I feel so violated!!!!

[ReneeT]

I know this is only tangentially cd related, but i have to shout this from the highest rooftop! I flew back from Melbourne, Fla last night, en femme of course. When i got home and unpacked, my jewelry case was open and everything tossed about. My watch, a simple ring, and one diamond stud were missing. I absolutely packed them all together in my jewelry case. Inam sooooo pissed off. I wonder what happened to them! They were there when i lef them with TSA and not there at the other end-hmmmmmm. This is the SECOND time this year - i had $200 pair of Beats headphones lifted on the way back from Seattle.

What does TSA stand for -"To Steal All"? They tell us that we have to be patient and suck up all this random Bs that now goes along with flying and then they rob us blind??? I am so f@&$ing mad! I know it is he said she said, but dammit, i am not stupid!

I do feel a bit better- thanks for letti g me rant. Now to start the complaint process

Someone on the forum says "put on some makeup -you'll feel better". I'm going to try that now!

[Raychel]

I feel your pain. I have had similar issues with TSA. Are they protecting or violating.

Well if it were up to me they will all be out of jobs, No more flying for me, I will drive. Pack what I want, Dress how I want and and they can all just harrass someone else.

[Staci G]

It is a license to steal or so they think. I think it is rediculous, if they start getting enough complaints and a law suit is files they will change but that wont get your diamond back.

[Cynthia Anne]

That is so sad Renee! I once had a radio lifted from my pickup! So when I got a new one I lined it with razor blades! About six months later my pickup was broken into again! But the radio was still there! Along with blood all over my carpet! Hugs!

[Noceedee]

I am curious why everyone thinks it is the TSA that did this. My guess is it was the airline baggage handlers that took the bags after the TSA. I wish I could still put locks on my bags.

[TxKimberly]

I fly a LOT for a living and always get those slips inside my luggage saying that The TSA has inspected it. It used ti irritate me a lot just on principles but these days I dont even notice. I had thought that maybe I could save the TSA some money by giving them back their stupid little slips so that they can reuse them, I often arrive with my tools and repair parts scattered and damaged instead of carefully stowed away where I put them, but I dont recall ever having anything stolen. I think that historically baggage handlers have been responsible for a great deal of theft, but I dont know that the TSA has ever been caught stealing anything.

[Starr]

A washington post article from May 20, 2011 says there have been 23 TSA agents fired since 2007 for stealing. That is not a very large number considering how many TSA agents there are working, but also you have to think some have gotten away with stealing from passenagers.

http://washingtonexaminer.com/blogs/...assengers-2007

[ReneeT]

It is certainly possible that it was baggage handlers, but TSA knows what is in the bags based on the xrays. I read not long ago about an organized tsa ring where the xray screener flagged the bags based on what he or she saw and then someone else pilferred the bag

[Sara Jessica]

I'm with the others who say it is more likely to be the baggage handlers but still, TSA increased involvement in our stuff only adds another layer of opportunity.

I would start carrying jewelry in your carry-on bag. I'd think clothes & shoes are less likely to be stolen. Brighton makes a neat travel jewelry box that I can fit a weeks worth of jewelry options into. Just a thought.

[suchacutie]

Just to make sure everyone knows, you CAN still lock your bags. There are TSA approved combination locks that the TSA agents can open. I have been flying with these locks for a few years now and have never had a thing missing from my bags. In fact, since I've been using the TSA approved locks, they almost never open my bags. I haven't seen one of those TSA notices in my luggage in 3 years.

tina

P.S. or maybe they don't open my bags when they detect my breast forms! I'm sitting here chuckling to myself

[ReneeT]

Sara, i agree with you. I actually have a really nice Coach jewelry case that will fit in my carry on. I was trying to save weight in it this trip - big mistake!

I guess the hipocrassy of it ticks me off. They want to be viewed and treated as law enforcement professionals but a small minority with a high impact are simple thieves. A critical differentiator of a profession from a job is self-policing of its members. The majority of TSA workers ought to come down hard on their wayward bretheren. I can only imagine what thi gs will be like when they unionize (i suspect this will be an incendiary comment!)

[Michelle.M]

You make a good case for not checking luggage, or when you need more than a carry on to ship the bags ahead. Thanks for the reminder!

[MAJESTYK]

Funny how I have to have to go through a background check to get a TSA badge to work on the ramp here and it sometimes seems as if THEY are the ones who should be more thoroughly checked.

[Nicole Erin]

you can't really have anything without some son of a bitch trying to steal it.

[Stephanie47]

Flying out of JFK my entire coin collection was stolen by United Airlines baggage handlers. That was an era when I thought nobody stole anything from anybody. Since then I will carry on anything that is not clothing.

[Loveday]

It could be worse. There was a small story on the news here how someones luggage was lost but found after two weeks. Not only were items stolen, but then someone relieved themselves in the luggage case. This is getting way out of hand.

[StarrOfDelite]

That means they've caught twenty-three TSA agents stealing. Probably ten who are still in the pilfering business for every one that was dismissed.

[Leslie Langford]

I know this is only tangentially cd related, but i have to shout this from the highest rooftop! I flew back from Melbourne, Fla last night, en femme of course. When i got home and unpacked, my jewelry case was open and everything tossed about. My watch, a simple ring, and one diamond stud were missing. I absolutely packed them all together in my jewelry case. Inam sooooo pissed off. I wonder what happened to them! They were there when i lef them with TSA and not there at the other end-hmmmmmm. This is the SECOND time this year - i had $200 pair of Beats headphones lifted on the way back from Seattle.

What does TSA stand for -"To Steal All"? They tell us that we have to be patient and suck up all this random Bs that now goes along with flying and then they rob us blind??? I am so f@&$ing mad! I know it is he said she said, but dammit, i am not stupid!

I do feel a bit better- thanks for letti g me rant. Now to start the complaint process

Someone on the forum says "put on some makeup -you'll feel better". I'm going to try that now!

I feel for you, Renee, but maybe one solution would be to bundle your valuables among your dirty clothes and soiled underwear and socks when putting them back in your luggage to at least keep the more squeamish pilferers at bay.

Yes, I know it might sound a bit gross, but a gal's gotta do what a gal's gotta do...

[PretzelGirl]

Unfortunately, there will be people in any area (TSA, baggage handlers) that give a bad name to the rest. I am with Tina. Get the TSA approved locks. At the very least you will minimize the access to your belongings. Subjective memory possibly, but it seems that once I started traveling with the locks on my suitcases, I had less TSA slips in them. And I always had a small toolbag in my suitcase, so I would think that would be a flag. I would also look into filing a claim or complaint. There has to be some level of accountability. Of course they probably would want your baggage tag number that most people probably rip off the luggage and throw away.

[Eryn]

Hmm, Locks that only the TSA can open? Right. I wonder how many hours it took before "TSA keys" became available for any enterprising crook to buy? Luggage handlers have always been tempted to pilfer items from bags, but simply being found with an open bag cast suspicion on a handler. Now we have inspectors, paid $13.00 per hour, whose are authorized to root through our luggage in private where there is little chance of detection. Is it any surprise that the TSA has created a smörgåsbord for thieves?

A lot of people are simply shipping their luggage ahead via UPS or FedEx. Much less chance of loss or theft via that route.

[divamissz]

I use TSA-approved locks on my bags. I know that all they will so is slow a thief down; I imagine those keys are not that hard to get. Never pack anything valuable in your bags-put it in your carry on. The best way to avoid the issue is to ship your bags, but that's got its own risks.

[Princess29]

I work for the equivalent of the TSA in australia and deal with passenger screening for international flights, not with checked baggage. If you put your valuable items in your carry on bag, that's fine but keep in mind that if you have a lot of jewellery, people such as myself may have to search your bag if its too dense for our xrays to see through.
When I've travelled in america, I've used the TSA approved locks to lock my checked baggage while flying with no issues.

[eluuzion]

Hey, being a thief is a thankless job with no health benefits (aside from stolen drugs) and no security.

Wasn't that the whole idea behind Georgie Porgie's little dittie...

"Give up a little jewel-ree,
So thieves gain a little financial security"

I may not have his words quite right,
But the meaning is still the same, none-the-less.

I always do a Fed-EX pack to the front desk of my hotel or to the address of my destination.It is not that I do not trust TSA and baggage handlers...I just do not happen to trust them.

Ground Control to Major Tom...
"Every woman for herself"
You are now responsible for all of your own security and privacy issues. Please make sure your seat belt is locked securely around your waste...and all tray tables and seatbacks are locked in their fully upright positions. Thank you for flying Naive' Airlines...This is your Captain speaking. Your flight attendants today are Twiddle and Dee. The handlers stealing your valuables on this flight will be Hal and Bubba...

[kellycan27]

And that is exactly what happens. i was an airlines revervation agent, and those TSA guys were constantly getting busted for stealing from passenger luggage. ALL and I mean ALL checked baggage gets screened now, and anything that looks half way suspisious i checked out. They can open any bag, and they steal a lot of stuff. Baggage handlers are watched via video. TSA has way more easy access than the handlers. I saw way more TSA people get busted than the guys who load the bags.

[Mary Morgan]

It is amazing to me the things we all put up with in the name of so-called security and safety. I suggest that the baggage and TSA folks be put under the same bright light as the passengers, like maybe requiring them to empty their pockets at the end of the day, or having cameras monitoring their behavior. It only take a few bad ones, but no one should accept this behavior as reasonable.