We at Online Finds like to think we're savvy travelers. We've memorized airport codes from Abilene (ABI) to Zurich (ZRH). We know that rolling our clothes instead of folding will save space and prevent wrinkles. But when it comes to understanding the logic of airport security, we're often stymied.
Enter the Evolution of Security, the official blog of the Transportation Security Administration, which aims to "facilitate an ongoing dialogue on innovations in security, technology, and the checkpoint screening process," according to a message on the site's homepage.
The bloggers include several TSA employees, as well as little bios that add a touch of humanity to the daunting agency. Blogger Bob owns a German shepherd named Clarence. Ethel likes ice cream and weird facts. ("Did you know that elephants can smell water from as far away as three miles?") Chance is "a Marylander of Georgian descent."
The blog is loosely categorized by "hot topics," which include Shoes (the requirement to remove them); Liquids (the ban on any container larger than 3 ounces); Inconsistencies (why did you have to remove your flip-flops in one security line but in another line keep them on?); Lighters, Nail Clippers, and Lithium Batteries (why they're all allowed on planes now); and "Gripes and Grins."
Readers are encouraged to submit comments, which the TSA vets for profanity, but not for crankiness. To wit:
"I got so tired of getting groped by TSA screeners with no explanation of what they were doing - they'd just pull me aside and start running their hands over my body - that I started going through the security checkpoints wearing nothing but spandex."
"I would rather the person next to me be eating their yogurt than playing with a lighter. Silly me. The TSA knows best. I'm sure the tobacco industry had nothing to do with the lighter ban being lifted. . . ."
"I am so glad you have a 'Gripes and Grins' section, instead of just 'Gripes.' Now my friends and I have a place to post all our fun stories of the good times we've had dealing with TSA personnel!"
