Expert Witness On The Federal Groperment
Unfortunately, this witness must remain anonymous, although I know who he is and I've deleted the name of the state he works for to protect his identity. Here are his thoughts on the new TSA procedures, excerpted from an e-mail to me:
I'm also employed as a regulatory biologist for the State of (deleted), and in some of our assumed Federal regulatory programs. My current placing is with environmental law enforcement and policy development, which allows me to channel energy in putting at least some things right.The current TSA 'regulations' have never really passed through proper medical or security protocols, which is why I am concerned with both the privacy and health issues that have been ignored. Most governmental policies are developed by using the Legislative Rules as a backbone; the agency will then develop procedures to establish the means that the the agency will carry out the Rules given to it.
In my opinion as a bureaucrat, the TSA procedures were heavily written by private consultants (not the norm) and adopted 'as-is' rather than being vetted through a normal review process by the parent agency.
It's also my opinion that trained interviewers, using existing training methods typical for law enforcement use, would be much more effective than poorly trained x-ray operators. Unfortunately, trained interviewers don't come cheap, and they are not as technologically sexy as machines. If employed as Civil Servants rather than contractual employees, they're also unionized and self-checking for abuses; they also can't be sold to contracting lobbyists due to what is left of Civil Service protections.
As stupid as these new scanners and procedures are, I'd almost be okay with them if we didn't still have to empty our pockets, take off our shoes, remove our jackets, take off our belts etc.
If we could all just walk through them and have a security line that doesn't take forever, doesn't check pilots (which is absurd), and allows everyone to not have to arrive 3 hours before their flight, I'd almost be okay with them taking pictures of my junk.
flighty at December 3, 2010 8:22 AM
That "what is left of Civil Service protections" presumably includes the 40% premium over equivalent private sector pay, and pension benefits the rest of us could only dream of.
The only thing funnier was that bit about "self-checking for abuses."
Wesley Snipes cheats on his taxes and goes to prison. Charlie Rangel cheats on his and get censured. They're both black, it's not racism.
One of them is the government. Move on.
MarkD at December 3, 2010 9:09 AM
I do not understand what MarkD's comment has to do with the article.
Gail at December 3, 2010 10:47 AM
I don't mind the pictures nearly as much as the ionizing radiation.
maria at December 3, 2010 10:54 AM
JoyofTech has something to add...
Nudge nudge, wink wink!
Radwaste at December 3, 2010 3:59 PM
That "what is left of Civil Service protections" presumably includes the 40% premium over equivalent private sector pay, and pension benefits the rest of us could only dream of.
I had to laugh at this comment. I work in Civil Service at the state level as an Accountant. If you think we get 40% more then our private sector counterparts then you're delusional.
My salary is substantially lower then I could make in the private sector. In fact we've had a pay freeze in effect for the past 5 years. We've also had a hiring freeze, so; since one of my co-workers left I've been doing the jobs of two people.
Want a pension? Then take some of that extra money you make in the private sector and buy an annuity, which is all a pension is after all.
The reason I still work in civil service despite all of this has nothing to do with the satisfaction I receive from my job, or; the salary benefits I receive. For personal reasons I'm suck in the location i'm currently residing. Despite everything i've mentioned working for the state is still the best option for me in my immediate area.
Rest assured that if it was practical I would gladly move somewhere else, and take a private sector job with a larger salary and more prestige.
Jim Jones at December 4, 2010 8:23 AM
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Alfonzo Vanacore at January 20, 2011 11:19 PM
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