The Pros And Cons Of TSA

Did you know that the average waiting time due to TSA (Transportation Security Agency) procedures is 19.5 minutes per person (Schneir)? That average time is just for an average day though. Try going through airport security during holiday seasons within 30 minutes and you’ll be disappointed. Airport security has been intrusive ever since the horrifying 9/11 attack. In the past couple years, debate has been whether or not TSA has gone too far. Some people believe that without TSA, there is a higher chance of terrorism but how likely is terrorism going to happen on a daily? With lengthy pat-downs, having to wait in long lines, and having to take your shoes off, gives people more of a reason to drive to their destination instead of flying. Airport

The TSA that is. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that has authority over the security of the traveling public in the United States. The issue with TSA is that more than half of Americans that travel, complain about the long screening processes, the pat-downs, and the carelessness of some employees. The major problem with the issue is TSA will always fire back at complaints with, “Would you rather be safe or attacked by terrorists again?” On WonderHowTo they state, a simple request of a new mom asking not to x-ray the breast milk (radiation, my friends), she is made to wait for more than 45 minutes, after which she misses her flight and is forced to do the security check again. Since when is milk a problem for the TSA? This is preposterous and totally uncalled for (Useful or

It just makes people feel intimidated and uncomfortable. So the question is, how far should airport security go? A couple months ago on the news, there was a father complaining about the intrusive pat-down that was given to his daughter because there was a capri-sun juice in her bag. “A father recorded his ten-year-old daughter getting patted down by security for two minutes because she accidentally left a capri sun juice box in her luggage. Payne filmed and put the video on YouTube as he questioned whether he was being an overprotective father. He said the screening involved far more touching than such a small girl needed, although TSA was supposed to "modify" its screening for children under twelve after a similar incident in 2011” (Schouten). There is always an extent to which things are done and if you watch the video yourself, it seems like security did go overboard for a ten year old little girl who was probably so scared. But that wasn’t the only outbreak about the pat-downs. A mother who has watched the video of the little girl getting patted down comments back. "It's more than just patting you down. It's very intrusive and very insane. I wouldn't let anyone touch my daughter like that," one airline traveler told the Washington Post. "We're not common criminals”” (Nowak). There are more people who travel that will agree that TSA is intrusive than those who think that TSA is a super-hero. As stated on