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Soldiers deserve TSA's respect in screenings at airports
Orlando Sentinel ^ | August 15, 2006 | Steven Alvarez

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 ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Foreign Affairs; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: antimilitary; donutwatch; military; nationalsecurity; profiling; soldiers; tsa; veterans
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To: donmeaker

Bless you. That means a lot and improves morale. I know a friend of mine returning from Iraq was cheered up quite a bit by the kindness of a stranger at DFW.


61 posted on 08/16/2006 1:22:29 PM PDT by CheneyChick
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To: M1Tanker

Damned right it's profiling.

The camel jockey in front of the line gets a cursory check of his bag but the American soldier get's strip searched?

Penatta's sucessor has some 'splainin' to do.


62 posted on 08/16/2006 1:27:03 PM PDT by CTOCS (Some people drink from the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.)
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To: ansel12

"That spec 4 (or whatever) wanted my ass, which I found a little disturbing, oddly there was no follow up search, I was simply sent on."

It's always a remf spec 4 isn't it?

When I cleared Siagon they read off a list of forbidden articles they would not allow us to take back home.
Our attention was directed to rows of topless 55 gallon drums as we were informed if we deposited any of the items on the list, no questions would be asked but once we passed those drums and a forbidden item was found on us or in our luggage, we would wish we had never been born.
Lots or playing cards with printed porn pictures could be seen in the barrels....ditto on some smoking material I'm sure.

If someone really wanted to send an AK home they probably would have previously mailed it home Johnny Cash style, one piece at at a time.


63 posted on 08/16/2006 1:27:04 PM PDT by TET1968 (SI MINOR PLUS EST ERGO NIHIL SUNT OMNIA)
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To: rightalien
This treatment pisses me off to the Nth degree. I don't know how our guys can stand to be treated like prisoners on their own soil. If I saw this crap, I'd pile more verbal abuse onto the TSA assholes, it'd make Al Puccino sound like Mary Poppins.

Hey!. TSA! Do you know that I defend this? Do you know what it is?

(time for a cigarette I'm so pissed. sorry for the rant)

64 posted on 08/16/2006 1:38:08 PM PDT by Cobra64 (All we get are lame ideas from Republicans and lame criticism from dems about those lame ideas.)
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To: SJSAMPLE
Back in 1991, A LOT of soldiers were caught with contraband, including unexploded cluster munitions and other weapons.

These things are detected by x-ray machines and metal detectors, you don't need to strip search the soldier to determine that they aren't there.

65 posted on 08/16/2006 1:39:44 PM PDT by 3niner
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To: CheneyChick

"He pulled this one gal aside and started asking a couple of questions - she couldn't even identify her unit patch,"


Sounds like the phony vets that can't remember what unit they served with in Vietnam, because it was a "long time ago", or the homeless vets that told me about his time with the 87th Airborne Division, or the guy in the bar describing to me the 1000ft. jump towers at "his" jump school.


66 posted on 08/16/2006 1:41:58 PM PDT by ansel12 (Life is exquisite... of great beauty, keenly felt.)
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To: rovenstinez

TSA is an uncompetent group of equal opportunity losers working for mid-management idiots and led at the top by a political hack appointee who couldn't find his rearend with either hand. I sure feel safer knowing they're on alert.


67 posted on 08/16/2006 1:48:20 PM PDT by middie
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To: Brooklyn Kid
How does the screener know whether the soldier is a real soldier? Is there a fail-safe method to ID men & women in uniform?

Nothing is fail-safe, but there should be two big indicators, a military ID and an official U.S. passport. If they are flying commercial they should have the latter.

68 posted on 08/16/2006 1:49:34 PM PDT by SampleMan
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To: ansel12

LOL - those are all good ones. I've met a few self-proclaimed SEALs, too.


69 posted on 08/16/2006 1:51:02 PM PDT by CheneyChick
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To: angkor

Sure, and there haven't been ANY cases of soldiers caught with weapons brought back from ODS or OIF.

Stuff made it back then and is making it back now.
See other posts attesting to this.


70 posted on 08/16/2006 1:59:45 PM PDT by SJSAMPLE
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To: Brooklyn Kid
Can [military ID cards] be duplicated?

The short answer is "no." The cards have encrypted information on them. Because they're secure, they're used for access to military bases and sensitive military computer networks.

I don't like the way TSA screeners handle U.S. military troops. In a way I understand it, but I still wish that airport screening could be done better for those who serve -- especially those with higher rank and high-level security clearances.

71 posted on 08/16/2006 2:01:38 PM PDT by 68skylark
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To: lormand

So whatever happened to Sgt Akbar?


72 posted on 08/16/2006 2:10:41 PM PDT by Ready4Freddy (Hey, look man, I didn't mean to shoot the son of a b!tch. The gun went off. I don't know why.)
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To: donmeaker
When ever I am in an airport, I watch out for soldiers, and buy one dinner. Usually I get to his waiter, and pay for his meal (with a tip) before he knows it.

Good for you! That is an excellent way of saying "Thanks."

73 posted on 08/16/2006 2:13:56 PM PDT by zot (GWB -- the most slandered man of this decade)
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To: Ready4Freddy
"So whatever happened to Sgt Akbar?"

Good question.

I think I recall him being convicted in a military court, but it would be nice if he was humping Allah's goat in hell with Zarqawi and other dead Islam-0-swine.

74 posted on 08/16/2006 2:17:26 PM PDT by lormand (Nuke the Islamic States, or kiss your @55 goodbye)
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To: rightalien

When I returned from Iraq two years ago, wearing my uniform as was the rest of our advisor team, the Baltimore TSA shut down the security area as I had left an EMPTY 9mm magazine in my carry-on. After months in the desert training the Iraqi Army, going on countless operations, and getting decorated by General Petraeus before leaving Baghdad, I get frisked and have my magazine confiscated. Those idiots even took a picture of my military ID. One of them had the temerity to tell me that they were doing it for our safety. I growled that I was very much familiar with the war on terror having just returned from Baghdad.

TSA: Thousands Standing Around or Terrifically Stupid and Annoying. Yet another success story of this administration.

Semper fi,
CJM


75 posted on 08/16/2006 2:52:39 PM PDT by usmc_chris (Tancredo in 2008)
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To: usmc_chris

Government paralysis isn't all bad. If they really went to work they would paralyze everyone!


76 posted on 08/16/2006 3:58:42 PM PDT by donmeaker (If the sky don't say "Surrender Dorothy" then my ex wife is out of town.)
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To: xcamel

yep.... I have seen the TSA hassle the troops at Atlanta.


77 posted on 08/16/2006 4:00:24 PM PDT by pointsal (Q)
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To: 68skylark

but I still wish that airport screening could be done better for those who serve -- especially those with higher rank and high-level security clearances.

=

Keep screwing the privates eh.


78 posted on 08/16/2006 4:04:07 PM PDT by Modok
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To: rightalien

The TSA is a joke. Misfits as screeners with bloated egos, litle or no training and a desire to throw their authority around because NOBODY, let me say that again, NOBODY can or is willing to control them.


79 posted on 08/16/2006 5:01:06 PM PDT by chiefqc
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To: Gamecock; 68skylark; SampleMan

Thank you for your replies.


80 posted on 08/16/2006 5:05:04 PM PDT by Brooklyn Kid (What's it to ya? ) ((....west of the Jordan, east of the Rock of Gibraltar.................))
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