I love to fly but due to the TSA I don't do it anymore. Apparently they consider me a security risk as well because I can't fly without getting wanded, patted down, and my bags searched (I've never encountered the sprays though, but that may be newer). If I thought it was actually accomplishing something I might be slightly more inclined to tolerate it but that isn't the case.
I have personally managed to get weapons past security, both metal detectors and pat downs, on multiple occasions. I've never attempted that at an airport but I've had dozens of searches by cops and bar/event security (often off duty cops) miss weapons and other prohibited items. What's more, I've read multiple government studies that have demonstrated numerous glaring security flaws. Those full body x-ray scanners? If you place a pistol or plastic explosives in certain places on your hips they don't detect it. TATP, the explosive used in both the shoe and underwear bombing attempts, was for the longest time undetectable by the TSA's equipment (it may still be, I haven't heard one way or another whether they corrected that).
I consider trading freedom for "security" to be a fool's bargain for you cannot guard against everything and you will never be "secure" enough that they stop adding restrictions. While I hope that the day will come when both your wife and I can fly without undue hassle and restriction, I'm not overly optimistic about that. In the meantime my car will continue to rack up the miles...
Hey, @coloneljethro.
Man, am I glad to hear I'm not alone at all on this. I don't know if I've ever had a deep love for flying. At least not commercially. Being cooped up for any number of hours in an open cabin with a bunch of people I don't know has become less and less of a good time over the years. That being said, I'm sure it's because my mood is less than happy by the time I actually do make it on the plane because I have to be there two hours earlier than I really need to in order to get through security first so they can tell me what I already know. I'm not there to blow up their plane.
You're absolutely dead on about the security measures. I've heard about different folks getting arms through security but you're the first I've spoken with that's confirmed doing it. It's frightening and oddly exciting in a stick it to the man kind of way. I'm just tired of being told we need this safety measure or that when none of it ever guarantees me anything. Instead of feeling more secure, I feel less.
re: spray
Now that I've been asked about it by someone else, it's not really a spray. It's a swab. It's still a chemical of some kind that ends up on your palm. Just one mind you. My guess is they're looking for something that could be used solely or in combination with something else as an explosive, but of course they don't tell you what they're doing to you, and even so, I still wouldn't be happy about it.
I think the biggest issue I have with all of this is, the measures could be sound, but the humans involved fail. Even if the equipment did catch everything, there's still poor judgment, poor training, poor decision-making, bribes, whatever, that get in the way of all of this. Funny thing is, my wife just laughed it off and I don't find it the least bit funny. At all.
I enjoy the sensation of flying, its like a different take on a roller coaster ride for me. I could just as easily do without the other people though.
Over the years I've discovered (mostly the hard way) that the only security you ever have is what you provide for yourself. Police won't stop you from getting assaulted, they just write down a description afterwards. Likewise, it's not the TSA people's lives on the line if they screw up and let weapons or explosives onto a flight. What keeps us safe on flights more than anything is the fact that every single person aboard knows what happened on Sept 11, 2001 and what fate likely awaits them if they fail to act (a la Flight 93) in a similar situation.
I thought you might have been referring to the swabs, they're checking for the residues that handling explosives leave. I've somehow managed to avoid having that done to me.
The human factor will always be the weak point of any security system. The bit about bribes reminded me of a news story I read a few years ago, the FBI busted a gun running operation that was using airport employees (who don't have to go through the same security everyday) to smuggle guns onto and off of flights between Atlanta and NYC. There will always be a weakness to exploit, so why give up your freedoms and put up with hassles for a rather illusory sense of security? It's all quite ridiculous, which I imagine is why your wife found it funny as well as why we don't.