At the airport this morning, there are 2 TSA agents checking boarding passes and ID.s. One agent was actually checking each person's credentials, the other agent was just making conversation with each passenger, where are you going, nice dress, did you have a nice Christmas. This was slowing down the process, as there were more then 50 people in line. I was thinking to myself, I am help paying for this person to just stand around talking to everyone about nothing to do with security and not helping the process which sucks as it is.

...most likely a SPOTNik or a SPOTNik Wanna-be.

Next time one of the BDOs tries to chat you up, ask them if you get a free brown shirt and set of jackboots if you tell them about the person you saw in the bathroom...

Nah, I'd be nice and simply say things along the lines of....

What level BDO are you?
How long is the BDO course?
Dou you get a certificate when you complete the course?
Have you caught anyone recently?
Why are you SPOTting me?

etc, etc, etc.....

lol

I think they might get a little confused if you attempt to ask them a question

In all seriousness, I think that making small talk is both harmless and probably a better security measure than anything else TSA does. As long as they don't start asking invasive questions, then this is fine by me.

What do you call invasive?

Asking me where I am going is invasive given how many criminals work for TSA.

Asking me where I am going is invasive as no government employee, other than those whose contract I am currently fulfilling, has a need to know, nor the power to demand to know that information when I fly domestically. Internationally, the power issue becomes more nebulous.

Anything that is NOYFB.

TDC @SFO on 12/22 looked at my ID and boarding pass and said, "Patricia?" I did not reply. Again, she repeated, "Patricia?" Again I did not reply. She started to get angry and asked if my name was Patricia. I pointed at my ID and boarding pass and said, "See, it says so right there and there." At this point she got real huffy and said that she had to have me verify that I was Patricia. I responded by saying that is my first name, but I am not accustomed to strangers addressing me by my first name. Additionally, a first name is not normally used for identification, but rather the surname, unless you are Cher or Madonna and I am neither. So Mom89339 steps up to TDC next and the TDC says, Victoria? Nothing irks my mother more than someone addressing her by her first name and she stared at TDC as only moms can do like their child is misbehaving. TDC then said, do you mind if I call you by your first name (in a sarcastic tone). Mom89339 said, yes. TDC then scribbled her initials on the boarding pass and moved onto her next SPOTnik job.

If they are playing Chatty Cathy, it might be useful to collect data:
I/My Son/My Daughter/Grandson/Nephew (choose one) wants to join the TSA
1) how long have you worked for the TSA
2) do you like the job?
3) How much of training did they give you? Just once?
4) What did you do before you joined TSA?
5) Do you plan to retire with the 'company'? (or Do you plan to do this for the rest of your life?)

[etc]
Perfectly normal questions, but the answers could be educational.

At most checkpoints I've seen, the bottleneck is the x-ray of bags, not TDC, so slowing down that position wouldn't affect the checkpoint throughput or line length.

On the other hand, I have no problem with the question if "home" or "visiting family" is a quite acceptable answer (and I suspect it is).

In the "Lost Symbol", Dan Brown has a security guard at the Capitol Visitor's Center say he's been given instructions to verbally engage every single male in some conversation. I have no idea if it's true in reality or not (the one time I was there, I wasn't alone), but it's not a bad idea.

I think it's clear that the "treat all passengers alike" approach to security is hopeless, but I think it's also clear that no one mechanism can be used to select between them and this sort of thing is valid, in my opinion, as one of a number of ways of doing so.

With the unsavory employees of the TSA, they may be casing you for info about your house. Ask just the right questions and they may determine that you have left your house unoccupied. They then call their friends, and let them know about a house that is unoccupied and ready to be robbed.

Without supplying the address of course .

With a uncommon name, all one has to do is use the internet and you will be given the address and even a map on how to get there.

Don't think it doesn't happen? There was a rash of robberies, and the only thing in common with the victims, is that they called for a taxi that day.

The robbers were monitoring the radio frequency that dispatchers use. The robbers knew exactly where to make their hit.