TSA provides only the illusion of security, but I don’t think anyone is fooled anymore. They’re not even providing the illusion anymore.
I think the article handled it really well.
I thought so too.
Unfortunately, in today’s society, aviation is unforgiving to errors from the security lines to the flight lines.
One mistake can be deadly…
Allen
Sadly, the TSA is the public face of post 9/11 security to John Q. Traveler and much of the public. As a very frequent flier, I have seen way too much evidence of how pathetic the screening process is. It started when shortly after 9/11, then Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta (of Japanese descent) said that he categorically would never authorize the racial profiling of passengers – despite the fact that all of the 9/11 terrorists were Arab males, in a very tight age range, the majority of which were from Saudi Arabia. Mineta’s logic (illogic) was his own personal experience around WWII, when he and his family were briefly interned. For this reason, TSA was prevented by Secretary Mineta from profiling… to my knowledge, this foolish policy has stuck.
If we want to take air safety seriously, we would be well advised to carefully study, if not copy the best practices of El Al in this regard.
Ugh, but that requires profiling, heaven forbid!!!
Allen
Let’s not forget that, before September 11, 2001, the worst terrorist attack on American soil was carried out by malea young, white!
That being said, I just love it when I see an elderly woman putting her shoes back on after a secondary screening 
You right, and if an American white caucasion man was to get on El Al flight in Tel Aviv, you can bet he would be scrutinized a little more then an Isreali man. Heaven forbid we do the reverse here.
Profiling with El Al is widely known, and in fact, I think they take pride in that. One news article I found via Google news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/2097352.stm
Excerpted from the link above.
At Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport, passengers - in particular non-Israelis - are interrogated at length by highly-trained screeners while plain-clothes security officials watch for suspicious behaviour.
Outside Israel, travellers experience thorough searches of their luggage, including not just repeated X-rays but also swabs to test for explosives and lengthy questioning.
But some passengers have reported that these measures are discriminatory and sometimes unpleasant, with Palestinians and their friends subjected to much stricter procedures, including body searches.
El Al uses rigorous computerised passenger profiling systems, which apparently looks for anomalies in a traveller’s itinerary, finances and personal profile.
Needless to say, the civil liberties folks would have a field day with this methology of screening pax in the US of A.
Allen
No one has a problem with profiling serial killers, do they? What’s the difference with a terrorist? Well, I could imagine a hundred answers to that question but the principle is the same. Even if profiling is not legally a rule, I bet it still takes place. I’m all for anything to catch terrorists as long as it doesn’t take away my rights. But you know what? I don’t mind the gray areas when it comes to flight safety. I already entrust my life with the flight crew, and that’s as far as I want it go. So I’m willing to give up a few rights to bend with flight safety. We all have already. I hope that anyone who is profiled for flight safety would not be personally offended, and be proud to prove their integrity prior to their flight.
Terrorists come from all creeds and colors. It’s sort of ironic that one might have to prove they’re not a terrorist in order to travel but look what can happen when everyone is trusted. The war on terror is not an easy one, and it may never end, which is why it’s so important how you vote in elections and with the legislature. But I can guarantee you this. Terrorists will never win.
Sadly, they (terrorists) are accopmlishing their goals… otherwise this discussion wouldn’t be taking place.
Sadly you are right…