it was about the same as going to the doctor and being asked to cough--was in no way a "sexual assault" or some of the other more hyperbolic language we have seen on the Internet. Further, I think they had proper procedures for handling my ostomy device in place.

This really is not all that objectionable. Is some poor TSA agent who pats down 75 people today really going to remember you? Probably not.

But if they start examining who you are flying with and conducting interrogations, you can bet that the government will have computerized records of things like marital affairs, close friendships, your favorite snack food, and prescriptions you need. The current system allows everybody to forget and forgive. Computers never forget.

http://mobile.politico.com/iphone/#_storyPage

As I was saying "Remember Cointelpro". Martin Luther King was a "person of interest".

I have no secrets. Which means my privacy is that much more precious to me.

I don't go to the airport to receive a "turn head and cough" exam (or, I guess, the female equivalent). I go there to travel. Big difference.

You know, I believe Israel does the passenger interrogation AND profiling.

I don't know a lot about what they do at Tel Aviv...maybe I can be educated.

Also, at the doctor, the exam is done for a legitimate medical reason by a person who has at least a 4 year undergraduate degree and 4 years of medical school. Not some punk off the street who had a modest background check and works for low wages.

Its been referred to as psychological profiling before. Sometimes you meet with more than one person and have a "discussion" Of course.. those folks are trained to do this and they have a system in place.

They can interrogate me all they want. Doesn't mean I have to answer.

Yeah but if we did profiling we would be discriminating and/or violating someone's rights. And our government would never do that.

Oh wait..........

To the OP, your definition of "reasonable and proper" does not coincide with that of most of the professional flyers here.

they have this already. Grocery store 'bonus' cards record what you buy regardless if you pay cash or not.

Credit card purchases.
EZ PAss


and thats just the tip of the ice berg.

hell no one would sign up for a personal tracking device, but EVERYONE has a GPS enabled Cell phone. and they happily pay outragous costs to have that personal tracking device. And for most people that cell phone never leaves their side.

Ever try turning of the GPS locater? you cant, unless you phyiscally remove the battery.

I much prefer Israels psych profiling over nude-o-scopes and gropes. Firstly there are all the reasons not to like the current TSA procedures from invasion of privacy to potential health impact to not wanting to get busted when I nail some over frisky groper.

Even more important than that though is that their system works, I feel safer on their planes, and what they do has a purpose, it's not just security theater.

And of utmost importance is my freedom. I do not like a government that thinks it can get away with forcing nude strip searches on teen girls for some lone guy in a dark room to watch. I do not like a government that thinks it can arrest and fine someone who refuses their nude strip search or grope. And I could go on and on.

As I have already posted elswhere I have been subjected to just such an interrogation after being selected for secondary. As unpleasant and disturbing an experience as that was (for making me feel like I lived in a police state), I would gladly choose 1 hour + interrogations over the nudie-scanners or sexual molestations. Of course, they aren't offering that choice, but as someone who has actually experienced a 90 minute + TSO interrogation I thought I should chime in.

You cannot be that naive!

Perhaps they are not objectionable in your Amerika. Strip-searching, frisking and fondling non-criminals are not acceptable in mine.

TSOs have no business "interrogating" anyone.