Lois’s answer to “I know that you've sworn off cons for the foreseeable future, but with BSFS's 50th bash coming up, …” > Likes and Comments
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Terry is referring to Balticon (by Baltimore Science Fiction Society). They're apparently inviting back all their previous GOHs: http://balticon.org/wp50/making-it-ha...
I feel for your fans, but I have to say that I am not surprised you are freaked out about TSA. It's not the least of reasons why, after moving to Europe, I haven't bothered to visit USA.
My (Swedish academic) significant other has recently traveled to a conference in Canada via O'Hare got harrassed by ignorant goons wanting to know what he was going to discuss with Canadian civil servants, and whether he planned to be a prostitute in USA during the layover.
I agree on issues with the TSA, the last time I went through the "Check-Points" they kept rolling something that looked like a combination between a leather-punch and a pizza-cutter over the palms of my hands, they seemed upset when they couldn't find what they were looking for and I had to sprint to make the flight.
I haven't flown in a decade thanks to the TSA's reputation for rampant abuse and it's kind of a relief to hear someone else has made the same choices.
I'm not /afraid/ of TSA, but am totally unwilling to be treated like a criminal just because I want to fly somewhere. (Haven't flown for the past 20 years or so, although I did enjoy the actual flying.)
Lois, I live in Saint Paul and sometimes travel for work. I hear what others are saying and feel for them, but fortunately MSP seems to be a little better. I've had my bag searched a few times (once I forgot to put a laptop battery in one of the x-ray bins, another time was work equipment, and another time for personal travel my wife's CPAP, and a couple of times I've forgotten to sort through the things in my pockets and tried to walk through with a pocket knife) but they've always been nice, professional, and had a reason to stop me. I am white, but I've been in line with lots of people of other color and have never witnessed harassment or any visible profiling, and I try to keep an eye out for that kind of thing.
I've seen the TSA agents joke around with each other, I even helped one play a very mild prank on another (complimented an agent on doing a good job searching my bag on their first day, when it clearly wasn't - they knew exactly who to berate). They're just people. So it could be that MSP is different because it's a major hub for Delta or because of MN Nice, I don't know. At any rate, as long as crowds don't make you too nervous, don't let the TSA hold you back from trying to fly - you may be pleasantly surprised.
Also, some mention bad experiences with international travel, and for that I would agree. My interactions with the border patrol have not been fun, though for me and my coworkers the border patrol have always been mostly professional. Except for the time coming back from Quebec City when the guard asked if we were a gay couple and we couldn't tell if he was joking or not. The story of the person being asked if they planned prostitution during their layover is downright horrifying. But those jerks are not regular TSA agents as far as I am aware, so domestic travel has advantages over international travel unfortunately.
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David H.
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Feb 09, 2016 08:20PM
Terry is referring to Balticon (by Baltimore Science Fiction Society). They're apparently inviting back all their previous GOHs: http://balticon.org/wp50/making-it-ha...
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I feel for your fans, but I have to say that I am not surprised you are freaked out about TSA. It's not the least of reasons why, after moving to Europe, I haven't bothered to visit USA.My (Swedish academic) significant other has recently traveled to a conference in Canada via O'Hare got harrassed by ignorant goons wanting to know what he was going to discuss with Canadian civil servants, and whether he planned to be a prostitute in USA during the layover.
I agree on issues with the TSA, the last time I went through the "Check-Points" they kept rolling something that looked like a combination between a leather-punch and a pizza-cutter over the palms of my hands, they seemed upset when they couldn't find what they were looking for and I had to sprint to make the flight.
I haven't flown in a decade thanks to the TSA's reputation for rampant abuse and it's kind of a relief to hear someone else has made the same choices.
I'm not /afraid/ of TSA, but am totally unwilling to be treated like a criminal just because I want to fly somewhere. (Haven't flown for the past 20 years or so, although I did enjoy the actual flying.)
Lois, I live in Saint Paul and sometimes travel for work. I hear what others are saying and feel for them, but fortunately MSP seems to be a little better. I've had my bag searched a few times (once I forgot to put a laptop battery in one of the x-ray bins, another time was work equipment, and another time for personal travel my wife's CPAP, and a couple of times I've forgotten to sort through the things in my pockets and tried to walk through with a pocket knife) but they've always been nice, professional, and had a reason to stop me. I am white, but I've been in line with lots of people of other color and have never witnessed harassment or any visible profiling, and I try to keep an eye out for that kind of thing.I've seen the TSA agents joke around with each other, I even helped one play a very mild prank on another (complimented an agent on doing a good job searching my bag on their first day, when it clearly wasn't - they knew exactly who to berate). They're just people. So it could be that MSP is different because it's a major hub for Delta or because of MN Nice, I don't know. At any rate, as long as crowds don't make you too nervous, don't let the TSA hold you back from trying to fly - you may be pleasantly surprised.
Also, some mention bad experiences with international travel, and for that I would agree. My interactions with the border patrol have not been fun, though for me and my coworkers the border patrol have always been mostly professional. Except for the time coming back from Quebec City when the guard asked if we were a gay couple and we couldn't tell if he was joking or not. The story of the person being asked if they planned prostitution during their layover is downright horrifying. But those jerks are not regular TSA agents as far as I am aware, so domestic travel has advantages over international travel unfortunately.
