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Security Theater in Action: Yet Another TSA Takedown

If you've ever wanted to punch out a TSA agent while wearing a "Kip Hawley is an idiot" shirt, writer Jeffrey Goldberg is your new best friend. He teamed up with expert Bruce Schneier to wreak havoc on airport security--in the sense that they proved it to be a total farce:

Schne­ier and I joined the line with our [fake] boarding passes. "Technically we could get arrested for this," he said, but we judged the risk to be acceptable. We handed our boarding passes and IDs to the security officer, who inspected our driver's licenses through a loupe, one of those magnifying-glass devices jewelers use for minute examinations of fine detail.

The officer chicken-scratched onto our boarding passes what might have been his signature, or the number 4, or the letter y. We took our shoes off and placed our laptops in bins.

Despite not really talking to any security experts besides Schneier--we're not counting government suits as experts here--the article is still a great explanation of what "security theater" really means.

Related Stories:
· The Things He Carried [The Atlantic]
· Lulz with the TSA [Jaunted]
· Canadian Man Changes Name, Successfully Avoids U.S. Passenger Watch List Hassles [Jaunted]

[Photo: OndraSoukup]