TSA combats charges of "invasion" with evasion

The TSA was on the offensive this morning with the help of corporate mouthpiece, ABC's Good Morning America, "making the case for airport security."

In all the complaints and stories of TSA abuse of power, lack of professionalism and charges of security theatre, I've yet to run into an article or an opinion-holder who's saying "We don't need airport security."

What a tiresome, predictable dodge, to avoid charges of abuse and institutional ineptitude by arguing a point that nobody's disputing.

The complaints about the TSA relate to its utter lack of professionalism and the ineffectiveness and intrusion of full body scanners.

Not the least of which the lies surrounding the machine put forth by officials: the images cannot be saved or moved from the machines on which they are viewed.

Lie.

The machines are entirely safe.

Lie.

The people at the machines, monitoring legions of digitally naked passengers are professionals. Well, the laughs from the audience instantly drown out the voice that would pronounce this, too, a lie.

So, the always compliant GMA showed bottles of liquor and knives that have been taken off passengers who'd presumably gone through the full body scans.

The issue at hand is not whether we need airport security. Of course we do.

But is the TSA competent to carry that out?

It doesn't appear so.

See this story: "An Amarillo woman is suing the federal government for intentional infliction of emotional distress after Transportation Security Administration agents allegedly humiliated the woman when her breasts were publicly exposed during an 'extended search' two years ago at a Corpus Christi airport."

And this from the same article: "'One male TSA employee expressed to the plaintiff that he wished he would have been there when she came through the first time and that "he would just have to watch the video,"' the suit said."

Isolated incident?

Doesn't matter. The TSA has simply ignored it -- hence the woman in question having to launch a law suit in order to get any action on the case. The TSA certainly wasn't taking her seriously.

Or this crowd pleaser among the law-and-order bullet heads: "'Stop touching me!' Fury as airport security staff are caught on camera searching a crying three-year-old girl."

We need airport security. The TSA is not providing it.

If we are now experiencing "security theatre" in our airports, I would posit that it's firmly in the genre of travesty.