General

Re: 6 year old girl groped then drug tested by TSA

John James — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 04:59:41 GMT

liberty student:
I agree with you EiT, Europeans seem to be totally unaware of pedophiles.

I think that's because in Europe they're called "Europeans".

Re: 6 year old girl groped then drug tested by TSA

liberty student — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 03:39:19 GMT

I agree with you EiT, Europeans seem to be totally unaware of pedophiles.

Re: 6 year old girl groped then drug tested by TSA

EconomistInTraining — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 02:29:14 GMT

And I fully agree with you that EiT has certainly implied that his sensibilities regarding what amount of touching is acceptable should be universal. Such dogmatism is laughable in the modern world. The irony is that he thinks the average American is unsophisticated by comparison to himself.

I don't see where I've implied such a thing, I just posted that it would take an American to think that the person doing the patting down must be some sort of pedophile who gets a kick outta that kinda thing. If you want to kick off the whole "American vs. Europe" argument, I'm not the person to do with it, I've lived in the States and think its a fantastic country. You guys just have some quirks that I find amusing, and vice versa.

Re: 6 year old girl groped then drug tested by TSA

Libertyandlife — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 01:17:04 GMT

Seriously anyone who's been to a dmv knows that. It's part of the training protocol.

Re: 6 year old girl groped then drug tested by TSA

mikachusetts — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 21:02:14 GMT

Clayton:
I don't think the effects of adverse selection should be ignored. Most foster parents are not child abusers but the ideal situation for a child abuser is to become a foster parent. That's not an indictment of foster parenting, per se, it's an indictment of the legal system which has created the need for foster parents to begin with. Most TSA agents are not sexual deviants but an ideal situation for a sexual deviant who gets excitement from touching and/or viewing naked random strangers is to become a TSA patdown/scanning agent.

It should also be mentioned that the US government as an employer is notoriously bad at NOT hiring terrible people. Ultimately though, its an empirical question as to how many TSA agants are actually there for the body massage.

Re: 6 year old girl groped then drug tested by TSA

John James — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 19:52:25 GMT

Oh yeah...it also makes us look really good to the rest of the world too...

(Please visit the site to view this media)

Re: 6 year old girl groped then drug tested by TSA

Clayton — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 17:44:45 GMT

mikachusetts:

Oh come on, it's a little different. The point is that only in America would the any considerable number of people assume that TSA agents are in their current line of employment because they like "groping" random individuals. Here's the reality, most people are ugly, throw a few hours of travelling into the mix and the understable lack of effort most people put into their appearance when they go onto planes and I feel more sympathy for TSA agents than I do for their "victims".

I don't think that TSA agents are in the biz just to touch kids, but thats not what I was taking issue with. My issue was that you seem to relegate yourself the authority of how much personal contact is acceptable for not just yourself and your family, but for everyone.

To be honest, we are probably in agreement that most of these TSA stories are sensationalist and recruiting tools for libertarians, but seriously, realize that people have different comfort zones.

I don't think the effects of adverse selection should be ignored. Most foster parents are not child abusers but the ideal situation for a child abuser is to become a foster parent. That's not an indictment of foster parenting, per se, it's an indictment of the legal system which has created the need for foster parents to begin with. Most TSA agents are not sexual deviants but an ideal situation for a sexual deviant who gets excitement from touching and/or viewing naked random strangers is to become a TSA patdown/scanning agent.

And I fully agree with you that EiT has certainly implied that his sensibilities regarding what amount of touching is acceptable should be universal. Such dogmatism is laughable in the modern world. The irony is that he thinks the average American is unsophisticated by comparison to himself.

Clayton -

Re: 6 year old girl groped then drug tested by TSA

mikachusetts — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 17:36:24 GMT

Oh come on, it's a little different. The point is that only in America would the any considerable number of people assume that TSA agents are in their current line of employment because they like "groping" random individuals. Here's the reality, most people are ugly, throw a few hours of travelling into the mix and the understable lack of effort most people put into their appearance when they go onto planes and I feel more sympathy for TSA agents than I do for their "victims".

I don't think that TSA agents are in the biz just to touch kids, but thats not what I was taking issue with. My issue was that you seem to relegate yourself the authority of how much personal contact is acceptable for not just yourself and your family, but for everyone.

To be honest, we are probably in agreement that most of these TSA stories are sensationalist and recruiting tools for libertarians, but seriously, realize that people have different comfort zones.

Re: 6 year old girl groped then drug tested by TSA

Valject — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 05:57:36 GMT

S'different because they have a badge and they're only doing it out of paranoia that someone might be smuggling a bomb in your child's crotch.

Totally different.

Pedophiles aren't necessarily psychotic, you see.

Re: 6 year old girl groped then drug tested by TSA

Isaac "Izzy" Marmolejo — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 05:57:00 GMT

@EconomidtInTraining

Your name wouldn't happen to be Janet Napolitano, would it?

Re: 6 year old girl groped then drug tested by TSA

EconomistInTraining — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 05:42:12 GMT

I know right? Its like, so what if my hand is resting on the zipper of your pants? I know you wouldn't get pissed about it, but Americans...sheesh. This one time on the subway I asked a little boy if he wanted to sit on my lap instead of stand. You should've seen the look on his mothers face. She was just too anal about interpersonal contact. I mean, if you had kids I'm sure you would let me touch them all sorts of ways.

Oh come on, it's a little different. The point is that only in America would the any considerable number of people assume that TSA agents are in their current line of employment because they like "groping" random individuals. Here's the reality, most people are ugly, throw a few hours of travelling into the mix and the understable lack of effort most people put into their appearance when they go onto planes and I feel more sympathy for TSA agents than I do for their "victims".

Re: 6 year old girl groped then drug tested by TSA

DanielMuff — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 23:24:13 GMT

EconomistInTraining:

[...] Americans are so anal about interpersonal contact its amazing.

Wait, was a pun intended?

Re: 6 year old girl groped then drug tested by TSA

John James — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 22:32:28 GMT

Here's a girl half her age:

(Please visit the site to view this media)

And here's what happens to little boys after they get OFF a train...

(Please visit the site to view this media)

Re: 6 year old girl groped then drug tested by TSA

mikachusetts — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 20:57:33 GMT

Americans are so anal about interpersonal contact its amazing.

I know right? Its like, so what if my hand is resting on the zipper of your pants? I know you wouldn't get pissed about it, but Americans...sheesh. This one time on the subway I asked a little boy if he wanted to sit on my lap instead of stand. You should've seen the look on his mothers face. She was just too anal about interpersonal contact. I mean, if you had kids I'm sure you would let me touch them all sorts of ways.

Re: 6 year old girl groped then drug tested by TSA

chunter — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 20:46:22 GMT

"They don't want a showdown with the public, they want to see what they can get away with. That's the only meaningful purpose for the TSA.

You exist to furnish the tables of your owners, don't ever forget it."

Well said. And that is exactly why we need to keep having protest TSA days.