Rebel of the Week: Chris Liu, Pilot Against the TSA
December 29th, 2010
Chris Liu is this week’s Silver Underground Rebel of the Week, even though we might not agree with him perfectly on his positions on airline safety. We love whistle blowers of all types and flavors as the very act is one that takes quite a lot of courage. He has recently been in the news for losing his position as a pilot with American Airlines for posting videos on YouTube showing how “airport security is kind of a farce,” and for displaying his activism at his website, “The Patriot Pilot.”
When he committed the acts which have now cost him so much he said he thought it was pretty “innocuous” and would not receive much attention. This doesn’t really mesh with his website where he refers to himself grandiosely as “An American Hero.” He had originally kept his identity a secret but has now come out in the light of day to put himself in the line of fire of public scrutiny for his convictions, perhaps foolhardily in his method.
His videos show that while the rest of us lowly peasants are getting felt up going through security ground crews who work at the airport are bypassing many of the security measures and putting the flights at risk. The Patriot Pilot implies the conclusion that the pornoscanners and the gropings perpetuated by the TSA are more about control and the illusion of safety rather than anything substantial, as those with clearance could easily abuse the system as his videos detail.
However, it appears his major problem with the TSA is that the system is not effective and the security net has massive holes in it, not that there are major violations of privacy, health safety and human dignity. We certainly would love it if all people were treated equally without people being able to slip by such degradations through favoritism, but this is at best a partial solution. The issue is not merely consistency or efficiency but our desire not to be herded and inspected like cattle to be ruled. This is very meaningful to us, and to many of us more important than our short term security.
So, Mr. Liu, with that hesitant caveat, we name you our rebel of the week. We very much hope you will you will continue fighting for a policy which makes sense but will also add We Won’t Fly‘s concerns about privacy to your salient goals. Also, stop acting like you didn’t want a confrontation! You did, you got it; now be the American hero you envision.
(See an interview with Chris Liu here)
