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Am I a Suspect?

Old Bathos
@OldBathos
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On each of my last four flights on commercial airlines, my checked luggage has been subject to a "random" inspection by TSA. I know that because they leave that "nothing personal" friendly note inside the bag in English and Spanish. And my bag has been checked by TSA other times in the recent past.

The TSA people at DCA (Reagan Airport), TPA (Tampa), BWI (Baltimore), DET (Detroit) and DAL (Dallas Love) have all picked my bag for the check--twice in Tampa. What are the odds if TSA "randomly" checks only 5%? I did manage to get in and out of Salt Lake City without being checked. Maybe TSA just implicitly trusts people going to and from Utah.

The contents of the bag do not appear to be disturbed or rearranged, although some toys for grandkids were noticeably moved around. Oddly enough, on my return trip from Tampa last weekend, a glass hand grenade container for one "The General" brand of hot sauce was untouched. I know that because I now pack more strategically and in paranoid fashion so I can tell what has been moved. I left a laptop in the bag one time and the TSA note was found on the keyboard when I opened it. That seemed more intrusive than the other checks for some reason.

I can't figure out why I am the target. My longtime travelling companion who packs a much odder array of items including power strips, an electric hair curler and wads of USB cables in her bag is never checked. Maybe the prospect of wading through all of that deters them.

A plain black case was checked in the past. The blue one in the picture on the right with the combination lock I never use was the target on the last four. I usually keep wired stuff (power supplies, cords, etc.) in a carry-on laptop bag so X-rays of the checked bag should not present an issue. In the certain knowledge that whatever AI the feds use is reading this post and knows my identity, I would just like to say that I just cannot say enough about what a wonderful job all of you guys do to keep us safe and that I am totally not a terrorist, that I was at least 1.6 miles away from the Capitol at all times on J6, and that I truly love all you public servants, heroes all.

This post was promoted to the Main Feed at the recommendation of Ricochet's members.

Discussion (58)

  • Mark Camp@MarkCamp
    Old Bathos (View Post):

    I can’t figure out why I am the target. My longtime travelling companion who packs a much odder array of items including power strips, an electric hair curler and wads of USB cables in her bag is never checked.

    Maybe the agent was a guy? I know when my wife says “can you get the keys out of my purse?” I still just hand it to her.

  • Old Bathos@OldBathos
    ReplyingtoJimmy Carter

    Jimmy Carter (View Comment):

    Old Bathos (View Post):

    Old Bathos (View Post):
    I can’t figure out why I am the target.

    Yer a white male. They gotta prove, publicly, that They ain’t some discriminating racists.

    How do they know? Surely, there must be minority travelers who carefully roll shirts and underwear, carefully coil any belts, and use multipocketed toiletry bags/dop kits. Does the X-ray machine AI flash "old white guy"? Do the dogs sniff a faint hint of after shave that suggests a barber shop from 1962 and signal their masters?

    On the other hand, if they really have that much personal detail available in the baggage room, they would know that the likelihood of an elderly American travelling to visit grandkids being a suicide bomber is astronomically low.

  • Arahant@Arahant
    ReplyingtoOld Bathos

    Old Bathos (View Comment):

    On the other hand, if they really have that much personal detail available in the baggage room, they would know that the likelihood of an elderly American travelling to visit grandkids being a suicide bomber is astronomically low.

    Which is why you're the one searched. They might offend someone if they searched the bags of a Muslim or minority.

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