[E Rocc]

Incredible stupidity by the headquarters types. Police officers call this kind of thing "chicken-(clinton)". In a case like this, it passes beyond petty and becomes dangerous.

-Eric

[brewcrew]

"You can't go out on Southwest Airlines on a weekend in a business suit,"

REAL cops know this stuff. Apparently the TSA is not being run by REAL cops.

[headsonpikes]

SNAFU placemarker.

[AgentEcho]

That may explain why we had little or no HUMINT folks on the ground in Iraq. They couldn't get the sports coat over the Burqa.

Æ

[Political Junkie Too]

When looking at vintage photos of passengers on the early airlines, everybody dressed up when they flew. Maybe TSA should require everyone who boards a flight to dress in a suit. < /sarcasm>

-PJ

[CindyDawg]

Whether they broke policy or not if they were not replaced this supervisor needs to be fired for endangerment IMO.

[SilentServiceCPOWife]

"The marshals were not replaced on the flight, the sources said."

It was more important to chastise these guys for not being dressed properly than it was to make sure that the passengers on that plane were protected.

[Humidston]

Just what about "under cover" is it that the TSA doesn't understand?

[Eastbound]

"Their sport coats were not visible,. . .

. . . and their badges were not pasted to their foreheads.;<

[battlecry]

Reminds me of a Bill Cosby line about the British losing the coin toss in the Revolutionary War: "You guys must wear red, and march in a straight line."

[WoodstockCat]

They should dress them like Micheal Moore...isn't he real America to everyone now?

[per loin]

This is what happens when the people elect a stupid Democratic bureaucrat like...ooops...never mind.

[theDentist]

Kinda like this?

[longtermmemmory]

Disinformation...?

[Petronski]

The President needs to demand the resignation of Norm Mineta immediately.

[bondjamesbond]

How about you rely on the good judgement of the guy who you allow on a crowded aircraft with a loaded gun. If he can be trusted to know when to shoot in a pressurized aircraft, he can be trusted to dress himself in the morning.

[Asclepius]

I was on a USair flight from Pittsburgh to Seattle where the massively obese Air Marshal wore only a pair of fish-net speedos and a sailor hat. He had his shield pinned through his right nipple and he would squint at you peevishly over the top of his circa '70s Rayban sunglasses.

Everyone moved smartly and cautiously about the cabin, believe me.

[NonValueAdded]

"They're going to look like any other passenger, but they need to be dressed professionally. The suggestion that air marshals are easily spotted because of their attire is simply not true," said David Adams, a spokesman for the service.

This is just insane!

[fortunecookie]

Incredible stupidity by the headquarters types. Police officers call this kind of thing "chicken-(clinton)". In a case like this, it passes beyond petty and becomes dangerous.

Incredible stupidity, indeed. Dangerous for us all.

"The bottom line is no one should know who these guys are," Amat said.

But I suppose 'profiling' is absolutely verboten. Mustn't single out the actual bad guys. Just another colossal instance of tossing out the baby and preserving his bathwater.

[SittinYonder]

I know an air marshal. He was a police detective prior to becoming an air marshal, and all the other cops used to make fun of him for the way he dressed. When working he was a Don Johnson/Miami Vice look-a-like with the tank-top T shirt and baggy pants, and he used to wear his badge like a necklace. Once he showed up to court wearing spandex biking shorts and a tank-top T-shirt.

While I'm sure dressing in a suit is a bad idea for these guys and I understand why they have to fit in, this story amuses me. I've got to believe the one of the guys who was dressed inappropriately is the guy I know.

[Charlespg]

FUBAR!

and stupid beyond belief