nachtnebel

^^^^
Amazing. These particular TSA clowns want to be able to put their hands on our testicles any dam* time they want, and yet they object to the relatively slight intrusion of a video camera in a public place?

oldjonesy

Its weasel self serving words.

GUWonder

Exactly. Every country puts out propaganda, and our government in the US has been doing so for a long, long time too. It is just that the DHS/TSA propaganda machine is more obvious in that it has been built by people who behave like little children of the worst sort to try to take advantage of all the other children and manipulate gullible "adults" who ought to know better.

And the irony is that video cameras are filming a lot of these screening checkpoints anyway, but those are cameras whose footage can be made to more quietly appear or disappear as the government propaganda hands deem useful to the government. The government wants the power to discredit its citizens with footage without being subjected to the power of its citizens discrediting the government's claims with video footage not fully under the control of the government and its apologists.

Global_Hi_Flyer

Correct. The government has long used propaganda both as part of their foreign policy as well as domestic policy. One difference is that back in earlier days the domestic press actually did their jobs to ferret out more of the truth - in general, the media today fails to do adequate reporting, and is more than glad to take government statements at face value (just count how many times newscasters start with the words: "The President said", "The TSA said", "Sec'ty Napolitano said".

Ayn R Key

Apologies for the derail in advance.

Phil, quick question.

When I go out in meatspace (also known as the real world) and I describe this case to people, is "Mocek" pronounced "Mosek" or "Mokek"?

pmocek

Short answer: it's the former.

Accurate answer: That depends on whose pronunciation you prefer. Likely candidates are mine and my parents', and they're not the same.

• My ancestors in the Czech Republic, distant family, and Polish Mocek friends pronounce it something like MOE-tseck, MUT-seck, or MOOT-seck (with "oo" like in "foot"). The "o" sound is a foreign sound somewhere between a hard "o" (like in "flow") and the vowel sound in "foot". The "e" may be more of a shwa sound over there.
• My American relatives (great-grandparents emigrated from Czechoslovakia to Texas) pronounce it like MAH-sick.
• English-centric people who read the name but haven't heard it tend, in my experience, to say MOE-seck or MOE-check.
• As of about two years ago (during a time at which most people with whom I had regular contact knew me primarily as just "Phil"), I pronounce it MOE-seck or MOE-səck (with a barely-audible shwa). I think it's the closest Englishification of the Czech name, and causes less confusion between eyes and ears.

I don't have a strong preference.

Changing the way I pronounce my name has been kind of strange. Sometimes I introduce myself and noticeably "mispronounce" my own name before correcting myself. Saying it the new way still feels rather awkward, but I'm pressing on. "Mossick" was always strange, though familiar.

sheneh

There's no need to make a fuss unless you believe Phil to be guilty, or think there is reasonable doubt. The evidence and testimony provided by the prosecution strongly suggest Phil to be innocent. Maybe it is you that can't accept that one of your own was wrong, though the APD officer's behavior may be more galling. Both TSOs and LEOs should be held to a higher standard than the travelling public.

I was aware of the ID and photography laws but my first reaction on hearing about the case only recently was that surely he must have rude or refused to cooperate. Now having watched the video and read summaries of the testimony I am astounded that he was arrested in the first place. I am curious how you, or anyone else, conclude that he was guilty or might be. Well actually, I would be particularly interested in a TSO response. How would you have responded? What other type of passenger behavior results in arrest?

pmocek

You were not alone in that suspicion. Imagine how many people have been convicted or plead guilty to things they did not do because they had no video evidence to rebut lies like those of Officer Dilley. This wasn't a situation in which he exaggerated or used slightly different words. The text of the criminal complaint was riddled with falsehoods.

VH-RMD

that the above is not being held to account is a travesty.

n4zhg

This is why more people are videotaping cops, and cops are arresting them in retaliation. Becoming a YouTube star is a great way to shift careers into the food service industry.

polonius

shouldn't Ron be in there by default?

doober

Perhaps a letter-writing campaign to the powers that be in the DA's office and to the newspaper could move this along.

Caradoc

I can see where this might cause problems - for TSOs who're incapable of walking and chewing gum at the same time, having a citizen's camera aimed at them (as opposed to a camera for which they might be able to "lose the footage") while they're attempting to perform tasks that a three-year-old could do might present just enough distraction to cause them to fail.

FlyingUnderTheRadar

After reading the propaganda I called one of my reps here in Utah, Chaffetz and asked the BB be added to the Congressman's TSA list for inquiry. I specifically asked the position be removed from funding. After all budget cuts need to start somewhere. I guess if I am on a list, BB can be on a list :-)

IslandBased

Reading the blog is a way of finding out what is chewing at the underbelly of the TSA.