Incompetent TSA

Not that I think the TSA should be looking for drugs, but, obviously, they do (and it is clearly part of their directives to do so). So, it's pretty funny that they missed four suitcases literally filled with marijuana.

Another win for the Drug War police state

An addict was caught by TSA carrying methamphetamine. And a suspected marijuana smuggler was stopped, too. But I thought the TSA was looking for terr'ists!

In related news, Pistole is bragging about how many guns his agents have confiscated. He admits that most of the offenders are law-abiding and simply forgot to take their weapons out of their carry-on bags. Don't forget that all totalitarian police states have sought to disarm their citizens. Here's a great straw man argument for doing so, courtesy of my favorite agency: the TSA.

He also bragged about how many drugs were caught by the porno-scanners. I believe you, Johnny, but I thought the naked scanners are in place to protect me when I fly from terrorists carrying explosives and weapons, not from the victimless crimes of drug smuggling and accidentally bringing a legal firearm onto a plane. (By the way, these gun-toters would be great to have on the plane if there really were a terrorist among the passengers!)

Airport security is about the War on Drugs

Not only in America, but in Australia, too. I was unaware that suspected drug couriers undergo hospital exams to confirm that they have drugs stashed internally. So Australia is going to start installing penetrating x-ray machines at airports so suspects can opt for the x-ray, presumably to clear their name and not miss their flight with a fruitless hospital visit.

Australia doesn't use the naked scanners (if I recall correctly, they have been banned by the parliament there) and plans to have only very limited use of these new x-ray scanners. However, am I the only one who thinks it's crazy that we spend so much time, effort, and money tracking down idiots who swallow heroin balloons but are otherwise not hurting anyone? This drug war stuff is ridiculous and it is good cover for the ballooning power of the TSA.

TSA = DEA

Not sure what Montel Williams' marijuana pipe has to do with airline security (actually, I know it has nothing to do with airline security, just like everything else the TSA does).

Is TSA an arm of the DEA?

First, Willie Nelson is arrested after being stopped by a Border Patrol agent for drug possession. Then rapper Kurtis Blow gets a ticket for possession at LAX. There's no argument that can be made here that these events made transportation in the US more secure. However, they both entail warrantless searches.