(MintPress) – When Colorado’s KJCT8 reported Tuesday that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) now performs random inspections of beverages purchased after travelers had passed through security checkpoints, panic ensued. Travelers were concerned that with this rule in place, they would be subject to random tests by TSA to ensure that what was in their coffee cup was indeed just coffee. But in a statement by the TSA to MintPress, David Castelveter, director of external communications for TSA, said the beverage screening at the gate is not new.
Since many travelers were unaware of the liquid inspections at the gate prior to the KJCT8 article, many have since made their opinions known.
In an interview with KJCT8, world traveler Thomas Burgard said that he thought the post-security beverage inspection was ridiculous. “The water or the juices or anything you buy here in the airport, TSA is going to come over and look and check and test it?”
Similarly, infrequent flyer Jennifer Smart told KJCT8 that she’s glad that her safety is a priority, but “testing drinks after they’ve already been bought might be a little extreme.”
James Babb and George Donnelly, founders of We Won’t Fly, an independent organization formed in 2010 that advocates for a passenger security system that “doesn’t trample our basic human dignity and privacy,” said that travelers should be upset about this security measure.
In an email to MintPress, Donnelly said, “The TSA is a hopelessly misguided political boondoggle. Testing drinks after their checkpoints is simply the latest absurdity. Why can’t they randomly check food and drink as they are coming into the secure area, so that the flying public isn’t further inconvenienced?
“The bottom line is that a monolithic security apparatus like the TSA will never be a match for the small, agile threats that exist.
“The TSA needs to be abolished immediately so that airlines, airports, travelers and the security industry can work together to create a diverse marketplace of tactics and solutions that will keep the terror threat off-guard and always on the defensive.”
When asked to comment on the issue, TSA released a statement to MintPress regarding the recent attention of the beverage screenings at the gate:
“TSA employs multiple layers of security throughout the airport where passengers may be randomly selected for additional screening. One measure may include testing liquids that are in a passenger’s possession. This is not a new procedure and at no time during the test is the liquid or the container ever touched.”
Many believe the TSA has gone too far on this particular issue. KJCT8 reported that many of the passengers they spoke to were understanding on why drinks were not allowed through security, but many didn’t understand why they were subject to further inspection once they had passed security.
In response, the TSA posted on their blog, “In a nutshell, liquid screening at gates is random and it isn’t happening at every airport every day. So other than possibly taking a few moments of your time before boarding your flight, it’s business as usual.”
Babb commented on the issue saying, “This is just more busywork for poorly trained TSA parasites, and yet another invasion of privacy for travelers. It’s hard to imagine this latest piece of security theater making anyone safer. But it’s easy to see how this will be another opportunity for harassment. If a traveller is approached for a search of their beverage, they should demand to see a search warrant before cooperating. Those who wish to travel with dignity should avoid all TSA infested airports, and seek alternative modes of transportation that don’t involve sexual assault, radiation blasts and warrantless searches.”
Before the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) deemed liquid bombs as a major threat to the safety of air travel, carrying on a bottle of water, cola or coffee was the norm for many travelers. As the threat of liquid bombs grew, the TSA opted to ban liquids from the list of acceptable items allowed to be carried-on through security checkpoints.
The hope was that a ban would lessen the possibility that any aircraft would be brought down with one of these liquid bombs, and travelers were told they would be able to purchase beverages and other liquid items once they passed through security.
In 2006, the TSA lessened restrictions on the liquid ban, allowing passengers to carry liquids that were three ounces or less in size after the TSA determined that “liquids, aerosols and gels, in limited quantities” were safe.
TSA Blog Team member Bob Burns said in a blog post he shared with MintPress, that this procedure is “not a big deal” and even he has been pulled aside for random gate screening. The blog post continues on to say the gate screening may seem redundant at first but is a “safety net” for the TSA to screen those persons who try to get things past the conventional screening.
The random aspect of the screening, the post says, is not a form of profiling, but is a “necessary unpredictable measure that makes it more difficult to do malice to the transportation infrastructure. If everything we did was always the same, it would provide a checklist for people to know exactly what to expect.”