Resistance is hopefully not futile …

An Austin woman may be the first test of does-no-mean-no when it comes to the TSA. A 56 year old rape survivor with a pacemaker refused to have her breasts touched after a computer glitch shut down a security checkpoint for a few hours at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas.  The TSA arrested the woman for refusing ‘enhanced security’  measures.

Isn’t the word enhanced such the latest in Orwellian newspeak (e.g enhanced security measures, enhanced interrogative techniques)?   I’m beginning to think we should consider anything with the word ‘enhanced’ near it to probably be a signal that our constitutional rights are about to be violated.  Here’s some of the details from local Austin TV station KVUE. There’s a video interview of the woman there.

Claire Hirschkind, 56, who says she is a rape victim and who has a pacemaker-type device implanted in her chest, says her constitutional rights were violated.  She says she never broke any laws.  But the Transportation Security Administration disagrees.

Hirschkind was hoping to spend Christmas with friends in California, but she never made it past the security checkpoint.

“I can’t go through because I have the equivalent of a pacemaker in me,” she said.

Hirschkind said because of the device in her body, she was led to a female TSA employee and three Austin police officers.  She says she was told she was going to be patted down.

“I turned to the police officer and said, ‘I have given no due cause to give up my constitutional rights.  You can wand me,'” and they said, ‘No, you have to do this,'” she said.

Hirschkind agreed to the pat down, but on one condition.

“I told them, ‘No, I’m not going to have my breasts felt,’ and she said, ‘Yes, you are,'” said Hirschkind.

When Hirschkind refused, she says that “the police actually pushed me to the floor, (and) handcuffed me.  I was crying by then.  They drug me 25 yards across the floor in front of the whole security.”

An ABIA spokesman says it is TSA policy that anyone activating a security alarm has two options.  One is to opt out and not fly, and the other option is to subject themselves to an enhanced pat down. Hirschkind refused both and was arrested.

I’m supposed to be in Denver for a AEA meeting. I really need to be there, but I just will not subject myself to these intrusive policies and I think any one that does is just asking to lose more of their civil liberties.   I’m opting out of commercial air travel.  I’ll drive from here on out until this abomination of a policy goes.  Who says you check your civil liberties at the door when you opt to use a commercial service?  Again, what’s next?  City Buses?  Class rooms?  Voting boothes?

I’m with Claire.  No means no.  Unless they can show a judge’s order, I’m calling it unreasonable search and seizure.

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

U.S. Constitution, Bill of Rights, 4th Amendment