A most interesting observation! Maybe we can get Village Idiot to buy a super-cheapie ticket, refuse the inspection, and attempt to get a refund. What a wonderful non-trip Flyertalk Trip report that would make!

What do you say VI? http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/wink.gif

This story sonds a bit surprising to me: If I were in a hurry to catch my plane, I definitely would NOT start argueing with security staff. Additionally, I also would give priority to security rather than to the personal feelings of some travellers.

[This message has been edited by Howie (edited 04-27-2001).]

Each time I have been asked, I have responsed with "let's see, what are my choices? Say yes and move on or say no and let you keep the bag?"

What do you do if you are pulled over by a police officer, and s/he says to you, "May I see your drivers' license, insurance, and registration, please?"

Come ON!

What do you do if you are pulled over by a police officer, and s/he says to you, "May I see your drivers' license, insurance, and registration, please?"

You going to get into a smart-alecky semantics argument then?

Come ON! Show a little respect... that's what the security guard was giving you by "asking" instead of directing... otherwise, I suspect we'd be reading about a thread about "Gruffy Security Guards" or something like that.

You were on your way to doing your job, just as she was doing hers. If you were in a hurry, that's not security's fault... that's time management on your part.

And people wonder why airport personnel can be nasty. We get what we give.

[This message has been edited by ETOPS01 (edited 04-27-2001).]

Dupe

[This message has been edited by ETOPS01 (edited 04-27-2001).]

Dupe

[This message has been edited by ETOPS01 (edited 04-27-2001).]

Seems like the woman was just being courteous. Would you have preferred her to say "You will not be allowed to proceed unless I check your bag, sir?"

I'm generally inclined to give these security folks the benefit of a doubt. Putting myself in their position, I think it would be kind of depressing to spend all day serving people who are jetting off to all sorts of exotic (at least to the security person) destinations that they will probably never get the chance to see-- the average ticket price is well in excess of their weekly gross income. Moreover, by definition, they have little opportunity to interact in a pleasant way with passengers.

A lot of people have pointed out how low the pay scales are for these people. It's even worse when you consider their commute to and from work. Think about it, airports are generally located far away from where people live and (in the U.S.), not well served by urban mass transit systems. If you work at an airport (at least if your a security person), you probably don't have anywhere to park that is remotely close to the terminal building-- so you've got to add a lot of extra time and aggravation getting to and from the airport, none of which you gets you any extra pay.

I tried that once Eastwest and all I can say is the Man with the rubber glove was surprisingly gentle....

That part that hurts the most is, when the inspection was over, he never called, he never wrote, not even flowers on Valentines Day. I gave him the best 20 mins of my life... Men are such pigs...

But seriously, why not consent? If it is that she improperly phrased the question, she quickly corrected herself when you refused. What’s to argue about, it only makes you look more suspicious and make them more adamant that they are going to search you. Maybe search you very thoroughly…

"May I see your drivers license?" is a command, but "May I look in the trunk?" is not. That was the whole point of this thread -- that there is a huge difference in seemingly identical statements.

The correct answer to "May I see your drivers license?" is "Of course, officer, here it is."

The correct answer to "May I see your trunk?" is "No, I'm sorry."

But how do you know the difference? They have purposely phrased everything in the same pseudo-question format so that people are misled into thinking they have no choice (while legally covering their butts because they DID give them a choice).

My answer to "May I..." anything is "I would prefer you didn't." Then the ball is in their court to let me know if I really don't have a choice in the matter.

I think the thread asked a perfectly valid question, and I'm more than a little surprised at how willing everyone seems to be to give up all autonomy (even the right to ask questions!) in the name of security.

dupe...

[This message has been edited by artboy (edited 04-27-2001).]