Posted on 08/16/2006 12:15:31 PM PDT by rightalien
A little-known fact about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is that the U.S. military requires soldiers to travel in uniform from theater. An even lesser known fact is that the Transportation Security Administration aggressively targets war veterans as they travel home to their loved ones.
At Baltimore's airport on my way back to Orlando from Iraq, there were about 50 soldiers in line, waiting to be cleared by TSA. I noticed soldiers taking off clothing, and then they assumed the position so commonly seen in police-chase videos, arms and legs spread wide as a screener passed a wand close to their bodies. Soldiers were asked to remove belts, boots and shirts, and their carry-on bags were ransacked.
(Excerpt) Read more at orlandosentinel.com ...
It's called a military ID card.
Another Muslim convert who "mysteriously" becomes violent towards mankind.
By no means the most secure form of ID.
Even the new cards aren't that foolproof.
Are we going to be safe or sorry.
"A little-known fact about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is that the U.S. military requires soldiers to travel in uniform from theater."
hmmm...VERY "little-known"....
Yep ... I even carried contraband home inadvertently .... 14.5 mm machine gun rounds
"It's called a military ID card."
Can they be duplicated?
I should think a soldier woud be the first one to approve of safety measures to protect our country, since each one of them is risking their lives to do the same thing.
Yes, there is. Does the solder have a vaild military ID? Or vailid orders?
TSA is completely corrupt and incompetent.
Thanks for the ping. Every soldier has endured worse indignities than a TSA screening -- and it reduces the possibility that terrorists can get through by wearing U.S. military uniforms.
The point is, why not treat soldiers as normal passengers? It appears, from the article, that the soldiers are being "racial stereotyped" so to speak.
"The screeners first clue should of been the fact that 50 were traveling together"
In that case yes. But what about travelling alone or with one or two buddies?
I hate having ammunition that I don't own the weapon for.
It's an itch that just can't be scratched.
That's disgusting.
Last summer coming back from Iraq I was in the Charles De Gaulle *transit* area to New York (had already been search and sniffed), and some TSA weenie started giving me the third degree, which got even worse when I said I was coming from Iraq.
Finally pulled out my Pentagon ID and official Iraq clearance ID, and said "I work for the Pentagon, and I'm returning from a classified assignment" (which technically I wasn't, but it sounded good). "What else do you need to know?" Loudly, in front of the assembling crowd of other passengers, and in the tone you might use with a grocery bagger.
That was the end of the "interview".
I think the soldiers need to be a little more assertive with TSA personnel. They seem to have little common sense or willingness to think.
It happened to me on my way home from the sandbox. I think it was also due to the fact that I had a one-way ticket. It kinda feels like a slap in the face.... As far as contraband, they were pretty darn thorough in Kuwait before we left.
"Back in 1991, A LOT of soldiers were caught with contraband, including unexploded cluster munitions and other weapons."
That screening is done WWAAAYYY up front, in Iraq, by enlisted customs personnel who are much toughter than any TSA weener would ever think of being.
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