[Alex Murphy]

There I was, an aspiring satire writer, earnestly acting on orders straight out of Catch-22. I quickly discovered I was working for an agency whose morale was among the lowest in the U.S. government. In private, most TSA officers I talked to told me they felt the agency’s day-to-day operations represented an abuse of public trust and funds.

Imagine the government's description of the "ideal candidate" to fill such a position.

[Old Yeller]

Hey! As long as muzzies can get through without hassles, it’s all good.

[tomkat]

In private, most TSA officers I talked to told me they felt the agency’s day-to-day operations represented an abuse of public trust and funds.

But like good little whores, they showed up every day and shat on the Constitution anyway.

             

Fly for any non-essential reason, and YOU are part of the problem !

[Atlas Sneezed]

This was a very interesting article.

[2harddrive]

Old news.

[varyouga]

Seems like a quarter of TSA slang is used to check out (and probably grope) hot females. Yet not a single word for an actual threat.

Welcome to the USSA. Give me your papers and bend over ma'am. Fer da children

[Talisker]

I hated it from the beginning.

But you did it anyway, didn't you?

[jughandle]

As long as no muslims were offended or humiliated...

[Yaelle]

He was braver than anyone in congress, saving us millions of dollars.

Where are any other brave Americans?

[Little Ray]

Like I care what some TSA loser thinks?

[Polynikes]

” I was even required to confiscate nail clippers from airline pilots—the implied logic being that pilots could use the nail clippers to hijack the very planes they were flying.”

In another life when I was in training at the TSA during their initial start they had us confiscating scissors from pilots. I questioned the rational of that because the pilots were in the cockpit and in control of the plane anyway.

The reason to confiscate from pilots was “Someone might break into the cockpit during flight and go straight to the pilots personal gear, take the scissors and try to take over the plane”.

I just sat there in amazement at the Barney Fife mall Ninja wannabe’s answer. I needed a job at the time so I bit my tongue. Some of the the people I worked with initially were actually fairly well educated and motivated just post 9/11 and needed a job as well. The rest of the TSA screeners were doing good just to get dressed and actually find their way to work.

The organization slowly changed into a giant welfare to work make-work project for the chronically unemployable.

[roadcat]

But we would also sometimes pull a passenger’s bag or give a pat down because he or she was rude. We always deployed the same explanation: “It’s just a random search.”

One of my brothers-in-law is a TSA agent; he's an a**hole and I hate his guts. When we were on talking terms, her corroborated the above. Someone gives them attitude, and they purposely do a random pat down and slow it way down to inconvenience the passenger. And unlike this writer of the article, he enjoys doing it. His previous job was being a car salesman; a loser.

[longtermmemmory]

how about mandatory rad badges for emplyees? In all locations, public buildings, courthouses etc. even for regulars like workers to pass near xray machines.