Enhanced Patdown - Video and Escalation procedure
 

Here you can see a video of the so called enhanced pat down:
http://www.tsa.gov/press/happenings/...d_patdown.shtm

It explains that it will be used only if other detection methods fail to resolve the alarm and that the passenger will be given the opportunity to take off things that might have triggered the alarm. (Leave the Prince Alberts out when flying).

This is a very important thing to know. As we all know the TSA they will abuse those who don't know that the enhanced pat down is ONLY to be used if other methods fail. So if you refuse the scanner, they have to give you the normal detector first. If the scanner alarms you can empty your pockets or whatever. If it still alarms you get the wand. If the wand still alarms you can check where it alarmed and search there for that forgotten coin. If it still alarms you get the NORMAL pat down. If they still don't find anything you get the sexual harassment also called "enhanced pat down".

This is not explained in such detail on their website. But it is the logical consequence of the sentence:
"Prior to conducting this pat-down, all other means of detection will be exhausted, including the walk through metal detector, interaction with behavior detection officers, hand-held metal detector and other less invasive pat-down searches."

I know I will print that page out and present it to them. I will make it clear to them that their hands stay off my groin unless there is an alarm that cannot be resolved with other detection methods.

Till

P.S.: If you have a mac and cannot play the video because it is a WMV file only (law suit?), download Flip4mac. That should do the trick.

I just watched the videos very carefully and several times. I encourage everybody to do the same. I suppose what they use is the standard technique they are taught to do this procedure.

If this is the case the procedure is discriminatory. You can clearly see that the male gets direct hand contact (through the clothes of course) with his scrotum and possibly glans (depending on how you wear). The female on the other hand does not get direct contact with the labia or the clitoris. That is not fair.

We know exactly why they do that. Because the law suits would stop this right away. I hope somebody from ACLU is listening and has noticed that. It is unacceptable that a woman's genitalia be more protected from security groping than a man's; especially in light of the tampon paradox.

Till

Thank you for pointing out that we should not get that level of pat down simply for refusing WBI. I will also keep that information at hand.

If anyone touches me like that in order to board an airplane I will stop going to the US. As for your "discriminatory" assessment, I guess it is all relative. I think the women have it worse, since we get both an upper and lower body intrusion... Pointless argument of course - both are unacceptable.

I am a passenger, not a convicted felon being searched prior to entering a prison and resent treatment like this.

TSO: "Spread your cheeks -- your @$$ is mine!"

TSO 3-stripe: "What we have here is failure to communicate."

Absolutely.

It is going to continue unless and until the American people rise up in protest.

I agree that it will take action from the public to reverse the abusive actions of TSA.

What the public needs is information that clearly shows TSA is not acting in the best interest of the public. Things like a study that Hawley rejected because it didn't fit into his concept of aviation security.

For whatever reason any number of people have information like that but will not step up and make it public.

The people will respond when provided with the information they need.

Why doesn't the ACLU jump on the obviously discriminatory procedure? Because they're chickening out against the TSA?

It stopped in 2004 when thousands protested the groping of women because they wear bras. It can stop again if ENOUGH people start protesting.

The Chaffetz amendment passed because Congresspeople were getting scores of complaints about WBI - even though the TSA says they are totally accepted.

I said it earlier: an independent surveying organization needs to be asking passengers for input on WBI - after making certain those passengers understand completely what WBI does. At this time, pax do NOT understand and we can't trust anything TSA tells us.

If there is a strong enough effort, TSA will back down.

That's very true.

I went thru DEN south security this morning. Strip search was in full swing. They kept it full. They had a single 8.5 x 11 paper showing the scans - much smaller than the normal TSA sign as it only took up about half the space. So guess what ... smaller pics. They also had a sign off to the side when you came out of the scanner - yeah, a lot of good that does AFTER the fact. :rolleyes:

Of course, the fact that it was optional was on the BACK side of the sign too. :td:

Not only that, they didn't say a word to the people to let them know what it was or that it was optional. They just motioned and people went in. Pretty much ushering. They didn't ask me - I would have told them to go to hell and i would have been loud about not accepting a strip search.

So if it's accepted, it's only because TSA is very quiet about what it is, is keeping signs to a minimum (both in size and quantity) and making it seem like it's not an option.

Super

You guys need to take pictures when you see silliness like that.

The ACLU picks its battles carefully. Give them time.

What I see of the ACLU is they pick either "slam dunk" civil rights cases or anti-religion cases.