I carried aboard a thick "briefing book" held together with a metal fastener - two vertical spindles that slide through the punched holes of each piece of paper, are topped with a piece of metal, and then fold flat to make a compact package. (I'm sure these have a name but I don't know what it is). I disassembled the materials to remove some and realized that those spindle points were as sharp as any nail file and could even be made needle point sharp, though they aren't very strong. Apparently it didn't bother the Xray inspectors.

Sylvia

You could drive yourself foolish second-guessing the security officers on such hypothetical cases.

After getting through several times, last month an x ray agent flagged my bag for my can opener. It is too blunt to break skin. However, the supervisor informed me that "as it comes to a point it will NOT be allowed in the cabin." It was made clear to me that I would be fined if I dared object.

I second that.

I was carrying a sealed plastic package of plastic fork, spoon, and knife with a napkin, the same as they serve on the planes.

They told me to leave it because it was disallowed.

Sometimes you think convenience and common sense might be allowed a tad bit, but apparently not.

Just remember whom you are dealing with. These are morons who can't hold a better job; uneducated people who don't even need high school degrees, formerly employed by NotSoBright, and brainwashed by the fool named Mineta, the only person in the government administration dumber than Dubbya. It's no wonder there is no consistance let alone sanity.

How about a few facts instead of just parroting the currently popular mantra?

1. 95% of the applicants for screening positions do not complete the hiring process. About 80% are deemed unqualified, for any number of reasons, with the remaining 15% not continuing through the process. Very few of the former contract employees are able to qualify for TSA employment.

2. Bush, and most of the Republicans, didn't want to use federal employees to staff the security checkpoints, they prefered private contractors who would be held to higher standards. In the final compromise bill the Administration and the Republicans gave in on the federalization of the screeners in order to get the Democrats to agree to other measures with which they objected.

3. Consistancy has been increased dramatically over the pre-TSA system. Perfect, it is not, but it's a vast improvement over what we had before, consistancy wise.

Boy, you are a real rocket scientist yourself! At least these people are trying to make flying a safer place for everyone.
The TSA has a list that says what can go on the aircraft or not. It doesn't say what kind of knives. It says knives! It isn't there job to be the judge.

Who are you to say how smart those people are! I know people that are screeners with Masters degrees. I am sure you didn't try out for the TSA so how do you know anything?
I'm sure you don't or you wouldn't be shooting of at the mouth! If you don't work with the TSA then you propably don't know what there qaulifications or there background is.

I think you are overestimating the TSA screener's motivation: I think they are just trying to make a living, just like most of us.
Maybe there are exceptions (like the MBA you mention) but most screeners I've met didn't strike me as overly motivated to "provide a safer flying environment".
To say something positive about the current screening situation: my experience is that it has become much more friendly than it used to be. In the past I've had to deal with many screeners "on a power trip", recently I haven't had many of those experiences.

BTW: I've never met a screener that made me suspect he had an MBA...

My problem with the screeners is that they don't think; they just act like robots brainwashed into whatever moronic rule is currently employed. They don't "think" that maybe, just maybe, that the little old lady with the darning needle is harmless. They just see "sharp pointy object" and therefore they immediately act on their newly instinct to search her. And the list goes on. Seriously, if I ever had the misfortune to work at a company like this, I would act like they want me to act in "training" but once I am employed on my own, common sense would actually kick in.

Common sense.... not much of that at airports these days. Was there ever?

It would make sense for you to consider the train for future travel, where you will not be subjected to the indignities you describe.

Thinking, using good judgement and common sense is not part of their job description.

Unless we take corrective action against the TSA and the many stupid rules that remain, the indignities/insanity could very well spill over to the train. And to your car. And to your business. And maybe even to your home.



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"Give me Liberty or give me Death." - Patrick Henry

Exactly. I suspect they would be fired for deviating from their instructions.

If we expect the TSA to perform the way -we- expect them to, we need to offer a much higher rate of pay to attract and retain talented security professionals who -can- act with discretion.

In response to [b]LarryJ[\b] the fact that 95% of the applicants do not complete the hiring process says more about the demography of the applicants and the payscale than it does about the job requirements.

Think about it. If you, personally, applied to be a screener would you only give yourself a 5% chance of being hired?

However, since the national "we" is not willing to pay for the security our government promises, the point is moot.

birdstrike

Perhaps the little old lady is harmless. The nut sitting next to her that grabs them and starts stabbing everyone on board is not harmless. How exactly to you guarantee that dangerous object stay associated with the non-dangerous holder? You don't. You simply don't allow them on board.

Believe it or not, there are career security professionals that know more about this than you do. They are among those that develop the rules.

And the agents are required to follow the policies as written and not use their own judgement because most of them are not experts in the field. You have provided a perfect example.

Haha...I'm glad you're not in charge of security because you've already showed your lack at identifing potential threats. The knitting needles, while not danagerous with the old lady are dangerous when someone else grabs and then jumps at an FA. As a law enforcement officer I've seen other people take weapons from other people. Have you ever seen a TV show that shows the inside of a prison? Big prisons don't let their guards carry weapons inside the prison because any weapon that the guards have, the prisoners could have. That's common sense.

Actually this doesn't really matter, knitting needles aren't on the prohited items list. http://www.tsa.dot.gov/trav_consumer..._prohibit.shtm

A wise man knows much but says little. A fool knows little but says much.

Offer suggestions to problems in the future. Just a tip for success.