The perils of checking luggage
 

New York Times Article, printed by SouthFlorida.com

"Since June, more than 20 TSA baggage screeners at three major airports have been charged with stealing from checked bags. Screeners routinely open and inspect a percentage of checked bags each day, looking for explosives.

What's being done? Not a lot, it seems. Few airports have adequate theft-prevention surveillance systems in place. In fact, some airports have recently eliminated video surveillance systems in baggage-handling areas because of costs."

Costs.. Yes, all that money being squandered on passenger harassment equates to no screener oversight. Lovely. :td:

20 out of roughly 400 airports. do the same stats exist for pre-TSA days?

Luggage was allowed to be locked when checked prior to TSA.

I don't know.

What I do know is this:

"You can't professionalize until you federalize." - Comrade Tom Daschle. This is hardly professional behavior.

These are the people who have been caught so far. There are lots of other claims that are finally being paid by the TSA, but there is nothing being done to prevent further theft. Obviously the threat of being caught and "vigorously prosecuted" isn't enough.

That has a pretty catchy jingle to it.

I'd stipulate that theft numbers may have even been higher pre TSA; but then there was one organization to hold accountable -- the airline.

TSA screeners are people too and out of a 40,000 plus workforce, to catch 20 crooks, that number is pretty low. But for a uniformed federal agent to steal from a passengers unlocked checked baggage is, I think, worse than an airline employee stealing. It is in addition to theft a violation of the public trust.

Those numbers are only since June, 2004 and also only those have been caught. :mad: The number of claims finally being paid points rather strongly to a much higher rate of theft.

But as TSAMGR so smugly points out at http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=352068
it happens everywhere so, by implication, it's not so unusual that it should happen here.

checked luggage passes through many hands on its way to its final destination. security, airline personnel, baggage crews etc. in some instances where they use that tape to seal the bag is easy enough to see where the trail of responsibility ends-but others its a bit tougher.

either way, those caught stealing should be punished to the fullest. there shouldn't be any room for rationale for such actions, but conversely-it shouldn't be a label on all 40,000+ employees.

This thread is a good example of why I ...
 

This thread is a perfect example of the reason why I, if at all possible, won't place any items of value in checked baggage.

It's much easier to either carry it on or ship it back to myself via common carrier (FedEx, UPS) giving me the dual value of insurance and less to carry.

True, but there is ample evidence of a problem. The TSA should be either forced to address these problems by inspecting checked baggage only in the presense of the passenger, or it should be disbanded for refusing to address these problems.

True. We should continue with this line of thought. We should force Big Business to address its problems with massive, billion dollar theft or disband it for refusing to addess these problems.

There's a difference between business and government. You choose to do business with a business. A government chooses to do business with you.

If the stock market takes a massive hit due to corporate malfeasence and I lose money then it effects me, whether I "choose" to do business with that company or not. Enron affected all sorts of people who did not actually do business with it. Same for Freddie Mac, Hollinger, Adelphia, AOL, etc. The list is an impressive one....(http://www.forbes.com/2002/07/25/accountingtracker.html). Oh, and this list has not been updated since September 2002.

Of course you could always choose not to do business with a country by leaving, should you wish. ;)

This idea is growing in acceptance. Google for <corporate death penalty> to see some scenarios and real cases.

WHAT TSAMGR POSTED WAS AN ARTICLE ABOUT THEFTS IN ANOTHER COUNTRY. YOU WRONGLY MADE AN ...UMPTION OF WHAT YOU WANTED TO SEE AND TRIED TO INJECT YOUR OWN STUPID THOUGHTS INTO THE THREAD AS YOU ARE TRYING HERE.