TSA Screener Pats Down a Wheelchair-Bound Toddler in a Hip Cast

According to the description on the Youtube video:

"A toddler in a wheelchair is stopped by the TSA at ORD (O'Hare Airport in Chicago) and forced to into a sequestered area. On his way to a family vacation in Disney, this 3 year old boy is in a body cast for a broken leg. Despite assurances from his father that "everything is ok", he is physically trembling with fear while he watches his two siblings, mother, father, grandfather and grandmother pass through along with everyone else…only to be singled out." 

Do you feel safer? Via Business Insider. 

Comments

[WWNGD?]

The government knows they must condition children at a young age so that the government can do anything it wants to citizens for the rest of their lives.

[Tsa Tsa Gabor]

I'm sure Daddy ("It's OK, Buddy.") will enlighten that kid before being hauled away for posting that video.

[Tryon Tahelpp]

They're doing it wrong, then. They should hold a gun on the child and tell him to sit perfectly still and silent.

[Bee Tagger]

Idiots.

Don't they realize that the thing that will do the TSA in won't be some philosophical argument about the proper role of government and people's freedom to travel without the assumption of guilt? It will be enraging anecdotes like this. Stop touching children and the elderly and I bet half of the people who complain about the TSA stop caring.

[Tulpa]

There have been anecdotes like this since the TSA began.

Just like there have been anecdotes about people and dogs shot and terrorized during wrong-door drug raids.

"If it ain't happening to me, I don't give a shit so long as I can watch American Idol in HD and eat cheeseburgers whenever I want." That's the mantra of the true 99%, the apathetic majority.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Male travellers are patted down using male TSA agents, and women with female agents. I think the TSA should hire kids to screen other kids.

[Rich]

I think the TSA should hire kids to screen other kids.

Probably better than the scary clowns they use now.

[Fist of Etiquette]

And as effective.

[Tulpa]

Too bad Julia Sweeny is older now; that would have made for a great "IT'S PAT" skit on SNL.

[Restoras]

The effin' TSA has to be the first thing to go. This is just utterly stupid.

[Gerholdt]

+1
Has anyone dug through Ryan's budget to check?

[Karburetor Kristen]

When I saw that kid in the security line, I was all like "Maybe I should miss this flight...if anyone ever looked like a terrarist, it's that fucker in a wheelchair!". Thanks to the heroic TSA, I felt safe enough to board. Whew!!

[Tim]

Obstetrician 1: Get the EEG, the BP monitor, and the AVV.
Obstetrician 2: And get the machine that goes 'ping!'.
Obstetrician 1: And get the most expensive machine - in case the Administrator comes.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Patient: What do I do?
Obstetrician: Nothing, dear, you're not qualified.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hospital Administrator: Ah, I see you have the machine that goes 'ping!'. This is my favorite. You see, we lease this back from the company we sold it to - that way it comes under the monthly current budget and not the capital account.
[The doctors and onlookers applaud.]
Hospital Administrator: Thank you, thank you. We try to do our best. Well, do carry on.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Suthenboy]

I refuse to fly or go into an airport. Being witness to something like this would cause me to have an uncontrollable urge to knock the offending TSA agent's fucking teeth down his throat. Why it hasnt happened yet is a mystery to me. But then, maybe the people who would do this just avoid airports entirely.

[Rich]

That's wise. I have to fly occasionally, and it's somewhat of an effort maintaining sufficiently to not get singled out.

[Muad Dib]

I too have put myself on the no fly list for that very reason. I would not be able to stand by while this sort of thing happened to someone else's child, let alone my own.

[sarcasmic]

I can only imagine the laundry list of felonies you would be charged with for doing that.

Not to mention the cheers from your fellow travelers.

[Tulpa]

What ever happened with that Texas law?

[Coeus]

The administration sent a threatining letter, and enough of the bill's backers revealed themselves to be the pussies they are, that they couldn't get it passed. May the yellow piss forever stain their souls.

[Kibby]

Oh, I can tell flying back home this summer is going to be a real test of my humanity. This video is absolutely disgusting.

[TrickyVic]

""This video is absolutely disgusting.""

I don't find this video near as disgusting as the American citizenry that has little or no problem with it.

[Kibby]

It's partially so vile because you know it happens a zillion times a day & nobody ever says a fucking thing.

[sarcasmic]

Do you want to miss your flight, have your person and luggage searched, and face possible criminal charges?

Because that is exactly what will happen if you even raise an eyebrow at them groping children.

Remember, you are a terrorist until you prove that you are not.

[Sy]

something something descent people something something honest work..

[me/dwc]

The problem is that saying "a fucking thing" will likely get you detained and molested and interrogated as though your were Bin Laden and put on a no fly list.

[Tulpa]

...and at least 70% of the country would think it was a good and right act for the TSA to do that to you.

Welcome to the Bipartisan Monolithic state.

[Lord Humungus]

Wait, I thought all Libertarians had private jets. That's the only way I travel!

Actually, I haven't flown since the TSA grope-a-thon started. Not looking forward to the day when I have to. I may charter a flight instead - especially if fleeing our new cozy prison.

[Sy]

Leasing a private jet for a large group is highly recommended and totally worth avoiding the TSA bullshit, not to mention the shortened travel time.

[Geoff Nathan]

Enraging as it is, I'm not going to let it stop me from traveling. But it's a good thing that there are no blood pressure monitors on when I go through screening.

[GroundTruth]

Valium helps. Trust me, I know.

[John Pistole]

Thank you very much for that security improvement suggestion, Mr. Nathan.

[heller]

Can't believe this hasn't been posted yet:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAkSpTDm2H8

[jasno]

Meh... is that the best they can come up with?

[Barely Suppressed Rage]

Hey, ya never know - the kid could have had a Stinger missile hidden in that cast.

[heller]

Or somewhere else.

Excuse me sir, I just needs to check inside ya assshole.

[Loki]

[coughing under my breath] 4th ammendment, 4th ammendment!.

The next time I fly I'm going to wear a T-shirt with the 4th ammendment printed on it. How much you want to bet I get singled out for "additional screening"? TSA: Total Shithead Assholes.

[heller]

You're assuming they know how to read.

[Paul]

And that they'd understand it if they did.

[insensitive bastard]

Loki|3.19.12 @ 10:43AM|#

[coughing under my breath] 4th ammendment, 4th ammendment!.

The next time I fly I'm going to wear a T-shirt with the 4th ammendment printed on it. How much you want to bet I get singled out for "additional screening"? TSA: Total Shithead Assholes.

Toilet Security Agency

[Loki]

I was going to make that South Park reference, but heller already beat to it, so I figured I'd go for something more original.

Touching Sensitive Areas is another pretty good one.

[Gerholdt]

Taliban's
Surrogate at
Airports

[jasno]

The next time I fly

Fuck you for supporting the TSA.

I haven't been on a flight since... '06? I drive 1k+ miles to family, 400+ to my client, and turn down cross-country work. E-mailing your senator isn't going to work. Want the TSA re-architected(because it ain't going away)? Stop. Fucking. Flying.

[creeper]

jasno, you're right...except for one thing. That's actually their objective--to get us sheep to stay in our pens. See: Gas prices and crumbling roads

They do not want us moving around. We're much harder to keep track of.

[Kwanzaa Cake]

That can't be real, can it? Swabbing the wheelchair? Lifting up the kid's shirt? Literally insane.

[mad libertarian guy]

What's most sickening is the father being perfectly okay with this.

I will NEVER allow a government goon to touch my kid, nor will I ever allow my kid to think it's okay to be touched by a government goon.

[sarcasmic]

I don't think his father was cool with it. He just knew that his only other option was to be led away in handcuffs.

Which is exactly what would have happened to me because I would have told my kid to scream his freaking head off.

[Loki]

If I had kids I would teach them to yell: "Help! Help! The bad man is touching me in a bad way! Help!" Just to see if the other passengers still continue to stand there like mindless sheeple or not.

My guess is that they probably would. "It's a government employee so that makes it OK". Fuckers.

[Tulpa]

To be fair, kids do have to be conditioned to accept doctors, nurses, barbers, etc touching them in ways that they should not let strangers do. So adding TSA agents to the list isn't a terrible outrage against nature.

[Brett L]

Barbers?

[Tulpa]

You probably don't want your kid letting strangers put blades next to his neck and head and running fingers through his hair, do you?

[Joe M]

We don't let strangers touch our kids, unless they're government strangers. FUCK THAT. This stuff bothers me even more now that my oldest is two years old. I would never let him be subjected to this.

[Tulpa]

We don't let strangers touch our kids, unless they're government strangers.

Or doctors or barbers or school nurses...

[Righty Roo]

And those folks don't even have badges.

[mad libertarian guy]

Fucking seriously, Tulpa. This is the line you're going with? Doctors touch kids so it's okay for TSA agents to do it too?

You really are a fuckstick sometimes.

[Tulpa]

I didn't say it's OK, just that fears about this somehow wrecking parents training their kids about "stranger danger" are off the mark.

[Ted S.]

School nurses are government strangers.

[Tulpa]

Depends on the school.

[Joe M]

Who says those people are necessarily strangers? I've been getting my hair cut by the same guy for more than a decade, and he just touches the hair on my head, to, you know, cut it. I don't get any pubic hair trims.

Pediatricians are people you see over and over for years, becoming familiar faces for parents and kids. When I was in school, I don't remember the nurses being very hands on. Both of those are trained medical professionals. But I appreciate your intentional misinterpretation of my point.

[Tulpa]

So if you're in a car accident 100 miles away from home, your kid is going to scream stranger danger when a nurse at the hospital there, who he or she has never seen before, tries to undress him to look for wounds?

Speaking of intentional misrepresentation, I don't see "pediatrician he sees every few months" anywhere in my comment. What's good for the Goose is good for the Garter.

[Tulpa]

Both of those are trained medical professionals.

And a 3 year old is totally going to be able to make that determination, right?

[sloopyinca]

Wanted to go to Hawai'i for our honeymoon. Figured since dunphy had left years ago on his world tour, it would be pretty kick-ass. But I refuse to subject my new wife to this because I'd lose my shit and end up in prison.

That and I will not let my kids near these pederasts.

[Tulpa]

Assuming your new wife wanted to go to Hawaii too, you're not really "subjecting" her to it, are you? Unless you have a somewhat quaint concept of female capacity for free will.

[sloopyinca]

I was going to surprise her with the tickets, dumbass. So yes, I would have been "subjecting" her to it, wouldn't I?

You'll have to try harder next time.

[Tulpa]

Try harder to do what? I was legitimately confused.

If you want to subject me to a trip to Hawaii, please go ahead. I like an aisle seat to stretch my legs.

[sloopyinca]

Try harder to give me shit on being a paternalist asshole. You should know by now that I'm not that way, man.

[Tulpa]

This from the guy who tried to kick the lone female out of the fantasy league. You clearly believe women believe in the fantasy kitchen.

[Coeus]

Man, fuck fantasy kitchen. Buncha bullshit. I never should have picked the blender in the third round.

[Paul]

I'm subjecting my daughter (yes, in this case, because she's a minor and she does what I tell her and all) to Hawaii in a couple of weeks. Never been there myself because no one ever subjected me to it.

I can't wait. Rainy season is over by April 1, right? Right?

[Mike Laursen]

By the way, I can say from personal experience that going to Disneyland with a kid in a cast is a guaranteed way to skip all the lines.

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm surprised the Blue Shirt's kiddie boner didn't turn his zipper to twisted, broken metal.

[P Brooks]

Think of how much safer that kid's dad felt, knowing his son was not a terror threat.

[Mr. FIFY]

Dig the stoopid in the comments here:

http://todaytravel.today.msnbc.....s#comments

Then again, these ARE your typical MSNBC commenters...

[Mr. FIFY]

And, some stoopid from HuffPo, same subject:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/.....ir=Chicago

Note these gems:

Looked like a pretty routine check up to me. Is there supposed to be a point where I was meant to be offended? I think I missed it.

and

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/.....45823.html

[Brandon]

The liberal commenters at HuffPo are mostly just good citizens who are nobly willing to sacrifice this child so that they can feel a little bit safer. For the greater good and all.

[mad libertarian guy]

The liberal commenters at HuffPo are mostly just good citizens who are nobly willing to sacrifice this child so that they can feel a little bit safer. For the greater good and all.

Of course this should be premised by the fact that their guy is running things. Were it BOOSH in office, they wouldn't shut up about it.

[shrike]

Bush is the most singularly evil person ever to live.

Ever.

Now, if you'll excuse me... I have to blow Obama, Krugman, and Soros.

[Tony]

Get in line.

[Paul]

This was not child molestation, period. We signed off on this when 9/11 happened and everyone was fine with it. The TSA is there for a reason and the agent was doing his job.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again. When this nation finally crumbles, it'll go down with the echo: "I was just following orders procedure..."

[TSA Agent]

I don't care to be searched without a search warrant.

I gots your search warrant right here.

[GroundTruth]

I feel so much safer now.

[P Brooks]

"If you're not doing anything wrong, you have nothing to hide."

[Joe M]

Important difference from "you have nothing to fear."

[me/dwc]

Cue up Lee Greenwood and get all maudlin and misty eyed. Oh, and if you're not doing anything wrong...

[me/dwc]

I think The Judge needs to write a new book called A Nation of Cunts.

[me/dwc]

Did anyone see the South Park about the TSA - Toilet Safety Administration. Pretty fucking apropos.

[Loki]

There's a link to a clip above. On a related note, I'm sure Trey Parker and Matt Stone have been added to the no fly list.

[P Brooks]

We signed off on this when 9/11 happened and everyone was fine with it.

Whaddaya mean WE, white man?"

[TrickyVic]

We collectively, of course.

How many congress critters were voted out of office for signing the P.A.T.R.I.O.T. Act. And how many Congress critters were elected for the sole purpose of repealing said act right after.

The bullshit has the approval of the general voting public.

But not anyone on Hit and Run. 😉

[P Brooks]

So adding TSA agents to the list isn't a terrible outrage against nature.

Boots! Delicious yummy boots!

[Tulpa]

Oh look, P Brooks is quoting me out of context again! Much easier when you don't make use of comment nesting.

[Joe M]

Something I heard just a couple days ago that seems to fit:

"When you were taming a horse that had never been ridden, you began with light touches, until the animal knew your touch would not hurt, until it stood still for your hand. After that came the saddlecloth, and later the saddle. The bridle was always last."

[Bill Fisher]

Why not let the father hold the kid's hand and calm him down? This is absurd and demonstrates the utter stupidity of these procedures and the TSA screeners.

This comes on the same day that one TSA screener is arrested for dealing drugs at a school while in uniform and another is indicted for child pornography. There were eleven TSA screeners were arrested in 2011 for child sex crimes and they are still assaulting children. These are the kind of people allowed to fondle your child in public while you are prevented from even holding their hand.

Even after the new procedures, they continue to needlessly traumatize children simply to justify the agency's miserable existence. TSA is a national disgrace that needs to be replaced. Those responsible for inflicting this abuse on innocent travelers should be prosecuted, starting with Pistole.

[Edward Phillips]

There is a great documentary about the T oilet S eat A gency on South Park's New Season. Watch and send it to congress this is one bullshit agency. What a bunch of schmucks.

[Edward Phillips]

There is a great documentary about the T oilet S eat A gency on South Park's New Season. Watch and send it to congress this is one bullshit agency. What a bunch of schmucks.
http://www.southparkstudios.co.....uncensored

[George]

Land of the free. Home of the brave.
Not any more..... seems to be Free of the brave now a days.
Vote these people OUT! NO Bama.
We need to take the Senate and the White House and keep the House. This is do or die folks. Don't sit on your hands this time around. Get out the vote any way you can.