RadioGirl

Close.

What would really fix this is for TSA to stop checking IDs altogether. It contributes nothing to security and is a waste of time.

Private businesses like bars or stores or airlines can request an ID (such as a driver's license) to determine someone's age or that the person undertaking the transaction is who they say they are. And individuals can decide whether to do business - or not - with companies who make such a request.

cbn42

It is possible to fake the magnetic stripe, so scanning is not a foolproof verification of authenticity.

However, it's not really the authenticity that worries bar owners, it's the liability. In Massachusetts, for example, accepting a fake out-of-state ID could result in serious consequences. Accepting a fake local ID is much less serious because the ID is on the approved list, and therefore the business is justified in assuming that it is real.

I don't see how it would give the government any more power. At most it would transfer power between levels of government.

Another option would be to require all states and territories to issue licenses in the same format, with a field for "issuing state" name, similar to what the EU does.

If the TSA stopped checking ID, then the airlines would probably do it themselves. I disagree with your assertion that you can decide to do business - or not - with companies who make such a request. If you have a flight booked on an airline, you can't change to a different one because this airline didn't like your ID.

FliesWay2Much

I agree. While we have argued about DC Home Rule and cutting the clerk a break for a couple of pages, we can't lose sight of the fact that ID checking does nothing other than allow the TSA to be used by law enforcement agencies as a dragnet for stuff that they could never get away with themselves. Kippie said, "ID matters." and that was that.

That's why the ID checker clerks deserve to be shamed (if that's possible) for not knowing something they should have learned by 5th grade.

woodg

I am Australian and I have had more than one American ask me where I learnt to speak english. And no, they were not joking.

(On the other hand, I did meet some very intelligent Americans, too).

brandsberg

No we are NOT getting what we are paying for. That is the problem with all of our government!!!

brandsberg

And these same agents are supposed to be making educated decisions about security. Makes me question the whole system as fi I didn't have questions before this!

jkhuggins

Strictly speaking, this is correct. However, with an actual national ID card, the temptation to start requiring that specific card for all sorts of interactions with the government becomes incredibly tempting. It moves us just one step closer to a "papers, please" mentality.

On the other hand, the airlines would probably have to publicly declare, at the time of the ticket purchase, what IDs would and would not be acceptable. A consumer could use that information as one factor in their decision regarding which airline to patronize.

DCGooner

Setting aside Congressional review of DC laws, Home Rule, DC voting rights and all the Constitutional issues that get our dander up here, there's a simple explanation for all this.

There are a number federal laws that use the word "state" as shorthand but define "state" as any actual state plus DC, Puerto Rico, the territories, etc. For example, the law that establishes public housing in the US defines "state" as "the several States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the territories and possessions of the United States, and the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands." Which is how the DC Housing Authority can receive federal funding. Likewise, there are education laws that set standards and dole out education grants. That's why we in DC have an Office of the State Superintendent of Education, even though we're not a state. Same goes for the REAL ID Act and the acceptance of a DC license as if it were a state license.

Calchas

This is what we have in the UK for domestic flights. Ryanair apply the same requirements as their international services whereas BA will accept your frequent flyer card or credit card as sufficient ID. Nonetheless one usually sees most folks approaching the domestic gates with their passports in hand.

tom_MN

TSA airport screeners start at $12/hour. Similar to a supermarket cashier. What exactly are you expecting for that?

chollie

That doesn't include locality pay, uniform allowance and benefits.

I frequently get better and more consistent service from lower paid employees at the supermarket and elsewhere. And I have never had an interaction with a supermarket employee who threatened me with 'Do you want to shop today?'

FWIW, starting pay for those in the Army is similar - and they are often actually putting life and limb on the line, not just talking about it while sticking their hands down someone's pants. If they don't pay attention in training, they jeopardize their own lives and the lives of their fellow soldiers, and they will not be in a position to argue or call over a fellow employee or boss to ask how to do something they didn't pay attention to in training.

I suspect the staff who check IDs at military gates, checkpoints, commissaries and PX/BXes, like low-paid bouncers, have a better grasp on recognizing IDs than some TSOs. Perhaps it is because their management holds them accountable if they screw up - or perhaps it's because it really matters, unlike the ID checks at the checkpoint.

pinks

Yes, this is what I meant. Uniform id, per se, isn't going to cause major intrusion, but the fear is that it would give the federal government another mechanism for tracking us, perhaps leading more situations where the card has to be presented.

VelvetJones

I waver on this. If TSOs were held to the same hiring standards as Federal Agents(Minimum of a Bachelors degree, very thorough background check, very tough pysch and physical standards, etc) and paid the same level then there likely would be an improvement in standards. The down side of that is the TSO would likely be given even more power in that case and result in more extreme abuses. This is what happens with the CBP agents. They often behave even worse than the TSOs, and they SHOULD know better.

chollie

If you had the qualifications you cited to be a federal agent, would you want to stand around jacking your jaws, watching x-rays, swabbing people and sticking your hands in their pants? Stacking tubs and monitoring the belt and reminding people what is and isn't allowed on that particular day at that particular checkpoint? At any pay level? Wouldn't you feel that your qualifications were wasted? Wouldn't you be bored to tears?

I would.

If you have those qualifications (at least on paper), and you're willing to take such a job, you're likely a complete under-performer or you're likely to end up becoming an aggressive bully to make yourself feel like you're bigger and more important than you are.

Randyk47

And therein lies the problem. You get what you pay for and what is basically equivalent to GS-7 pay in the rest of most of the government isn't going to attract and retained highly qualified personnel.