By: Terresa Monroe-Hamilton
Hat Tip: Bookworm Room

Milblogger Michael Yon

Looks like the TSA is just doing the incompetent job other incompetents won’t do… Today they stopped renowned Milblogger Michael Yon at Sea-Tac and asked him how much money he made. When he basically told them it was none of their business, being the nice little thugs that they are, they handcuffed him. How is what Michael makes in the way of money any of their damned business?

From Michelle Malkin and Ed Morrissey at Hot Air:

Got arrested at the Seattle airport for refusing to say how much money I make. (The uniformed ones say I was not “arrested”, but they definitely handcuffed me.) Their videos and audios should show that I was polite, but simply refused questions that had nothing to do with national security. Port authority police eventually came — they were professionals — and rescued me from the border bullies.

When they handcuffed me, I said that no country has ever treated me so badly. Not China. Not Vietnam. Not Afghanistan. Definitely not Singapore or India or Nepal or Germany, not Brunei, not Indonesia, or Malaysia, or Kuwait or Qatar or United Arab Emirates. No county has treated me with the disrespect can that can be expected from our border bullies.

Michael Yon is highly respected for his journalistic work in the Middle East and elsewhere. He is a true professional and a great guy. Treating him this way is not only ridiculous, it’s an insult…

But, seriously, can we talk? The TSA in their exuberance also nabbed Joan Rivers. She’s 76 and boy howdy, does she ever just scream ‘terrorist,’ huh? Her passport reads: Joan Rosenberg AKA Joan Rivers. Rosenberg was her late husband’s last name. Oh, I see, the nervous gate agent for Continental Airlines in Costa Rica must have thought she was a cleverly disguised Jewish terrorist – since there are sooo many of those around. Right… The agent found the two names ‘fishy.’ Strikes me as rather antisemetic, rude and just plain stupid. I hope that agent is looking for a new job today at the very least…

And while the TSA is Johnny-on-the-spot to apprehend heroic milbloggers and comedic national treasures, they allegedly waited 80 minutes before reporting a breach at a N.J. airport. Well done… Wouldn’t want to mar your perfect record of idiocy there.

And so you’ll feel really secure, I’d like to share the TSA’s “20 Layers of Security” chart with you. This will make you feel all warm and fuzzy:

Wow! They’ve really got this whole bureaucratic mess thing down. Not security mind you, but bureaucracy… Incompetence for dummies so-to-speak. Here’s an idea, why don’t you try doing what El Al does instead of all this stupid nonsense? From Wikipedia:

El Al security

As a target for many decades, El Al employs stringent security procedures, both on the ground and on board its aircraft. These effective, though sometimes controversial, procedures have won El Al a reputation for security. In 2008, the airline was named by Global Traveler magazine as the world’s most secure airline.

Airport security measures

Passengers are asked to report three hours before departure. All El Al terminals around the world are closely monitored for security. There are plain-clothes agents and fully armed police or military personnel who patrol the premises for explosives, suspicious behavior, and other threats. Inside the terminal, passengers and their baggage are checked by a trained team. El Al security procedures require that all passengers be interviewed individually prior to boarding, allowing El Al staff to identify possible security threats. Passengers will be asked questions about where they are coming from, the reason for their trip, their job or occupation, and whether they have packed their bags themselves. The likelihood of potential terrorists remaining calm under such questioning is believed to be low. At the check-in counter the passengers’ passports and tickets are closely examined. A ticket without a sticker from the security checkers will not be accepted. At passport control passengers’ names are checked against information from the FBI, Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), Scotland Yard, Shin Bet, and Interpol databases. Luggage is screened and sometimes hand searched. In addition, bags are put through a decompression chamber simulating pressures during flight that could trigger explosives. El Al is the only airline in the world that passes all luggage through such a chamber. Even at overseas airports, El Al security agents conduct all luggage searches personally, even if they are supervised by government or private security firms.

Flight security measures

Undercover agents (sometimes referred to as sky marshals) carrying concealed firearms sit among the passengers on every international El Al flight. All El Al pilots are former Israeli Air Force pilots.

The cockpits in all El Al aircraft have double doors to prevent entry by unauthorized persons. A code is required to access the doors, and the second door will only be opened after the first has closed and the person has been identified by the Captain or First Officer. Furthermore, there are reinforced steel floors separating the passenger cabin from the baggage hold. This is intended to strengthen the plane in case of an explosion.

Following an attempt to shoot down an Israeli airliner in 2002, all aircraft in the fleet have been equipped with an infrared countermeasures system called ‘Flight Guard’, developed by Israeli Aerospace Industries to defend them against anti-aircraft missiles. Although comparable systems such as CAMPS are now available for civilian aircraft, there is no information to date about any other airlines deploying such a system. Switzerland and other European countries have expressed concern that flares dropped by the Israeli system could cause fires in the vicinity of an airport. However none of the higher risk countries that El Al aircraft fly to have raised any concerns.

I have been saying that we should do something similar to this ever since 9/11. Instead we harass the innocent: military, elderly, children – hell, everyone but those that seem most likely to kill us. Enough! We should gut the TSA and DHS and just start over and do it right this time.