.... so TSA employee "dying in the line of duty" due to personal health problems is amongst the purposes of the TSA "honor guard" uniforms? With the TSA and its expensive uniform orders, nothing would surprise me coming from the TSA.

I'll reveal all very soon. All I will say at this point is that the results will be especially interesting for those of us who board earlier in the boarding process.

If you found a TSA-"prohibited" sharp object airside, would you immediately report it to the TSA and cause a terminal dump, throw it away after careful handling, or just ignore it so that possibly some paranoid nervous nelly would find it later and report it immediately to the TSA and cause a terminal dump?

Throw away or keep. Never, ever "help" TSA in any way, shape, or form.

Not long after 9-11 I found a "mysterious" white powder on my tray table when I folded it down.

It looked suspiciously like "Sweet N Low" or the even more dangerous "Equal." Brushed it into the floor.

Go ahead, tell me how irresponsible this was.

+1 ^ +1 ^ +1 ^ +1 ^ +1 ^ +1 ^ +1 ^ +1 ^ +1 ^ +1 ^ +1 ^ +1 ^ +1 ^ +1 ^

I notice a conspicuous absence of comments from our TSO brethren...

A person can take as many pix as they want at both the gate or the checkpoint. The TSA can't do squat about it. I would have turned and took a pic of him chasing after you. hahahaha

Can't wait for the day they add "sprinting" to the Smurf Job Qualifications Standards. :D

"One Stripe TSOs must be able to make it from the checkpoint to Cinnabun to the break room and back to the checkpoint in 30 minutes or less."

How did I prevent a terminal dump? In one case I spoke up, in another, I kept my mouth (mostly) closed. Here they are...

SFO, about three years ago - I was pulled aside for a full-on secondary, and while waiting was told by a TSO that did not know I had been detained that I could leave. I could have picked up my bags and tiptoed off to the gate but decided that since there were liquid containers involved, I should probably wait.

SMF, about six months ago. I appear at the checkpoint podium with BP and DL in hand - no TSO there. A TSO standing behind the conveyor barks at me to come over and put my stuff on the belt. As I'm putting my stuff in the tubs I ask him who is going to check my ID. He says to show it to the agent as I go through the metal detector. I notice that the two people ahead of me walk through without showing ID to that TSO. I tried to show her my DL and BP but she just rolled her eyes, like I don't know what I'm doing and motioned me toward the conveyor. I also notice that the five or six individuals behind me did not not show any ID at the metal detector and there was still no document checker at the podium. I was going to point this out to a supervisor, but then thought about the impending terminal dump if they couldn't find the two men who were in front of me but who had now left for the gate. I began chatting to a rather hot TSO at SMF who suddenly popped up behind the conveyor and asked if she could check my bag (protein shake again). As I mentioned, she was rather hot, and I didn't really want to come off as the weanie that I undoubtedly am, so decided not to discuss the lack of an ID check. Instead, I waited for all the other passengers to leave the checkpoint and then approached the supervisor and told him that somehow I got through without an ID check and that he should look into it. I may or may not have responded in the negative when he may or may not have asked if any one else got through without an ID check (I have a very bad memory and forget these things sometimes). Anyway, that is how I prevented a terminal dump.

They are probably too busy catching terwists, enforcing the skewrity theater, taking Play-Do from kids, and snatching medical liquids from Grandma..

I wasn't afraid of confrontation. The problem was a) I was late for my flight and didn't want to lose the upgrade, and b) My policy is that I stop for no uniformed individuals in the US (ask the poor red coats at the checkpoint in LGA) except LEOs.

Is the current standard waddling?:)

and here i thought we'd get to add this to the tsa's weekly self promotion of successful big catches body count....

1-terminal dump caused by flyertalker ;)

and another well done from me as well ^^

correct as photography is permitted so long as it does not interfere with the dog and pony show screening process (at least according to blogger bob anyway ;)) and if questioned by a tso, politely tell them to go away as only a leo can ask to see your photographs

But 3/4 of the time, he doesn't have a clue as to what is really happening at airport checkpoints or at the gates.