Everybody FREEZE!!!!!!!!!
May 22, 2009, 8:49 am
#46
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: DFW
Programs: UA Pleb, HH Gold, PWP General Secretary
Posts: 23,199
This happened to me as well. I also started a thread on it misspelled BREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEECH!!!!!!. [sic] Seems to be a popular activity to in ATL to hold random drills.
May 23, 2009, 12:21 am
#47
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: IAH/HOU
Programs: CO/DL
Posts: 349
Unfortunately, RoadVeteran, not very many of us coddled Americans (and others) are willing to give up getting from one place to another VERY FAST while risking our dignity and being treated like trash.
At any rate, hope you can stick by your guns, as I have for four years.
I'll be damned if TSA or the airports will get any more public humiliation out of me until things change.
The rest will just keep lining up and complaining about being made public examples.
At any rate, hope you can stick by your guns, as I have for four years.
I'll be damned if TSA or the airports will get any more public humiliation out of me until things change.
The rest will just keep lining up and complaining about being made public examples.
You can bet I will, as you say "stick by my guns" if that means no more flying on my part. I have meetings coming up next month in Dallas, Shreveport, and Austin and I will be driving to all of those, so unless TSA is doing random security checks on the interstate, I wont have to deal with any of their hired stooges................hmm, random security checks on the interstate, maybe I should not be giving TSA any ideas
.
May 23, 2009, 12:32 am
#48
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: IAH/HOU
Programs: CO/DL
Posts: 349
Well, I know you did the right thing, RV, when you snatched your property back from them, turned around and went back to the lounge to arrange a different flight.
Not having been there, I have to ask. What do you suppose this little thug and his two co-conspirators would have done if you'd snatched back your wallet, put it in your pocket, and waited silently for them to finish their business with your carry on, then headed down the jetway and boarded your flight? Would they have recognized they had no business pawing through your wallet and snatching your money, and sheepishly let you go on your way, or would it have been DY...T?
Not having been there, I have to ask. What do you suppose this little thug and his two co-conspirators would have done if you'd snatched back your wallet, put it in your pocket, and waited silently for them to finish their business with your carry on, then headed down the jetway and boarded your flight? Would they have recognized they had no business pawing through your wallet and snatching your money, and sheepishly let you go on your way, or would it have been DY...T?
As others, including some tso's have pointed out, they have no power to arrest or detain, but leo's of course do.
I do know that if the young punk I mentioned had touched me to try and stop me from walking away, my reaction would have been one that got me arrested for sure.
May 23, 2009, 7:19 am
#49
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Arlington VA
Posts: 5,735
Stunts like this...
Stunts like this have the potential to go very bad.
If TSA yells "Freeze - Don't move!" and then I yelled "Don't shoot!" and hit the floor for protection, what would my fellow passengers do? Also hit the floor? Stampede?
What if somebody yelled "OMG!" in a panicy voice? Or better yet, started yelling "Ah la la la la la la la la la" in a high pitched voice?
I liked the raspberry idea though!
If TSA yells "Freeze - Don't move!" and then I yelled "Don't shoot!" and hit the floor for protection, what would my fellow passengers do? Also hit the floor? Stampede?
What if somebody yelled "OMG!" in a panicy voice? Or better yet, started yelling "Ah la la la la la la la la la" in a high pitched voice?
I liked the raspberry idea though!
May 23, 2009, 9:10 am
#50
Moderator: Smoking Lounge; FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: SFO
Programs: Lifetime (for now) Gold MM, HH Gold, Giving Tootsie Pops to UA employees, & a retired hockey goalie
Posts: 28,878
Stunts like this have the potential to go very bad.
If TSA yells "Freeze - Don't move!" and then I yelled "Don't shoot!" and hit the floor for protection, what would my fellow passengers do? Also hit the floor? Stampede?
What if somebody yelled "OMG!" in a panicy voice? Or better yet, started yelling "Ah la la la la la la la la la" in a high pitched voice?
I liked the raspberry idea though!
If TSA yells "Freeze - Don't move!" and then I yelled "Don't shoot!" and hit the floor for protection, what would my fellow passengers do? Also hit the floor? Stampede?
What if somebody yelled "OMG!" in a panicy voice? Or better yet, started yelling "Ah la la la la la la la la la" in a high pitched voice?
I liked the raspberry idea though!
May 23, 2009, 9:26 am
#51
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: North of DFW
Programs: AA PLT, HH Gold, TSA Disparager Gold, going for Platnium
Posts: 1,535
good maybe a few more lawsuits due to TSA stupidity will highlight to congress how badly this POS agency needs to be nuked Darwin style and the ashes buried never to be resurected
May 23, 2009, 11:01 am
#52
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: CLT
Programs: Choice Hotels/FFOCUS
Posts: 7,256
This is something we've known for a long time. As for this airline employee, for the reasons you brought out in your post for which you get a BIG ^ from me I very seldom use my so called benefits as I do not wish to deal with the crap. I see what happens the 5days a week I work. Thus when I'm off I choose not to see anyone from TSA.
May 23, 2009, 11:42 am
#53
Join Date: Jan 2005
Posts: 118
A few years ago at PDX, my partner went through the metal detector, it beeped, and a TSA agent shouted "Security Alert! Close all the doors!" and you could hear clunk-clunk-clunk-clunk-clunk as all the doors at the jetways slammed shut.
Turns out it wasn't related to my partner but we still got all kinds of pointing and staringlater from people in the terminal who didn't know that. (And we never found out why the alarm went off -- when he was wanded, his zipper was the only metal on him.)
Turns out it wasn't related to my partner but we still got all kinds of pointing and staringlater from people in the terminal who didn't know that. (And we never found out why the alarm went off -- when he was wanded, his zipper was the only metal on him.)
May 23, 2009, 12:09 pm
#54
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: ORD
Programs: CO PLT, HH DIA
Posts: 1,461
That was my first thought. But if you ignored them they would start shoving their tin badges in your face invoking their authoritah, and that would probably be followed by another round of millions of tax dollars being spent on a different color shirt and new badges (I'm thinking a hologram TSA logo in the center and flashing red LEDs at nine places around the edge) because the TSO's collective self-esteem would have been demolished and lord knows that having the TSOs feel good about themselves and their jobs is more important than any actual security being provided.
Back in 2002 I was with my girlfriend at PHX in the official Barry Manilow airline terminal (or whoever's name is on it) and we were two people from the WTMD and one of them shrieked "BRAVO!!!" and slammed shut these flimsy plastic roll doors to block the WTMD. We all stood there with the big "w-t-f" question mark over our heads and about 120 seconds later they all opened up the roll doors and acted like nothing was wrong.
Good to see they are still practicing the same kabuki security in 2009. It's become such a hassle that this frequent flyer is going to be driving the 'Vette to some jobs in surrounding states instead of flying. The TSA has started demanding that I take every last wire out of my computer bag, my tools get rifled through, it's becoming more and more difficult to do my job when I get there because of all the nonsense security. Last summer I drove from Chicago to Denver--TWICE--because I didnt need to deal with the hassle. Even at $4.71 a gallon it was a lot easier and more fun than flying.
--PP
Last edited by VideoPaul; May 23, 2009 at 12:25 pm
May 23, 2009, 11:29 pm
#55
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: St. Lucie West,FL/Las Vegas,NV
Posts: 277
My head hurts after reading some of these.....I was going to post a 1,000 word explanation but I can't do it. Based on the OP as stated it doesn't matter who yelled "Everybody Freeze". You simply do not have to do it. I am not saying what you should or should not do. I am saying that after all the smoke cleared you would be fine. This is not a question and answer post. If you disagree, don't bother telling me. 
May 24, 2009, 2:14 am
#57
Join Date: Jun 2007
Posts: 4,638
I believe the closest I have ever came to being arrested was in CLE last week. Got to the gate and seen that 3 of the TSA snakes were waiting for their victims, sure enough I got nabbed, and when one of them opened my wallet the first thing they go for is to take out the money, I instantly grabbed it from his hands and told him in a LOUD and clear manner "keep your hands off of my money!".
And as for the "freeze" nonsense, if questioned by an officer I'll just start speaking in French. Or just tell them I needed to use the restroom and I'm not crapping in my pants, not even if my own mother was hanging off a cliff (ok maybe not, but you get the point, my biological needs come before some stupid useless fake security drill-yeah, a terrorist would really ACTUALLY listen to them
). And by "officer" I mean a cop, not a checkpoint monkey. A checkpoint monkey will be ignored, without exception.
Last edited by stupidhead; May 24, 2009 at 2:27 am
May 24, 2009, 7:54 am
#58
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Arlington VA
Posts: 5,735
Back in 2002 I was with my girlfriend at PHX in the official Barry Manilow airline terminal (or whoever's name is on it) and we were two people from the WTMD and one of them shrieked "BRAVO!!!" and slammed shut these flimsy plastic roll doors to block the WTMD. We all stood there with the big "w-t-f" question mark over our heads and about 120 seconds later they all opened up the roll doors and acted like nothing was wrong.
May 24, 2009, 8:21 am
#59
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: DFW
Posts: 28,083
I don't know all the details of the incident in question other than what was posted by the OP, but it does not sound to me like this was an actual drill and it sounds more like the TSO in question was just saying that to cover his own stupidity. Still, it begs the question of where was the supervisor and/or manager and/or LEO because I would expect one of them to have intervened.
You are absolutely right: during an emergency situation, maintaining calm and order is paramount, and you can't do that with some idiot yelling "freeze!"
You are absolutely right: during an emergency situation, maintaining calm and order is paramount, and you can't do that with some idiot yelling "freeze!"
Well there's your problem.
TSA is operating sans management.
