Amused
Elite Member
Airport Detains Man for 'Idiot' Message
By LESLIE MILLER, AP
WASHINGTON (Sept. 28) - A Wisconsin businessman was detained when he tried to go through airport security with a message scrawled on his plastic bag of toiletries.
The message, "Kip Hawley is an Idiot," was on the plastic bag carried by Ryan Bird, whose ire was aimed at the director of the Transportation Security Administration.
Sheriff's deputies at the Milwaukee airport detained Bird for 25 minutes on Tuesday. Since then he's become something of an Internet celebrity among bloggers, with varying views of his action and the TSA.
Bird, a senior executive for a manufacturing company who lives in Washington County, Wis., and travels weekly, said he's frustrated by the TSA's rules and by overbearing security personnel.
"Way too many of the TSA rules are knee-jerk reactions to noncredible threats," Bird said Thursday in a telephone interview while traveling. "Bottled water was never a threat, toothpaste was never a threat."
His supporters, posting on Internet forums and blogs, say they're also annoyed with airport security. A smaller number of his detractors say it's childish to bait screeners and potentially hold up the security line.
The TSA on Tuesday lifted a ban on liquids and gels in carry-on bags that had been in place since Aug. 10, when British police broke up an alleged plot to blow up airplanes with liquid explosives over the Atlantic.
Passengers are now allowed to take drinks and other liquids onto airplanes if they bought them in airport shops located inside the security checkpoint. Air travelers can also carry on toiletries in containers of 3 ounces or less if they're in a zip-top bag no bigger than a quart.
It was just that kind of bag that got Byrd crossways with airport security officials. Inside were his hair gel and toothpaste. On the outside was the message critical of Hawley.
Byrd first described the incident on an Internet forum called Flyertalk.com, saying that a TSA supervisor told him he had no free speech rights inside the airport's security checkpoint.
TSA spokeswoman Yolanda Clark said Bird was free to express his opinion and there is no prohibition on writing on bags.
"The passenger was never detained by TSA. Local law enforcement briefly interviewed him and determined he had not broken any laws and he was allowed to fly," Clark said.
By LESLIE MILLER, AP
WASHINGTON (Sept. 28) - A Wisconsin businessman was detained when he tried to go through airport security with a message scrawled on his plastic bag of toiletries.
The message, "Kip Hawley is an Idiot," was on the plastic bag carried by Ryan Bird, whose ire was aimed at the director of the Transportation Security Administration.
Sheriff's deputies at the Milwaukee airport detained Bird for 25 minutes on Tuesday. Since then he's become something of an Internet celebrity among bloggers, with varying views of his action and the TSA.
Bird, a senior executive for a manufacturing company who lives in Washington County, Wis., and travels weekly, said he's frustrated by the TSA's rules and by overbearing security personnel.
"Way too many of the TSA rules are knee-jerk reactions to noncredible threats," Bird said Thursday in a telephone interview while traveling. "Bottled water was never a threat, toothpaste was never a threat."
His supporters, posting on Internet forums and blogs, say they're also annoyed with airport security. A smaller number of his detractors say it's childish to bait screeners and potentially hold up the security line.
The TSA on Tuesday lifted a ban on liquids and gels in carry-on bags that had been in place since Aug. 10, when British police broke up an alleged plot to blow up airplanes with liquid explosives over the Atlantic.
Passengers are now allowed to take drinks and other liquids onto airplanes if they bought them in airport shops located inside the security checkpoint. Air travelers can also carry on toiletries in containers of 3 ounces or less if they're in a zip-top bag no bigger than a quart.
It was just that kind of bag that got Byrd crossways with airport security officials. Inside were his hair gel and toothpaste. On the outside was the message critical of Hawley.
Byrd first described the incident on an Internet forum called Flyertalk.com, saying that a TSA supervisor told him he had no free speech rights inside the airport's security checkpoint.
TSA spokeswoman Yolanda Clark said Bird was free to express his opinion and there is no prohibition on writing on bags.
"The passenger was never detained by TSA. Local law enforcement briefly interviewed him and determined he had not broken any laws and he was allowed to fly," Clark said.
