I had the "pleasure" of flying this week. I left Sunday night from Harrisburg International Airport. and flew into O'Hare. Don't be fooled by the "International;" HIA is a rinky-dink airport. Tiny. And a blessing in disguise. Point being, there's one terminal and one security checkpoint. It's a breeze, like 10 minutes. O'Hare, on the other hand, is a NIGHTMARE. On my way back Thursday evening, it took just under an hour to get through the checkpoint. And it is NOT a pleasant experience.
Like any customer service job, you can see it on the faces of the workers when they're facing a line of customers with seemingly no end. No smiles or "welcome to O'Hare." And it was almost like they turned down the air conditioning to make everyone even more miserable. From the TSA's website, the average waiting time for a Thursday (between 6-8 pm) is 1-2 minutes. 1-2 minutes? They can't be THAT ignorant. This experience is unacceptable. I don't say this out of arrogance either. I'm not saying that I should be carried through security while being fed grapes and sipping 3 OZ. bottles of wine. I understand the necessity of the checkpoints, but they could be easily made more tolerable. I could endure it, but for the elderly and the babies involved it was a bit more taxing.
I feel these conditions are intentional for two reasons. The first reason is to make traveling such an inconvenience that people stop traveling. Of course, it won't eliminate air travel, but it will keep more people IN THEIR HOMES. The second reason is to further desensitize us from this kind of treatment. It felt like cattle being led to the slaughter (or something worse). It was quite a disturbing scene. Watching people "process through the line."
The TSA AGENTS are Federal Security Agents. I think we forget this fact. And as important as we're led to believe this job to be, I feel that the requirements should be more than a GED, a clean piss-test, and debt-free. Although our tax money pays the salaries of these workers, they are not to be questioned. A request for common sense to be used is considered dissent and will increase your possibility of further search (or violation.) The mandatory removal of the shoes is ridiculous. Even if you're wearing flip-flops or some other see-through footwear, they must be sent through the X-ray machine (and many haven't been upraded to detect explosives.)
On a side note, I got home and opened my bag to see a TSA Form informing me that my bag was searched in accordance with the AVIATION AND TRANSPORTATION SECURITY ACT OF 2001. The notice also lets you know that if your bag happens to be locked, the lock can be broken with no liability requirement to the TSA. Tough luck! Although they do "sincerely regret" doing it. And for your subliminal message at the bottom, "SMART SECURITY SAVES TIME." Give me a break...
Never fear though because, as always, if you're willing to pay, you can avoid ALL of this. This is scary, and I caution anyone who considers this. For $99.95, you can take advantage of the SECURITY EXPRESS LANE. This sounds great at first, but it costs much more than the money. You'll be VOLUNTEERING your personal information, such as fingerprints and iris scans. Don't forget these are Federal Records and will be shared with all other agencies. You will now be in the National Database that others will eventually be forced into entering. It's a disguise. Please recognize.
It will also result in the further discrimination to those who do not "volunteer" their information or cannot afford the fee. It reminds me of the talk of "TOLL ROADS," where the privileged will be able to drive on their own, separate roads. This ideology only widens the gap between OUR proletariat and bourgeoisie. A lot of us are so PRO-DEMOCRACY that we think everything can be overcome by it. How many times have you heard "we'll just vote them out?" That's one of the main reasons "IMPEACHMENT IS OFF THE TABLE." And even if enough people do participate in elections, the removal of a president or party will NOT remove the laws they've put in place.
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