Is the TSA effective?

More reports coming out today about the failures of the TSA and Federal Bldg. bomb screening.A baby was sent thru an airport x-ray machine.The Government auditors also smuggled bomb making materials thru several Federal buildings.A security agent was caught sleeping on the job.What's the problem?Obama has essentially declared the war on terror over in his efforts to appease the terrorists and be politically correct so who cares,right?

Just wanted to weigh in with my 2 cents.As a former TSA screener,I have seen firsthand how things are run.That's why I quit several years ago.As a veteran serving in the Air Force in the 80's,I thought I could continue my service to the country in the Dept. of Homeland Security.

It didn't take me long to realize that the TSA was simply an economic agency.It was created after 911 to give the appearance of real security and get people flying again.They had to give the aura of safety to provide confidence for passengers.This is not to say that there are no good people in the agency,as there were plenty who had the same mindset as myself.

We had several questionable scenarios arise over the 2 years I was there.The one that put me over the edge was a bomb alert.A contractor came thru the bag screening area with a large bag of tools and power equipment.The bag alerted and I followed all the protocols in place to determine the source.We could not clear the bag nor determine what was the source.The supervisor on duty in conjunction with the police put the guy on the plane anyway so as not to make him miss his flight.Obviously,nothing happened as in most cases,but had he disguised a bomb inside one of those power tools,we would have had a disaster.

That was it for me.If it had been an isolated incident,that would be different.But it was a pattern and I could not in good conscience continue the charade.I'm not posting this to deter people from flying.Nothing short of what is done in Israel and other middle east countries would be adequate and I'm a believer that you can just as easily get hit by a car.So carry on.Just be aware that the Dept. of Homeland Security is simply another taxpayer boondoggle fraught with waste.More to come...