Idiots with Power

I wish that I was surprised when something like this happens - but I've lost my shocked face.  A woman, Jean Weber, takes her aged and ill mother through TSA screening and it comes down to this:

"She said security personnel then came out and told her they would need for her mother to remove her Depends diaper because it was soiled and was impeding their search."  

Someone help me out here, what the hell kind of search were they doing?!  The only sideways logic I can scratch up is that the poor old woman was odoriferous or they didn't want to touch a soiled diaper.  I'd like to say that I would've told the fine employees of the TSA that if they were that concerned, they should remove it themselves.  Adding that I have no knowledge of fecal bombs and it was their job to assess the perceived security threat.  Maybe I wouldn't be able to blithely create that kind of escalation, but I sure hope that I would have the constitution to stand up to idiotic ass-hattery.   

Not to surprise anyone: TSA's responses listed in the article are trite and rote.  When will uncommon sense prevail and let us regain pre-flight dignity?  Citing the use of children and the elderly for suicide missions doesn't suddenly make draconian rules and degradation okay.  Somehow, reason and intelligence need to be interjected into airport security.  (Ok, stop laughing!)

The only thing that makes me wonder about the daughter is that she only had one pair of adult diapers (the ones the mom had on).  I understand being upset and disgusted by the TSA's demand but I don't understand being mad about being unable to replace the removed Depends.  That's about the only thing in this sordid affair that isn't the TSA's fault.  "Two is one, one is none" applies to everything in life.  All things considered, I hope she sets the AARP loose on their  ass.  


Edit:  Turns out this may be a case of moronicus-interceptus.  In a follow up story done by CNN it turns out that the daughter admitted to suggesting the removal of the Depends and letting her mom go commando.  They were going to allow her to get a fresh pair out but the daughter wasn't sure how long it would take to get their checked luggage.  Of course this was after TSA couldn't identify a lump in their pat down & wouldn't let the mother board until the diaper was searched.  Ridiculous of them to insist on finding out exactly what that lump was; what else would it be - C4?  Seems like there was stupidity on both sides.