I’ll admit, I was merely disgusted when Mickey Mouse tried to trademark Seal Team 6. But Mickey’s seeming embrace of GateGrope is far more disturbing. (h/t Bruce Schneier) In a press release boasting about changes to Walt Disney World’s Star Tour ride, Disney boasts of their imitation TSA checkpoints!

My question for tonight is: who would you cast off the airplane? Whom would you return to the jetway? Who doesn’t fly with Pilot You?

The TSA may not be good at math, and they may suck at keeping their own Secretary up to speed on their planned retests, but one thing they are really good at is media management.

TSA’s super-frisky frisking vs their really rad–as in radiation–full body scan prompted witty manufacturers to churn out underwear with the 4th Amendment screened in metal ink. The magic undies send a firm message about privacy while shielding (what could be) the fun stuff from prying eyes.

But libertines, courtesans, romantics and even Ted Haggard had better think about what they’re packing in their hand-held luggage, since a Minnesota man, Terry Allen Lester, has developed a new tool terrorists could use to shake things up: a remote controlled exploding vibrator. Lester had planned to send it to an ex-girlfriend as a holiday gift. Wow.

The Electronic Privacy Information Center has been suing the Department of Homeland Security because it refused to engage in the public rule-making process before it adopted RapeAScan machines as part of the primary screening at airports. DHS responded to EPIC’s suit the other day. While I think their response will be largely successful as written, [...]

A 59-year-old rape survivor with a pacemaker refused a groping by TSA agents at Austin Bergstrom airport, and was subsequently arrested, pushed to the floor, dragged, and banned from flying from the airport. While the TSA’s pornoscanners weren’t involved in this incident, it shows the newfound prevalence of TSA’s aggressive new groping strategy for anyone who doesn’t clear the first round of security checks.

Know your rights this travel season - download our “Know Your Rights” flier, and visit our TSA coverage page for more on pornoscanners and groping.

The new expensive backscatter x-ray scanners installed at airports are fairly worthless because they can’t stop a determined individual from smuggling contraband onto an airplane in a body cavity. But that’s not all; it appears the scanners can easily be defeated by a kitchen rolling pin and a roll of tape.

As we enter the busiest travel season of the year, there is no question that the TSA will be stepping up security measures across the country — including the use of the infamous ‘porno scanners’ and ‘enhanced’ patdowns.

Many of you will be enduring security checkpoints at airports over the next couple of weeks, so we wanted to remind everyone to download a free copy of our Know Your Passenger Rights flier before you travel.

Based in part on the FBI’s own manufactured “terrorist attack” DC’s commuters will experience the job of random searches.

Who needs real terrorist threats when the FBI can invent their own?

According to DHS’ John Pistole, it’s up to him–his responsibility–to determine what the appropriate balance between privacy and security.

Now, I appreciate that, at some level, it is up to him. He’s in charge of TSA and he’s got to make the final decision whether to implement (or discontinue) a controversial scanning technology.

But it’s not up to him.