Point: Elderly People Shouldn’t Have To Remove Shoes At TSA Checkpoints/Counterpoint: Elderly People Are The Most Dangerous Because They Have Nothing To Fuckin’ Lose

Point: Elderly People Shouldn’t Have To Remove Shoes At TSA Checkpoints 

by Bob Simmons

Elderly people have served our society, and the aviation industry should undoubtedly treat senior citizens with dignity and respect. We need to facilitate an expedited TSA screening process for seniors as many of them are frail or disabled. It is statistically proven that elderly people pose far less of a risk for aviation crimes than other age groups, and therefore, it is completely unnecessary to require a senior citizen to go through the trouble of removing their shoes during a TSA screening. Travel is already difficult and tiring in general, and to waste time and money imposing this requirement upon senior citizens is outrageous.

Counterpoint: Elderly People Are The Most Dangerous Because They Have Nothing To Fuckin’ Lose  

by Brenda Tseng (TSA Agent)

At the TSA checkpoint, when we deal with the elderly population, we’re dealing with individuals who are at the very conclusion of their lifespan. They make it pretty apparent that they have nothing left to live for when they reminisce about the “good ol’ days,” so what do they have to lose by committing a terrorist attack? If you were statistically going to die within the next couple years, you would be tempted, too.

Elderly people are loaded with potential explosive devices including pacemakers, hearing aids, walkers, and so forth. But don’t get me started on the shoes: it’s easy to underestimate those non-slip stability walker bomb vessels equipped with custom-support orthotics. All you need is a person who is going to inevitably die and shitloads of medical equipment like that to create the perfect recipe for a terrorist attack.

In fact, we’re in the middle of developing an even more rigorous clearance process for disabled seniors. I’ve run into some scary cases were elderly individuals can’t even stand for screening, and that just makes us question what the fuck they are trying to hide under that Tommy Bahamas windbreaker.

You can continue to underestimate the danger of old people, but I won’t. When I see an elderly person in a wheelchair, I don’t see a person at all. All I see is a bomb wheeling straight into the airplane. It’s my job. You can thank me later.