I've just read in my local newspaper the other day (April 25 vicinity), -that my State of Pennsylvania is selling TSA confiscated items / and ordinary airline Lost and Found, (from PA and several surrounding northeastern States, -so goes the arrangement), -on e-bay.

Though a good portion are not our kind of items (largely due to the L & F element), -*another large portion definitely are!*. Might be a good way of getting back some of what TSA (sometimes wrongly) takes.

This is something our Governor got up and going, -with our Federal Govt. Thats how such can be taking place.

In any event, -its something to keep an eye out for, -when looking over e-bay.

Don't know, -but some other States in other regions of the Country, -may have a similar arrangement. [color:"black"] [/color] [email]ScottRezaLogan[/email]

A number of them do. Boulder I think started it. I've seen a lot of general state surplus items (old highway signs, etc) along with TSA seizures.

The shipping from all of them has been obscenely high.

A friend of mine owns a blade sharpening business. He buys scissors in lots for pennies on the dollar. He's found many that were worth more than the whole lot cost him.

This has become a pretty good business for some states and a handful of retailers. I worked in a store in Berkeley CA last summer that bought SAKs by the pound. The knives cost the store pennies. We sold em for low prices after they were cleaned up; SA Classic = $3.99ea.
I had mixed emotions selling someone elses lost knives but I used it as a platform to show the customers just how stupid the whole TSA prohibited list actually is. We would have a candy jar full of Classics and another full of LM micras; I would show folks just how less safe they are by showing how much time the TSA wastes on little knives and scissors.

Another issue here is that the original owner paid the sales tax but these confiscated knives are earning 2nd and 3rd sales taxes plus the money the Gov't earns on the sale. There was an article about PA in one of the knife magazines with a headline that read "Taxation by confiscation without representation".

An interesting point is that PA state law prohibits the state government from selling dangerous items to the public. When asked about selling the TSA confiscated knives the state spokesperson said they did not consider the knives to be dangerous; but the TSA who confiscated them did. Odd.

A good pair of beautician's scissors can cost at least $240. on up to about $500. (And I believe there are some more expensive than that)

What a find such a pair of confiscated professional scissors would be! $$$

The contradiction that you mention is odd indeed. I guess the rationale could go, -Dangerous to take aboard a plane. But not (as) dangerous in other aspects and areas of Life. Of course tell that to someone who say finds themselves a victim of crime, -from such. Seems like a tooth fairy is trying to sell a bridge in there, -somewhere!

By the way, -I've since relooked at the article, -and have more specific source and date info. It's appeared in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, -April 24, 2006, issue.

On another related point, -I'll now state something which may not exactly win a "popularity contest" here! And that is that in these new, post Sept. 11th realities, circumstances and times, - Homeland Security and the TSA have *got* to have good, reasonable latitude, -to confiscate a good amount of various things. Small knives, cutters, or the like *were* used by the various Sept. 11th skyjackers.

(Incidentally at the time, -i was really and particularly galled, -at their using such to outright murder Stewardesses, other Flight Crew, and perhaps Passengers. Then just left to bleed and die. Before anyone else died otherwise via the crashes themselves, -Let us not ever forget, -that there was also *this*! Again, -back then, -This particularly galled me!)

So there's got to be some good, proper, confiscation latitude. However much this may not be to our particular liking. I think and know that many of you agree. The question and matter is just where, and on what, -does one so draw the line and point?

I'll also hasten to add, -that various, improper, "overboarding and abuses", -*do* occur on their part! Here I am in substantial to complete Agreement, -with many of you here. As our general, prevailing opinion on this, -here goes. [color:"black"] [/color] [email]billym[/email]

When I see 21 out of 21 failures to detect common weapons such as knives and guns during random testing, it only makes me wonder about the real threats. Background checks on employees fail to uncover even some basic problems. What about plastic automatic guns that look like curling irons with barely any metal parts, ceramic and nylon knives, checked luggage lacking screening via X-Ray or explosives detection, etc.? If it's going to happen again it's going to go down a whole lot differently, and all of the collected nail files will be shown for what they are... an il-conceived, poorly executed, and pointless effort to appear to PHRASECENSOREDPOSTERSHOULDKNOWBETTER. as if the government is doing "something". Gah... don't get me started.

Scan ALL luggage for weapons and explosives, use both computer, human and animal detection. Put Air Marshals on more flights. Secure flight cabins with hard-core doors and security cams. Arm the Pilot and co-pilot - many are ex military anyway. Require all flight crew to train in Martial Arts. Require all ground and flight crew to undergo extensive background checks. Pay even the lowliest folks more money. Make all employees responsible for any safety or security violations in their sphere of influence punishable with a temporary downgrade of pay with escalating consequences for repeat offenders including loss of employment. I could go on...

I like to fly and I think the TSA has it's place and that it's good to have a consistent approach to safety and security. However, the airlines have continually pressured the FAA to choose economics rather than safety and many believe the organization to be a shell left for appearances. The same thing seems to apply to the TSA. They could be doing a lot more... they all seem to have tunnelvision. If my tax dollars are going toward paying these folks, it seems to me that they should be effective and you'd have a hard time convincing me that's the case currently. The more we say things like "we should cut them some slack" (I'm paraphrasing... <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> ) the less likely things are to improve. I'm not saying that disallowing items like lighters and knives is wrongheaded... it's just that it's so randomly enforced and only a tiny part of the equation.