loops

Things minus intent or opportunity to be exploited by others is meaningless static in the argument. Not only will an object oriented security approach inevitably fail, it will absorb resources that could be better spent elsewhere.

If I may take metaphorical liberties...

In a vast sea of travelers, the lone terrorist is a very rare fish. How much sense does it make to cast wide drag nets throughout the ocean that entangle every other fish in the sea no matter the cost to perhaps find one odd fish among all the rest? Hasn't that type of fishing been outlawed in many places due to environmental impact? Also, please define "good catch".

N830MH

Yeah, waste their time. They are wasting the taxpayer. They are un-American agency. TSA doesn't listening to those customer. Those passengers who had it right to kept the shoes on. There is nothing wrong the shoes. All I can say Enough is enough! It's time to move on to kept the shoes on and they have relaxed the shoes policy. They cannot wait for any much longer!

Caradoc

What, like the standard TSA employees?

WillCAD

I'm glad these things failed.

Taking off my shoes, while useless and time-consuming, is one of the most minor problems I have with TSA, so much so that I'll absorb that one with little complaint. I don't mind that shoes are screened by passing through the x-ray scanner - but I would mind if my feet were in them when they were x-rayed. I would mind if my feet were in them when some government actor has to examine them in any way, because I don't want those government actors or their machines to have any direct access to my body, even my feet.

I don't know exactly what these shoe scanners would have done, but if they see inside the shoes while they're on your feet, it's a pretty safe bet that they use ionizing radiation, which is inherently unsafe to use on mass quantities of people. My guess is that TSA may have been informed by their legal department that the use of such penetrating x-rays on live human beings would have been governed by the same regulations as medical x-ray devices, and that there were no ways to get around the safety regs. But that's just a guess.

Fredd

Maybe they should just bring back the shoe store fluoroscopes.

exbayern

I believe that you'll be absorbing this for a long time to come. Without a replacement for the shoe carnival, I can't see TSA stopping it. They would have to admit that it was a useless exercise put on for show for almost a decade, and that they are behind other countries in terms of screening.

I can't see them doing that; they are far too arogant, and if anything they will spin it that the US is superior to rest of world and the shoe carnival is proof of that.

And while you may not have an issue with it, it is more than just a minor inconvience for millions of elderly or physically impaired individuals. Bending down to remove shoes without even having chairs, or assistance, can be very difficult for many people. Forcing people to do that as just another useless exercise is one more way that they can control people.

Fredd

Many if not most of the screening areas provide less than adequate seating - actually none I've noticed for shoe removal. I'm actually surprised I haven't read about any lawsuits resulting from injuries sustained by people trying to take their shoes off or put them back on, e.g. broken hips.

exbayern

And yet in countries where shoe removal isn't required, there is often seating at/after the checkpoint. FRA even has kiddie chairs at some checkpoints. Allowing people time to repack/regroup in comfort after screening seems to reduce the stress level.

(Oh, sorry, what on earth was I thinking?!)

BadgerBoi

We have adequate seating in Syd, at least at the Qantas domestic terminal - this is a blessing when I escort my mother to a flight. We don't have compulsory shoe removal cabaret, but her favourite pair of flying shoes have something in them that often, but not always, makes the machine go "ding" as she passes through, so she has to remove them etc etc etc.

I always go in front of her (we can, of course, enter the sterile area even if not flying) and collect her handbag, keys etc for her so that I can collect her belongings and have them safely in my hand for her as she takes her seat to put her shoes back on. She is at an advanced age and I have no idea how we would manage the balancing act if she couldn't sit down.

exbayern

I stopped wearing a pair of Aerosoles because they often ding the WTMD in Europe and in Canada. Screeners seem to know that they have the metal shank. Now I just wear my favourite brand GEOX and they don't ding. Usually if they did ding, the screener would nicely suggest taking them off and leaving them past the WTMD (ie they didn't bother to scan them as they seem to know which types of shoes set it off)

I have a memory of shopping with an American colleague somewhere in the US in the early part of this century, and we were in a shoe shop (perhaps Rockport?) which had a machine to check if one's shoes would cause the WTMD to ding or not. I suppose that those no longer exist in the US, but we had fun trying out our shoes.

BadgerBoi

My mother's shoes don't always ding (and if they do, they'll only do it in Syd, never BNE which are the two airports she usually travels between). After our latest outing I realised that there was one machine in SYD that doesn't seems to ding her shoes, so we'll be using this one from now on.

She won't wear any other shoes for flying, but since this is the one part of the adventure that absolutely never causes her anxiety then it doesn't matter really. I actually think that she prefers to "ding" because it assures her that the security is working As a side issue, interaction with our airport security people is never unpleasant in my experience.