TSA allowed 73 people on terrorist watch list to work at airports.

At 80 years old my mom had to take off her shoes and get patted down...when they 'cleared' her, their next victim was a Nordic looking father with his two blonde little girls!

Also...what security checks are in place for those who work the food service on the planes? Just asking 'cuz back in the late 80's early 90's when I worked for the phone company in Dallas..Saw a lot of Sky Chef employees making calls back home to Iran and the Mideast.

About 10 days ago, my 24 year-old son finally got a call from the TSA, asking him to come in for testing, two months after applying for a position at JFK.

Having passed the test, within a day he was called with an offer. Despite the fact that his heart sunk -having hoped the Coast Guard would call him first- he is hoping he gets called for the job.

As for me, I must admit that I am a bit worried that in the wake of all the TSA's problems, that this might not be the perfect career change for him at this point in time - no matter HOW much he wants to move ahead. Having been on GLP long enough to see how innocents become scapegoats, I can't help but wonder if the intense scrutiny he'll be under will somehow backfire.

The kid has been employed at the same large corporation since he got his working papers at 16, having risen in STATUS, without the correct pay-scale to show for it. So, as a parent might be prone to do, I have spent years suggesting he apply for a City, State, or Federal position, to: 1. get his foot in the door, and 2. then be able to move up on the chain.

And, being the good son that he is -approaching 25 and looking intensely to his future as a husband, dad, and eventual homeowner- he's taken my advice to heart.

After all my 'coaching', I'd hate to think that this very bright young man may wind up being the focus of the 'second-wave' of TSA scrutiny, as the case against their errs moves forward.

____________

All this said, I am interested to know what my colleagues on GLP might think about this.

For the first 6 months the position is only guaranteed 20 hours, during which he can 'pay-in', to include the great health benefits he already has at his current job.

His thinking is that with their pay-scale being 50% more than what he makes now, if he continues supplementing his income with the second job he already does in his spare time -messenger service in NYC- he will be on a better footing from the beginning, than he is right now.

He is also looking forward to being able to move up into better positions within government as time goes on.

Even though I have no intention of telling him my concerns, I know I have to continue the advice I've always taken with him: to move up the chain as early as he can manage it. Therefore, I must keep my concerns quiet, lest I derail him.

Both my parents held NYC government jobs: my mom a police-officer, my dad a tree surgeon. By the time they were in their late forties, they retired with full pension to the West Indies, and managed to raise a late-life child in paradise. Being fully aware of this history, he aims to aim for the same.

He's an amazing and capable guy, but I can't help but be a concerned parent, considering the TSA's debacle. I wonder if he'll stand out, as he's does at his current job, and be the focus of lawyers doing what lawyers do, when trying to prove their case.



Life seems to have a habit of backfiring on you sometimes, despite the thought and effort you've put in to achieve certain goals. That's MY LIFE; I don't want it to be his before he gets the chance to do well for himself.

Any comments would be appreciated!

thank you.

I say he goes for it. He'll be smarter than 99% of them and will move up. They need more like him!

I say he goes for it. He'll be smarter than 99% of them and will move up. They need more like him!