"The average American has regular contact with the federal government at three points -- the IRS, the post office and the TSA."

...and, increasingly, at the Doctors office.

...and, ultimately, at every place of publicly funded education.

...and, for about a quarter of us now, at the umemployment office.

Abolish the IRS with Fair Tax or shrink it 90% with a Flat Tax.

Sell off the Post office to the highest bidder. And AMTRACK while we're at it.

Terminate TSA. Let Airlines provide their own security. Bring in consultants from Israel.

Repeal ObamaCare. Remove impediments to the Free Market and let affordable Capitalist Medicine thrive.

Eliminate the Department of (Youth Propaganda)Education.

Pass the Balanced Budget Amendment. And just watch people go back to work.

Interesting article at a coincidental time. My daughter,husband, and grandson were at my house yesterday for an early thanksgiving. They are leaving for Disneyland on Wednesday, and the topic of airport screening came up. She is a liberal by the way and I a conservative. I voiced my opinion about Govt. control and how the process hasen't caught anybody, it was just another act of the Govt. taking control of our lives. How the paranoia of terrorism has affected our better judgement, and we have submitted to the theory that the Govt. can protect us better than we can protect ourselves.

Her response was " well if it stops another 9/11 then it's not so bad". I dropped the conversation on that remark, knowing that explaining 9/11 would only irritate my wife futher--she dosen't like me talking politics with the girl's--as one is a Lawyer, one a Teacher, and the brilliant one an Occupational Therepist. As you can see I'am out numbered when it comes to common sense. I'am retired and in no hurry to get anywhere, so I think I will hook-up the camper and drive where I'am going rather than fly anymore. I told her I will look for her body-scan on the internet and see if they did her justice.

Great column

@Jimmy D

Ditto and Amen!

@Marine

thanks for trying - sometimes it eventually works. :)

REPLY TO MARINE:

You sent them to college because you wanted the "BEST" for them, they turned your children against you and all that you valiantly did for the Country seems at an end.

There is HOPE. The End is not YET. Your Common Sense will prevail, and because Common Sense is based on the Ten Commandments of Almighty God, the Truth, always prevails. Your children will hear your comments echoing in their ears, for the Truth always prevails, so keep, keeping on.

I here that stuff, too. "I'd rather be safe, than sorry." "Is life so sweet and peace so dear, as to bought at the price of chains and slavery????

Forbid it Almighty God, I know not what course other may take, but as for me, Give me Liberty or give me death." Patrick Henry The founders had it just right.

For God & Country

The American

Jimmy D, every single one of your ideas were right on target. Going to keep that list alive for all those politicians who need it.

Marine, your kids are the reminder of what our colleges are producing, liberals (marxists) with a half education and plenty of indoctrination. There has been however, some talk going around lately that due to what I just layed out and the outrageous cost of an Ivy League (or lesser) education, the tuition bill just doesn't seem worth it anymore. Not going to college and becoming business savvy as in small business starts is being encouraged now by some parents.

A couple years ago, I was flying to Florida to see the kids for extended (winter) visits and always had a one way ticket as I wanted to buy my ticket when I was ready to go home. Pretty much everytime I was singled out for that extra check with the wand and my arms stretched out while they asked if I had a problem with "touching", to which I responded, "Depends on what you are touching." After a few trips like this, it was getting on my nerves. So on a day I when I was just a bit stressed and overtired and when they informed me I had to go through it again, I said with an attitude, "Do I look like an ARAB to you??? What is this, flying while blonde"? Got no reaction except stares. Haven't flown since this new nude scanner and grope has been instituted and I won't. Driving while blonde is what I will be doing. There is a solution for every problem. As you guys well know. Take Care.

I have worked at a hub airport, and it really blows my mind that folks are okay with being felt up and publicly humiliated in the name of "security" while the vast majority of air cargo goes unscreened. There are very few commercial passenger flights that do not have some sort of cargo onboard, and chances are that it was not screened except to verify that it came from a known shipper. Why should passengers have to be x-rayed and assaulted when most packages aren't given a first look, never mind a second?

I always travel in my uniform when I'm on orders, and right after 9/11 I got a lot of extra attention at check-ins. I'm sure it was because the bottom-feeders who make up most "security" organizations wanted to show how they were being sensitive and not profiling (a.k.a. doing their job), so I usually got wanded when traveling - on orders, with my military ID, in uniform. I remember one flight when a really big dude in a turban sauntered right through while I was being re-checked after I cleared the metal detector without setting it off. Go figure. We're in a war, for heaven's sake. In a saner world a soldier on duty would be consider out of uniform if he did NOT have a weapon.

The TSA rent-a-cops made such idiots of themselves during that time that they must have been told to knock that nonsense off. Now when I travel I never get pulled aside. Apparently it's not the uniform (anybody can buy one of those and get a short haircut), but when the ticket is purchased by the military and the traveler presents official orders at check-in, they don't seem screw with us any more. (I would hope that a civilian wearing a complete uniform - thereby impersonating a military member - would automatically get more attention.)

It irks me that every other law-abiding American doesn't get the same consideration I do though. George Will is right to refer to the kabuki dance at the gate as "security theater." Being forced to choose between 1) posing for porno pictures or 2) submitting to sexual assault as a condition of flying is not making us safer: it only conditions us to be sheep. I intend to curtail my off-duty flying as much as possible.

One more thing while I'm ranting. TSA only permits males to grope males and females to grope females. Why? The answer is that it is supposed to be non-sexual, but doesn't that presume both the groper and the gropee are heterosexual? Does TSA permit homosexuals to feel up members of the same sex? Just wondering...

My last flight was in a military helicopter. Until there is a family emergency of some kind, it will remain so. We are giving up a great deal to these terrorists. China is smiling.

Jimmy D:

Fair Tax, Heck yeah....but let's not abolish the IRS. We just use them to audit the government (with congressional oversight) instead of the taxpayer.

Score another one for the terrorists (our PC police) and the middle eastern young Muslim men that started all this. When we are presumed to be the enemy who is safe? Bin Laden must be laughing his head off.

"Bin Laden must be laughing his head off." -BT

My thoughts exactly:

http://rn-t.com/view/full_story_cartoon/10328941/article-Mike-Lester-s-Cartoon--11-16-10?instance=top_right_cartoon

SCC, you asked

"Why should passengers have to be x-rayed and assaulted when most packages aren't given a first look, never mind a second?"

The packages don't care.

Packages don't constitute an appreciative audience for the Kabuki theatre that TSA conducts.

TSA actually is doing profiling: if it walks or talks, it is not a package, therefore must be x-rayed or groped. (This from the TSA Screener Training Manual)

Exercise your First Amendment Right by asking when the Fourth Amendment was modified by "not at airports." Benjamin Franklin, Samuel Adams and James Madison call your office.

Some things to think about:

(1) You cannot legislate common sense.

(2) IGNORANCE can be cured, but STUPID is forever.

(3) Personal responsibility is what it's all about.

Give me the liberty to know,

to utter, and to argue freely

according to concience, above

all liberties.---John milton

(1608-1674)

May I suggest that we use the automobile insurance argument to solve the airport security issue of the TSA. This administration told us they can force Obamacare on us because we can be required to buy automobile insurance. Everyone knows that a male under 25 pays more for car insurance because they are considered a statistical liability. Let’s figure out who presents the greatest statistical liability and focus our screening on them. If it isolates middle-eastern 17-36 year old Muslim males, so be it. If the statistical liability approach of car insurance is good enough for the young men we are asking to protect us in war, then it is good enough for the potential enemies who wish to drag us into that war.

The advantages to this approach are: 1) Everyday freedom loving Americans will be less likely to be treated as potential terrorists. 2) Limited funds (has anyone noted that we are out of money?) can be used where they are most needed. 3) The administration can avoid using the term “profiling” with the same vigor it wishes to avoid the term “terrorist”. 4) If this administration will not use the automobile insurance approach on terrorists, then maybe they will repent from using the automobile insurance approach to force Obamacare on peace loving law abiding liberty seeking citizens.

Dear TSA Agent-

I have to say I'm disappointed that after our "intimate encounter" the other day, I haven't heard from you. I thought we had something special. I guess you're busy these days though, LOL.

Since you made it clear that you want a close relationship with me, I've been reading up on all this business at the security gates lately. It seems like it's pretty clear to everyone but your boss Janet Napolitano that the PornoScan 2010 and "enhanced pat-downs" (some people are calling it "Gate Rape", haha!) violate the Fourth Amendment right of all Americans to be free from unreasonable searches without probable cause.

But I know you TSA screeners would not on your own choose to do these humiliating, invasive, and borderline-criminal searches; that sort of thing is decided well above your paygrade. You're just following orders, right?

I'm sure your GED class didn't cover a lot of world history (you should Google it when you have some free time; there's a lot of good stuff, especially all that about something called the "Bill of Rights.") Anyway, there were some trials a while back at a place called Nuremberg, where a lot of folks tried that very same "just following orders" defense. I don't want to ruin the ending for you, but let's just say, it didn't work very well, haha!

Can't wait to get together again. See you at the trials!

Sincerely,

We the People

Thankfully it is sounding like there are other Americans out there who are FED UP with what America has morphed into. We are now a totalitarian state and the government dictates to us the terms of our existence and we have no choice but to take it. Wow, I can remember long ago, thinking we were better than North Korea, China, the Soviet Union and other despotic states because WE were the government. Not any more. We have lost our freedom. Its gone. Didnt we fight a War of Independence over such things once, long ago?

Great comments above from all you Patriots. And yes, JB, we did fight that War of Independence long ago. Perhaps it's time we fight another one. As Thomas Jefferson said, "A little rebellion now and then is a good thing. It is a medicine necessary for the sound health of government."

Stay armed and ready, Patriots. God bless you all and Happy Thanksgiving.

Obama has two more years to complete the dismantling of our country and there is nothing we can do about it.

Response to @ hank: Yes, there is something we can do about the actions and behavior of Obama & Co. - but it will take an investment of that most valuable commodity, time. We shall have to speak quite plainly and quite frequently with our elected representatives. Part of the short and simple message will be our deep concern about having one more chance to get the "federal" government under control and down to size. Plainly and frequently, but respectfully. Or we will elect someone who will.

Response to those who have well-worded logical solutions: this whole Obama kabuki dance is not about logic - it is about power. Raw, sustained power. That is why Obama and Co. are blatantly pushing class warfare upon Americans, the tactic of divide and conquer, that his mentors and many of his associates promoted and with which they continue to wound us.