Has the moron, e, TSA agent, ever seen a two-inch gun? Dumb.

I have a two inch gun, and dammit, it IS a weapon!

"Agents said that it posed a threat because it could be confused for a real gun..."

Do the "agents" really believe someone could be that stupid?

From the linked article:

"She [the TSA screener] said ‘this is a gun,’”

“I said no, it’s not a gun it’s a prop for my monkey. She said ‘If I held it up to your neck, you wouldn’t know if it was real or not..."

...thus proving that there are indeed people that stupid and they work for TSA.

The passenger whose sock monkey was disarmed said, “I understand she was doing her job but...”

I wish people would quit saying that. The TSA moron wasn't doing her job. She was just wearing a costume and being a moron.

"On Monday, the TSA issued a statement, saying 'TSA officers are dedicated to keeping the nation's transportation security systems safe and secure for the traveling public. Under longstanding aircraft security policy, and out of an abundance of caution, realistic replicas of firearms are prohibited in carry-on bags.'"

They have morons even at the highest levels.

TSA employees are apparently qualified for more than flipping burgers -- they could be school officials!!

God, I want that monkey.

<Sarcasm>This was a 50+ year old woman with a two inch plastic gun that fits perfectly with her craft item. She absolutely fits the profile for a terrorist hijacker type.</Sarcasm>

If I held it up to your neck, you wouldn’t know if it was real or not....

Wouldn't the other people on the plane see that it's a two-inch toy and beat the hijacker to death ... for stupidity if not hijacking?

...it's not a gun it's a prop for my monkey.

Is this the part on Sprockets where we dance?

My decision to give up on the States has been reaffirmed in to two posts by Amy. This and the pretend shooting arrows. What next banning children for throwing imaginary magic Ninja fireballs at me as a teacher.

Really a two inch gun could be construed as a real gun. A simple Google search of small guns/derringers got me a min length of 3.25 inches.

http://www.smallestguns.com/

What next TSA a pilkingtona aka little plastic swords used in cocktails to kill cherries can be construed as real edge weapon.

"[The agent] said 'this is a gun,'"

Yes, this is a gun in the same sense that you are an 'officer'

If one looks at the pictures at the link, it's more of a 3" gun.

Which, as Mr. Paulson points out, is the size of a very small real gun.

(A NAA Mini-revolver is only barely bigger, and uses standard ammunition, not implausible specialty stuff.)

It's an absurd confiscation that the TSA - if it had shame - should be ashamed of, because nobody would think it's a real gun even though ones that size exist.

But it's not absurd because no gun is that small; they do exist.

The ban on "realistic fake guns" on aircraft is, in itself, reasonable.

A replica of a normal handgun, so good it can't be distinguished without manual inspection, is nearly as much a threat in a hijacker's hand as a real one, in that people will treat it as real.

This, not so much, precisely because nobody would take it seriously even if someone tried.

A replica of a normal handgun, so good it can't be distinguished without manual inspection, is nearly as much a threat in a hijacker's hand as a real one, in that people will treat it as real. -- Sigivald at December 10, 2013 1:50 PM

Actually post 9/11 they will treat it as real and do their best to kill the terrorist. Look at Flight 93 if you don't believe me. Look at the shoe bomber. Look at the panty bomber. Look at the Icelandair passenger.

At this point I'm convinced the TSA was created to draw attention away from the IRS, the NSA, and the Fed.

Heh. I want that monkey, too. It's weirdly adorable.

I also want to make a TSA sock puppet, complete with tinfoil badge and tiny rubber gloves. I think there's just time to make one before I go through airport security at Christmas.

I'm surprised at this. You would think the TSA would have let the sock monkey keep his prop, just as a peer-to-peer courtesy.