Missouri Cop Murders Restained Dog Because He Was "Afraid"

By BRENT ENGEL

Hannibal Courier-Post


LaGrange, MO — A LaGrange man who drew national attention after video showing police killing one of his dogs surfaced on the Internet vowed Thursday to seek changes in the law.

Judge Fred Westhoff fined Marcus Mays $50 for failure to register a dog with the city and $100 for failure to have a leash or muzzle on a vicious animal. Mays also must pay court costs of $29.

“We can’t have dogs taking after young children or even adults,” Westhoff said. “It’s just not safe.”

Mays requested the bench trial and represented himself. Afterward, he said he will ask the city to revise its animal ordinances.

“I think if I get enough people together and raise a big enough complaint, maybe they’ll change it,” Mays said.

City Attorney Jeff Curl said he had hoped for a stiffer fine because it would have “sent a message” to dog owners to “follow the ordinance.”

Mays described the animal as an American bulldog, but authorities termed it a pit bull.

The dog, named Cammie, was shot to death on March 31 by Officer Doug Howell.

Video from part of the incident later was posted on YouTube, but it shows fewer than 10 minutes of the 68 minutes that Howell and Officer Jason Powell were on the scene.

The video which was not shown at Thursday’s hearing, was from a police car camera. Mays said a friend of his put it on the Internet.

The officers were responding to a call from LaGrange resident Mary Coleman that the dog had acted threateningly toward her and her daughter as they walked to a school bus stop.

“It was growling at my six-year-old,” Coleman testified. “I wanted my kid to be safe and myself to be safe.”

Mays pointed out that the dog could not have been too angry because Coleman chained it at her home while Howell and Powell went to get special equipment used in handling animals.

The video shows that at one point, the dog laid down on the street and remained motionless for a time.

Howell testified that the dog growled as he tried to load it into a truck, that it later broke free from a chain tied to the vehicle and eventually charged as he tried to capture it with a six-foot catchpole.

Powell described the dog as “aggressive” and “vicious.” Both officers had electroshock weapons, but did not use them because they said the effectiveness would have lasted only five second.

Howell said that he felt the only option to protect the safety of neighbors was to shoot the dog.

Howell fired one shot to the chest, which felled the animal. On the video, the dog can then be seen wagging its tail. Howell said he fired a shot to the head “because I didn’t want the dog to suffer.”

“I didn’t feel it was right how they handled that,” Mays said.

A neighbor of Mays, Frances Hamilton, testified that the animal had previously chased her husband.

Curl pointed out that Mays had pleaded guilty to animal abuse in 2007 and had been ordered not to own pets for two years. Mays argued that the circumstances did not warrant the punishment and that he had pleaded guilty only to avoid a court fight.

Cammie was just a pup when Mays got the female 18 months ago. He said the dog had never been aggressive.

Mays said he has four other dogs – three pit bulls and a mastiff. He said he did not register Cammie because doing so “slipped my mind.” The other four are registered, he said.

Howell and Powell have not been disciplined. Police Chief Dale McNelly said his department is working with the Humane Society of Missouri on additional training in dealing with unruly dogs. The city already has budgeted money for a new animal shelter.

City code defines vicious canines as “any dog(s) that has the appearance and characteristics of being predominantly aggressive” and any “dog(s) not in law enforcement service that has bitten a human being previously or attached another human being previously, whether such occurred within or without” the LaGrange city limits.

Even if his campaign to change the law in unsuccessful, Mays said the fight will be worth it.

“I don’t feel (Cammie) was vicious,” he said. “I feel I stood up for her.”

The Existing Administration And Their Lapdog Media Are Terrified of Ron Paul

This was on my email from Newsmax as "Christian Group: Ron Paul Dangerous." First of all if you read through it, nowhere will you find a Christian group. The letter is written by a group that is clearly a supporter of the status quo. Why are they terrified? Because if Ron Paul does what he says, he's going to hit them right where it hurts the most, in their pocketbooks and bank accounts. These people only care about what's in it for them. They take the oath of office all the time with their fingers crossed behind their backs, knowing their words are lies. Telling us, the citizens, us what we want, or expect, to hear, all the time knowing they're going to bleed the taxpayer and citizens for every dollar they can. Ron Paul says he's going to bring that to a screetching halt. He's suggesting that we should get rid of many of the agencies of the government. They delight in comparing Mr Paul to the somewhat addled uncle that's apparently found in some famlies. Since that may be me in my family, I see no comparison. But even if there were, so what? Even addled uncles can have good ideas, right? It's just another degredation of Mr. Paul they throw on the wall to see what sticks. He wants to cut expenses, he wants to increase jobs by bringing industry back to this country, he wants to stop this country from being the bully of the world, there are other goals but just therse are enough reasons why he should be elected President. What do the others offer? More of the same old same old, the status quo, spending money until we're broke, or should I say broker? This country is on a fast slide down the tubes, and the only one that has any realistic ways to stop before hitting bottom, is Ron Paul.


Link to Anti-Ron Paul Article

Liberty Counsel Action: Ron Paul Is Dangerous


Monday, 26 Dec 2011 11:06 AM
By Matt Barber


The following is a column by Matt Barber, Vice President of Liberty Counsel Action.


After the most recent GOP presidential debate, reasonable people can disagree as to who came out on top. It was abundantly clear, however, who was smothered beneath the pile.
As Ron Paul waxed naive from his perch in Sioux City, Iowa, on issues ranging from foreign policy to judicial activism, one could almost hear his campaign bus tires deflate. Although some polls indicate that Mr. Paul has surged in Iowa, most national polls suggest that, beyond a relatively fixed throng of blindly devoted “Paulbots,” support for the eccentric Texas lawmaker has a concrete ceiling.
Mr. Paul did himself no favors during the debate. Afterward, former Iowa House Speaker Christopher C. Rants blogged, “Ron Paul finally lit a match after dousing himself with gasoline.”
Putting aside for a moment Mr. Paul’s leftist policies on a variety of social issues ranging from his unwavering support for newfangled “gay rights” – to include open homosexuality in the military – to advocacy for across-the-board legalization of illicit drugs, Mr. Paul demonstrated that he has a dangerous, fundamental misunderstanding of the threat posed to every American citizen by radical Islam. This alone disqualifies him for serious consideration as our future Commander in Chief.
During the debate, moderator Bret Baier asked Mr. Paul: “Many Middle East experts now say Iran may be less than one year away from getting a nuclear weapon. … Even if you had solid intelligence that Iran was in fact going to get a nuclear weapon, President Paul would remove the U.S. sanctions on Iran - including those added by the Obama administration. So, to be clear, GOP nominee Paul would be running left of President Obama on Iran?”
Mr. Paul responded: “But I’d be running with the American people because it would be a much better policy.” (The only American people running with this policy risk running the rest of us off a cliff.)
He went on to reject a U.N. agency report that indicates Iran is within months of developing nuclear weaponry, calling it “war propaganda.” He then spouted the same anti-American talking points we’ve come to expect from the hard-left “progressive” establishment, blaming America for Iran’s efforts to go nuclear.
In defense of Islamic terrorists, not unlike those responsible for Sept. 11, Mr. Paul said, “Yeah, there are some radicals, but they don’t come here to kill us because we’re free and prosperous. … They come here and want to do us harm because we’re bombing them.
“I don’t want Iran to have a nuclear weapon,” he continued, all the while demonstrating to everyone watching that a President Paul would be unwilling to lift a finger to prevent it.
His pacifist ruminations prompted fellow presidential candidate Michele Bachmann to respond: “With all due respect to Ron Paul, I think I have never heard a more dangerous answer for American security than the one that we just heard from Ron Paul. … I’ll tell you the reason why, the reason why I would say that is because we know without a shadow of a doubt that Iran will take a nuclear weapon, they will use it to wipe our ally Israel off the face of the map, and they stated they will use it against the United States of America. Look no further than the Iranian constitution, which states unequivocally that their mission is to extend jihad across the world and eventually to set up a worldwide caliphate. We would be fools to ignore their purpose and their plan.”
Mr. Paul evidently is one of those fools. Iran is today’s version of Nazi Germany, and Mr. Paul’s obtuse strategy of reckless inaction affords him the dubious title of this generation’s Neville Chamberlain. Like Chamberlain’s fruitless appeasement, Mr. Paul’s similar strategy simply feeds the insatiable beast.
Don’t get me wrong. I personally like Ron Paul. He’s that affable - if not a little “zany” - uncle who has the whole family on edge at Thanksgiving. “Oh boy; what’s Uncle Ronny gonna say next?”
Still, you wouldn’t give Uncle Ronny the carving knife for the turkey, much less the keys to the Oval Office.
Mr. Paul is many things, but conservative is not one of them. He’s a died-in-the-wool libertarian. That’s one part
conservative, two parts anarchist.
Ronald Reagan often spoke of a “three-legged stool” that undergirds true conservatism. The legs are represented by strong free-market economic principles, a strong national defense and strong social values. For the stool to remain upright, it must be supported by all three legs. If you snap off even one leg, the stool collapses under its own weight.
Mr. Paul is relatively conservative from an economic standpoint, but in true libertarian form, has snapped off the legs of national defense and social values.
The libertarian is a strange and rare little animal – a bit like the woolly flying squirrel. It spends its days erratically darting to-and-fro atop this teetering, one-legged stool in a futile effort to keep it from toppling. America witnessed Ron Paul doing this squirrelly libertarian tango Thursday night. Cute but unstable.
Ron Paul never had a chance; but now, with the possible exception of his most committed devotees, I suspect most people will finally admit it. Regardless of what happens in Iowa, the Paul engine has run out of steam. During the debate it pulled into the station and released its final wheeze right alongside the Cain Train.

Matt Barber is an attorney concentrating in constitutional law. He serves as Vice President of Liberty Counsel Action

Did God Create a DEVIL? By Herbert W. Armstrong 1958

I found this interesting article at the The Pre-Adamic Flood & Resources Supporting the Gap Theory site.

Link to the Site



Herbert W Armstrong

 Is THERE a devil? Many people talk about the devil and Satan. Others scoff and say it's just superstition and imagination.
But is there a devil? According to most Christians the Bible is supposed to each that the devil is the god of this world. Indeed it does teach that!
The Bible pictures the whole world under the sway of an invisible devil. Where did he come from? Did God create a devil to tempt us and to try to lead us astray? And then to punish us if we follow the devil?
God Is CREATOR of ALL!
So, let's look back to the very beginning. Open your Bible to Genesis 1:1. "In the
beginning God." God was before all. The next word is "created." "God created." He created the heaven and the earth.
But the very next verse says this: "The earth was without form and void." The Hebrew words for "without form and void" are tohu and bohu. Translated into English theymean chaotic, in confusion, waste, and empty. When God created the heaven and the earth, did He create this earth originally in a state of confusion? Did He create it all topsy-turvy and chaotic?
World NOT Created in Chaos. We read in I Corinthians 14:33 that God is NOT the author of confusion. God is the author of peace. God is the author of order and of law.
Notice Job 38:4-9. God says there that the angels shouted for joy when He created the
earth. It must then have been a perfect creation, not a creation that was in chaos and
confusion!
Why would He create it in disorder and then have to straighten it out? That doesn't
make sense! Dr. Bullinger, the Hebrew authority, says that the Hebrew word for
"created," used in Genesis 1:1, " implies that the creation was a perfect work." That
very word "created" implies a perfect and a beautiful order and system, not chaos or
confusion!
Then how did it become chaotic?
In Genesis 19:26, the same Hebrew word is used which is translated "was" in Gen. 1:2.
And there it is translated into the English word "became." In the first three chapters of
the Bible, and many other places where you find the word "was," in almost every case
it is denoting a condition that was different from a former condition. In other words, it
"BECAME" or "was made" that way. It had not always been that way.  The Earth BECAME Chaotic
Plainly the word "was" has the meaning of "became." The Rotherham translation of
Gen. 1:2, out of the original Hebrew language, is this: "Now the earth HAD BECOME
waste and empty." It hadn't always been that way.
In Jeremiah 4:23, in Isaiah 24:10, in Isaiah 34:11, and in other places in the Bible, you
find the same words, toha and boha, meaning chaotic and in confusion. In every case
that condition is a result of sin.
No Chaos Originally notice Isaiah 45:18. "Thus saith the Eternal that created the heavens, God himself that
formed the earth and made it, He hath established it, He created it not in vain." "In vain"
is an incorrect translation. In your Bible, if you have the marginal references, you will
find in the margin the proper translation "waste."
The original Hebrew word there is TOHU. This Hebrew word is the identical word used
in Gen. 1:2, meaning confusion, or emptiness. or waste - a result of disorder, a result of
violation of law. In Isaiah 45:18 we have the plain statement that God created the earth
not "toho," that is, not in confusion, not in disorder. But in Genesis 1:2, the earth was,
or the earth BECAME - as it ought to he translated - chaotic and in confusion!
Then it became that way after it was created. Now, what could have caused that
confusion? - that disorder? What sin could have wrecked the earth and brought it into
the condition in which it was found in Gen. 1:2?
Life Before Adam?
Now, what was the sin then that caused this physical destruction to the earth? It was
not a sin caused by humanity, because there had been no man on the earth until the
sixth day of that re-creation or that re-making. So it was not a sin of man. Adam was
the first man. We find over in I Corinthians 15:45 that Adam is called the first man on
this earth. In Genesis Eve is called the mother of all living human beings. There was no
other race prior to Adam and Eve.
So the sin which brought chaos was not caused by man. And yet life must have
populated the earth because a sin had occurred on the earth that brought it into a
condition of chaos and confusion by breaking the laws of God.
What kind of life could it have been? It wasn't human life. What was it that populated
this earth prior to the second verse of Genesis, the first chapter?
In Genesis 1:28, speaking to the man whom He had created, God said this: ''Be fruitful
and multiply and replenish the earth." What does that word replenish mean? To plenish
is to populate. To replenish means to repopulate - to populate all over again. Those
very words imply that the earth had been populated before!
Immediately after the flood in Genesis 9:1, God spoke to Noah. He blessed Noah and
his sons and said unto them: "Be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth."
Identically the same words that He spoke to Adam!
In Noah's case we know He meant repopulate the earth. Then didn't He mean the
same thing when He used the identical words to Adam: "Be fruitful and multiply and
replenish the earth?" Certainly here is indication that the earth had been populated,
and that it was to be populated once again. Then what kind of life had populated the
earth prior to Adam, prior to the week called "creation week"?
Next, let's turn to II Peter 2:4: ''For if God spared not the angels that sinned.'' Here is
the sin of angels mentioned.  Sin of Angels!
Now read the next verse, "And spared not the old world," between Adam and Noah,
''but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood
upon the world of the ungodly." There it mentions the sins from Adam to Noah, and it
mentions the physical destruction to the earth as a result of the flood, a chaotic,
physical condition brought about on the earth by the sins of those men.
Was there a chaotic condition brought about on the earth as a result of the sins of
angles? The sin of the angels is mentioned first, and it occurred first! There was a devil
already there in existence by the time Adam was created. So the sin of the angels
happened before the creation of man.
Now read II Peter 2:6. ''Turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, [God]
condemned them with an overthrow, making them an example to those that afterward
should live ungodly."
Universal sin was in those two Canaanite cities. Physical destruction came to the entire
part of the surface of the earth which those people occupied as a result of that sin.
Then didn't such a destruction come to the earth as a result of the sins of the angels
which occurred before Adam?
Now quickly turn over to Jude. In the sixth verse, you read this: "And the angels which
kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation [they had a place where they
lived, a habitation, an estate, and they left it], God hath reserved in everlasting chains
under darkness unto the judgment of the great day." Notice! It is the sinning angels
who are reserved in those chains under darkness, restrained from light, restrained from
truth until the judgment of the great day.
Angels Possess the Earth!
How plain! They had an estate which they didn't keep. In Hebrews 2:5 we read this:
''For unto the angels hath God not put in subjection the world to come of which we
speak." In other words, The World Tomorrow, the Kingdom of God, will not be under
subjection to angels. The present one is under subjection of fallen angels. The
demons, and the devil who is their head, rule this present earth and sway its
inhabitants. The Bible everywhere indicates and affirms that very fact.
How did they obtain their dominion? How did they acquire their power? How did they
maintain their control? Where did the devil get the power to control and to lead and to
rule this world?
The devil is the leader of fallen angels, as you will find in a number of places ( John
12:31, John 14:30, John 16:11). In II Cor. 4:4 the devil is called the god of this world.
He is the king or the prince of the evil world that we live in today. Let's see something
about the origin of the devil.
Turn to Isaiah 14, beginning with verse 4, "'Thou shalt take up this proverb against the
king of Babylon, and say, 'How hath the oppressor ceased the golden city ceased!'"
Here is a king of Babylon.
This account continues to tell how he had disrupted the earth. He was an invader, a
conqueror. He was a war monger, trying to take away from others and trying to acquire
all he could. He had just the opposite philosophy from that of God. In other words, he
had the philosophy of the devil. He represented. the devil. The king of Babylon was the
devil's instrument and tool.
Now we find in verse 12 that this lesser human type lifts to the great anti-type - the
devil - whom he represented and whose tool and instrument he was. Rebellion of Lucifer.
Things are said about the great former cherub, the devil, that could not be said about a
human being. God says, "How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer." Lucifer means
shining one, or shining star of the dawn. God names things or people, or beings what
they are. Lucifer was originally a shining "star." Stars represent angels (Rev. 1:20). He
was a great cherub whose duties were represented by the bright morning star. He was
a light bringer. In other words, one who had great knowledge and truth and light, and
who was to give it to those who were placed under him. He was placed in a certain rule
and authority over angels.
Continuing in Isaiah 14: "How art thou cut down to the ground which didst weaken the
nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, 'I will ascend into heaven.'" Then he must
have been BELOW heaven. He must have been ON THE EARTH.
He said, "I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars (that is, the
angels] of God." I want you to notice he had a throne, but he wasn't willing to be
content with his jurisdiction. He was out to rule the universe.
Now notice what else Lucifer said: "I will ascend above the heights of the CLOUDS. I
will be like the most High." "I'm going to be god myself," he said.
Lucifer Becomes the Devil.
So Lucifer became the devil. God changed his name when his character changed. He
tried to make himself God. But we find HE WAS CAST DOWN TO THIS EARTH.
Now, quickly turn over to Ezekiel 28, verse 1. "Son of man, say unto the prince of
Tyrus. . ." The prince of Tyre, or Tyrus, was a very evil man. He was an aggressor, an
invader, a conqueror. He was a tool of the devil. Now, as we come to the twelfth verse,
just as in Isaiah 14, the lesser type lifts up to the great anti-type. We find the devil
himself pictured! Now we find one that is not human at all. For a few verses, it is talking
about the devil himself, and not about a human being.
Beginning at verse 12: ''Son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus."
Here is the REAL king that ruled in and through the prince of Tyrus. "And say unto him,
Thus saith the Lord God. Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in
beauty." Here was one who sealed up the sum total of perfection, of wisdom, and
beauty.
Could that be said about a man? Does God speak like that of any mortal man? Never!
He is speaking of some being far greater than man. Notice, "Thou hast been in Eden,
the garden of God." On the earth! Then he said, "The workmanship of thy tabrets and
thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast CREATED." This was not a
human being, who was born.
The prophet continues to say, "Thou art the anointed CHERUB that covereth." If you
will refer to Exodus 25, verses 16-22, you will find the type of the throne of God
described. Included in the earthly type - the tabernacle in the days of Moses - was the
mercy seat which was a picture of the very throne of God. On it two cherubim were
placed. They were made of metals, of course, but their wings stretched out and
covered the very throne of God. They symbolized the two great cherubs whose wings
cover the very throne of God.
Through Ezekiel, God says: "Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth." In other
words, one of the two great cherubs ruling over millions of other angels! He was a
created being. He sealed up the sum total of perfection, of wisdom, and of beauty.
Then in verse 14, we read this: "I have set thee so," God said. God had set him in
office. "Thou wast upon the holy mountain of God,'' - Palestine or Eden! "Thou wast
perfect in thy ways from the day thou wast created. Here was a being that was created
perfect UNTIL INIQUITY WAS FOUND IN HIM.
That iniquity was described in Isaiah 14. He said, "I'm not satisfied with what I have. I'm
going to become an invader. I'm going to take God's place and be the God of the
universe." That was the devil's sin - INSUBORDINATION.
How the Earth Became Chaotic
A third of the angels united with Satan in the rebellion. That is what caused the chaos
of this earth. The sin of angels reached into the heavens and brought chaos on earth.
What the geologists and astronomers see is not an evolving universe, but the
wreckage of a titanic battle waged by spirits throughout space - a battle fought before
man's creation.
The earth was created perfect and complete. Then it BECAME chaotic as a result of
rebellion. And in six days, God re-made the earth, re-shaped, re-fashioned it, and
created human beings upon it.
He gave Adam a chance to take the place of Satan the devil. Remember, Lucifer had
been placed in rulership. God placed the great cherub, Lucifer, to carry out His
government on the earth; but Lucifer refused to carry out God's will, God's commands,
God's government. He wanted to substitute his own - So he disqualified himself.
Adam had the chance to supplant him. In the contest to see if Adam would conquer, if
he would obey God, he failed. He obeyed the devil instead, and man became the
property of the devil, and the whole human race was sold down the river to the devil
ever since.
Jesus Christ came 4000 years later and He entered the great contest - the contest of
the temptation on the Mount. He REFUSED to obey the devil. He quoted scripture
correctly. He obeyed God. Finally, He turned to the devil, and He gave Satan a
command. He said, "Get away from me," and the devil obeyed!
From that time on, the successor of Satan has been qualified to take over the rule of
the earth. But Jesus went to heaven for 1900 years. He is soon coming again, and
when He does, the devil will be DISPLACED. Christ will rule the earth; God's laws will
be restored. Order and peace will come at last!
So God did NOT create a devil. He created a cherub, Lucifer - perfect in his ways, but
with the power of free choice - and Lucifer transformed himself into a devil by rebellion
against the government of God!  Today, you face the question: Will You obey the ways of Satan, or the LAWS of GOD?

Avalokitesuara Bodisattva

Avalokitesuara Bodisattva

when practicing deeply the Prashna Paramita
perceive that all five skandas are empty
and was safe from all suffering and distress
Know then:
form does not differ from emptiness
emptiness does not differ from form
that which is form is emptiness, that which
is emptiness form, these same is true of
feelings, perceptions, impulses, consciousness;
all dhamas are marked with emptiness
they do not appear or disappear, are not
tainted or pure, do not increase or
decrease, therefore in emptiness, no form,
no feeling, no impulses, no perception,
no consciousness, no eyes, no ears
no nose, no tougue, no body, no mind
no colour, no sound, no smell, no taste,
no touch, no object of mind, no realm of sensing,
go forth until no realm of consciousness
no ignorance and no extinction of it, and
so forth until no death, no holding,
no extinction of them, no suffering,
no origination, no stopping, no path,
no cognition, also no attainment with nothing to attain.
the bohdisattva deepens on Prashna Paramita
and the mind is no hindrance
without any hindrance, no fears exist,
for apart from every perverted view
the bodisatva dwells in nivana, in
the three worlds, all Buddhas deepens on
Prashna Paramita and attain the unsurpassed
complete perfect enlightmentmant
Therefore know the Prashna Paramita is
the great transcendent mantra, is the great
bright mantra, is the utmost mantra, is
the supreme mantra which is able to release
all suffering and pain, so proclaim
the Prashna Paramita mantra, proclaim
the matra
ga-te ga-te para ga-te, para sum ga-te
bodhi savra

Response to Petition on the Abolishment of the Transportation Security Administration by Pervert Pistole

All I'm going to say is that the goons and pedophiles at the TSA would have you believe that it's because of them that there's been no significant terrorism since 9/11. These liars with all of their health endangering equip. and invasive and perverted "pat-downs" haven't been responsible for the apprehension of one, yes not even one terrorist. True they've been responsible for violating many little girls and boys, grandmothers, invalids in wheelchairs, nuns and every other kind of tourist who is stupid or desperate enough to get somewhere that they make the mistake of flying. But not one terrorist.
We're in their eyes, apparently too stupid to realize that the terrorists have half a brain too, and won't fall into their "trap."

The Head Pervert - Pistole

Response to Petition on the Abolishment of the Transportation Security Administration




By John Pistole, the Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration


Thank you for participating in the We the People platform, we respect the right of the petitioners to be heard and value the feedback we receive from travelers who share their experiences – good or bad – with us. The men and women of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) have a challenging, but critical mission, and they take their jobs very seriously. TSA understands that the terrorist threat remains real and continues to evolve, as evidenced by the attempted terrorist attack on Christmas Day 2009 and the disrupted air cargo bomb plot last year.


Why TSA Exists.


TSA was created two months after the September 11 terrorist attacks, when Congress passed the Aviation and Transportation Security Act (ATSA) [.pdf] to keep the millions of Americans who travel each day safe and secure across numerous modes of transportation.


Over the past 10 years, TSA has strengthened security by creating successful programs and deploying technologies that were not in place prior to September 11, while also taking steps whenever possible to enhance the passenger experience. Here are just a few of the many steps TSA has taken to strengthen our multi-layered approach to security:


Establishing an Intelligence-Driven Approach.


TSA uses intelligence in real-time to strengthen security and share key information with state, local, and international partners, to ensure they can respond to evolving threats.


Vetting of Passengers and Transportation Workers.


Today, 100 percent of passengers flying to, from, and within the United States are prescreened against terrorist watch lists under TSA's Secure Flight program. In addition, employees with access to airports and ports, and those who transport higher risk materials, are vetted to ensure a secure environment.


Screening for Explosives.


TSA screens 100 percent of carry-on and checked baggage for dangerous items including explosives. TSA has also deployed explosives-detection canine teams. The teams are used to detect explosives and deter terrorism in aviation, mass transit, and cargo environments.


Deploying Advanced Technology to Detect Evolving Threats.


As part of its multi-layered approach to security, TSA uses Advanced Imaging Technology and Automated Target Recognition software to detect metallic and nonmetallic threats, including weapons and explosives concealed under layers of clothing on passengers. Using Advanced Technology X-ray, Bottled Liquid Scanners and Explosives Trace Detection (ETD) Technology, TSA can more efficiently and effectively screen checked and carry-on bags for potential threats.


Covert Testing.


Covert testing provides TSA with valuable information that can be used to modify security measures, improve training and inform the development of future technology. The statistic cited in the petition was from testing performed nearly eight years ago and doesn't reflect the current security environment. Since then, TSA has implemented new security measures and deployed enhanced technology to address evolving threats to aviation.


Strengthening In-Flight Security.


Hardened cockpit doors and the Federal Air Marshal Service serve as additional layers of security against an act of terrorism.


Establishing a Professionalized Workforce.


Transportation Security Officers (TSO) working at 450 airports today are hired through a rigorous vetting process and go through extensive training that did not exist prior to September 11. Today's TSOs have an average of three and a half years of experience on the job and have a turnover rate of approximately 6 percent. This compares to an average of 3 months of experience and a turnover rate of 125 percent for screeners prior to the creation of TSA.


TSA's Next 10 Years.


TSA is working to enhance its risk-based, intelligence-driven security initiatives to strengthen security while continuing to improve the passenger experience whenever possible. Current efforts include: changing the way TSA screens passengers ages 12 and under, evaluating the expanded use of behavior detection techniques, and piloting expedited screening for known travelers. Efficiencies gained by implementing more risk-based security methods allow us to make the best possible use of the resources to secure air travel.


Additionally, new software has been deployed to further strengthen privacy protections by eliminating passenger-specific images on Advanced Imaging Technology (AIT) machines. The new software has been installed on all millimeter wave AIT units currently in airports, with plans to test and deploy similar software for backscatter units in 2012.


Our Nation is safer and better prepared today because of these and other efforts of the Department of Homeland Security, TSA, and our federal, state, local and international partners. TSA is constantly identifying ways to continue to strengthen security and improve the passenger experience and appreciates the feedback of the public.


We invite you to stop by TSA's blog to continue this discussion.


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