I HATE TSA I HATE US SECURITY PARANOIA AGH HATE

[solarbird]

So spazzkat pointed out - probably correctly q >_< p - that my BAND NAME gives TSA an extra EXCUSE to fuck with my travel case (and the bouzouki inside it), as in, say, KEEP IT or something else similarly idiotic. He popped out with this when he saw that I have a sticker on the top talking about Crime and the Forces of Evil tour:


He thinks it gives them an EXCUSE, so he says I should TAKE IT OFF MY CASE. And the thing is he's RIGHT. It's fucking AIRLINE TRAVEL in the fucking US. They've fucked people people for wearing the wrong T-SHIRTS.

And the big problem is that pulling it OFF means going ALONG WITH all this BULLSHIT that I HATE. I mean, I'm going to great lengths to avoid some of the crap I've read about on airlines - hardcore Anvil-made travel case, diagrammatic instructions on how to open the latches even though they're bog standard, multiple identification notes on the case... and THIS.

CHRIST this pisses me off.

He thinks I should take the Property Of sticker off, too, because it also has the band name in big letters, with my name, address, phone number, all that crap.

Here's what it looks like on the inside almost finished, btw. The only differences now are that the rest of the recessed blue area on top is covered with layers of egg crate foam. I'd put Kohaku back in and take another picture except the foam glue is still drying and I want it nice and dry before putting in the instrument. I'm really pleased with how it looks all cleaned up but AGH HATE TSA.

They've got to me, too. I mean, I had the same thought when I was making the sticker. But then I thought "oh settle down, it's a band name on an instrument case, don't be paranoid." BUT WAIT

Comments

[phillipalden.livejournal.com]

If those people didn't have TSA jobs they'd be flipping burgers at McDonalds, (the lucky ones.)

When the federal government tests the TSA (by trying to sneak weapons and explosives through, the TSA fails to catch it more often than not.

My partner calls it "bad Kabuki," and it does have that "bad theater" aspect to the whole game.

[maellenkleth]

ever since I got strip-searched in Logan for presenting ID that was issued by a foreign country (the TSO completely lost it, repeating over and over again: "that's not government-issued ID!"), I travel by air to America with the deepest of reluctance.

good luck.

oh, the exit checkpoints at Logan will alarm for rivets in blue jeans. and earrings. and wedding rings. and underwire bras.

dumb situation......

[leftbase.livejournal.com]

So far, all the TSA people I've dealt with have been sensible, and I'd like to think the ones you encounter will be also. I think I'd definitely leave the Property Of sticker on at least, in case the airline "misplaces" it.

So, what are you going to do?

Anyway, have a safe trip. I wish I could take Friday off.

[juliansinger.livejournal.com]

Well, that's OK, I also got through Logan security without ever once providing ID. (This was after 9/11.)

Logan is... kinda pathetic.

[waysofseeing.livejournal.com]

I've met plenty of badly trained TSA agents, but Logan remains the only airport I've been in where the agents were aggressive and incompetent. I think they recruited a bunch of ex-prison guards from Walpole right after 9/11.

In fairness, this was in 2003. I've been through Logan in the last few months & found the agents to be much more professional.

All that said: yeah, giving the agents something to attract their notice is probably a bad idea. I don't read books on religion in airports either.

[epawtows.livejournal.com]

Could you cover the problem text with gaff tape or similar for travel?

[marzipan-pig.livejournal.com]

My mom got WW2 PTSD symptoms from dealing with TSA; once someone *makes your mom cry* it's hard to forgive them. I tried to get her to write them a letter (usually theraputic for her!) asking them to replace the perfume bottle they broke but she couldn't bring herself to do that, and she wouldn't give me the information for me to do it myself.

That also got me thinking about all of the other war survivor types having to deal with all of that every time they fly, and how totally stupid and unnecessary it is to terrorize people for no reason.

[silussa.livejournal.com]

Joke them if they can't take a f***.

Seriously.

Or find an alternative way to ship it, if time allows. A lot of luggage these days is moving via UPS and FedEx; their loss rate is lower, and you don't deal with the IQ 3 TSA types. (this is NOT a reflection of ALL TSA types....but there's always some bad apples)

[lyonesse.livejournal.com]

or edge-tape a big piece of paper around/over it, with my address or something else useful on it.

[brinylon.livejournal.com]

I feel our precious freedom of ideas has been irredeemably damaged because we, all over the world, have let it come to this, that we need to... it's beyond censor, it's kowtowing to stupidity because we allow stupidity to carry a big stick.

All this talk about the right to free speech, and it means crap once you want to travel by airplane? And we all seem to think this is inevitable and as unavoidable as anything nature can throw at us.

And yes, I feel compelled to end my heartfelt rant with: don't feel you need to throw your bouzouki to the wolves for the cause :/

[solarbird]

Time doesn't allow, at least, not at any rates that aren't more expensive than buying a second seat.

[solarbird]

Yeah, I should do that. It just pisses me off. Not the your address part, of course. The other part, with the stupid and the hate.

[daspatrick.livejournal.com]

Nice stickers though!

[roozle.livejournal.com]

I have gotten a total of 5 speeding tickets in the 25 or so years I've been driving. I got THREE of them within the 14 month period I had a ben and jerry's "If it's not fun why do it?" bumper sticker on my car. I ripped it off and went almost 5 years before the next one. Coincidence? I don't think so.

[solarbird]

I was wondering whether you'd pick that up. ^_^ I've finally got a place to put 'em! But I can't find my Tricky Pixie sticker, which annoys me.

The square one you can't see very well is:


Three Good Measures | Duck!
(I made it for iTunes because I actually have our cover of You Woke Up My Neighbourhood in the library. ^_^ )

[batyatoon]

Security theatre makes me mad.