Anyone who refuses to have their bags searched, however, will be allowed to leave with their belongings — they just won't be allowed to enter the Metro system at the point of search.

Fine with me. I'll walk a few blocks down the road to the next Metro stop, or take a bus.

Fuck the police, and DC citizens said it with authority.

For some reason, the Post is framing the initiative as a crime-fighting tactic, putting up a rather leading poll asking readers if they are in favor of searches that help "combat crime."

To make the poll fair, they should ask readers if they are in favor of searches that help "encourage crime."

Don't think customers have much choice in the matter. The NYC subway has spot checking. It was challenged by the ACLU and it went nowhere. And I for one welcome our subterranean brothel-running overlords. I'd like to remind Metro that as a powerful "member" of the bloggerati commentariat, I can assist them in rounding up only the hottest customers to work in their underground sex caverns.

This is really mind boggling. They're going to institute a random search policy in order to reduce the incidence of terrorist acts on the Metro, which currently stands at ZERO.

Honestly, I'm really struggling to see the point of this. WMATA acknowledges that it's not going to have any impact on the types of crime that actually do take place in the system, and since you can easily just opt out of a search and re-enter the same station elsewhere, it will only catch terrorists who are pathologically stupid or oblivious. Do they really think that there are any terrorists who are determined to detonate explosives in the subway tunnels but will be deterred by the slight risk of being inconvenienced or delayed by avoiding a bag check?

This is a clear case of "security theater" and will not catch any terrorists. Anyone who has a bomb will decline to be searched.

Furthermore, because the number of people being searched is so low (1 in 12, even when a checkpoint is set up) any would-be-terrorist would find it easy to get on the metro at another point of entry.

Security theater, anyone? If WMATA can't stop people eating or pan-handling or other petty crimes, what good do they think this will do?

In the current issue of The Atlantic is a fascinating article on how easy it is to get past TSA security measures at the airport. The TSA Director basically confirms that all of the showy stuff - the screeners, the X-ray machines, the taking-off of shoes - can be defeated by a smart terrorist. So basically the billions being spent on TSA security is ensured to catch the stupid terrorists out there who haven't read or heard about the cracks in the security procedures. Which is basically what this new Metro policy will also do.

Query - where's the money going to come for this? Catoe is constantly crying about how much money needs to make the trains run (forget about them actually running on time) and to make escalators work. Yet they've got the money to pay for a bunch of the underground po-po to stand around and search people's bags?

I can understand this requirement making sense during the Inauguration and other major events. But if this is done on a regular basis, it's nothing more than a waste of time and money designed to fake us into thinking we're any safer than we were yesterday.

Bullocks.

That's all this is. Just bullocks.

OldPoster: My favorite part of that article is where the guy brings two 12-ounce bottles of contact solution though security. The TSA asked, "Why two bottles?" "Two eyes," he said, and was waved through.

(Medicine, including contact solution, is exempt from the 3 ounce carry-on limit)

I've got a magic goatse medallion for sale that will ward off tigers as well as terrorists.

The price? One little dollar. That, and all of your dignity.

I'm curious to see how WMATA intends to implement bus stop searches. WMATA doesn't own any portion of the public way, and thus has no jurisdiction over it.

Perhaps they will station Transit Police on the bus and perform inspections as riders step onto the bus, before they've paid their fare. Or perhaps they will only inspect bags of persons actually sitting on the benches within the shelter, as the benches themsleves are WMATA property.

Anything else is an obvious Civil Rights violation.

BYOB, baby!

bullocks? is jim j. coming back to the center square?

stapaulova - Transit police have full police authority through-out the DC metro area, including DC, MD and VA.

stapalouva: I'd disagree that a jurisdictional issue is a "civil rights violation", but in any case, WMATA Police has jurisdiction. As with all of the different police forces in the area, there aren't any real bright lines.

For example, Marion Barry has been busted by the FBI, DC police, the Secret Service, the IRS, and by the U.S. Park Police (though in the latter he was at least on park property).

Get over it! In Israel, EVERYONE'S bags are searched when they are going into any building-- public and private. And I can tell you from personal experience, it doesn't slow things down one bit. So if one out of twelve people are being searched on Metro and Metrobuses alone, it's not going to make your commute any more difficult.

We take our relative safety in this coutry for granted. I can guarantee that the first time someone gets caught with a bomb or unlicensed gun, you will be grateful for the extra security measures.

Don't even get me started on unclaimed bags sitting on metro platforms or the side of the road-- in Israel, they get blown up by police!

@NaomiRay: By definition, if you search everyone's bags, you are slowing people down than if they just walking into a building unencumbered.

But you do get at the heart of the matter: searching "everyone" *is* security. The Israelis know how to do security. We don't. We are searching 1 in X. And if you don't want to be searched, you can leave and try again later. That's not security.

If the powers that be believe that is some sort of security, then they really should be thrown out of their office. They are deluding themselves into believing that a terrorist will be stupid enough to not just leave, and not to have checked a site like DCist to know where the current searches are going on. Oh, and they'd have to believe that the terrorist would be the one in 12 that would be caught.

The conversation probably went something like this: "We have to do something!" And a proposal to search everyone all the time came in. And the cost was figured out, and they said "we can't afford to do that." And so someone said, "we have to do *something* cause if something bad happens, we'll get blamed for not doing anything." "Okay, let's pretend we can do security..."

Sure, Metro can search my bag. But all they're going to find is deez. DEEZ NUTS!!!!

Thank you. I'll be here all week.

naomiray: what the israelis do might work in israel, but this is supposed to be an open society. if i wanted israeli-style security, i'd move to jerusalem, thank you very much.

First of all, the searches in Israel *do* slow you down. I'm talking when no one else is in line and then of course there was the time that a lady blew through security for reasons unknown and the entire line had to wait for the searcher to nab her before we could enter the train station. That one slowed me down by a good 20 minutes.

And the line blower (heh) appeared to just not feel like waiting in line, it's not like she had fashioned her baby into a bomb.

Also, in Israel, in my experience, they don't really care if you have a gun. They just want to know about it -- you're definitely welcome to trot one around the entire country if you desire. Those bag searches aren't exactly thorough.

The thing that scares me is that transit police can arrest you for anything illegal--including stuff unrelated to terrorism--found in your bag. Isn't there a probable cause dilemma here? If they are searching your bag under the auspices of terrorism prevention, then does that not become their sole basis on which to justify the search? In other words, they should only be able to arrest you if they find something illegal that could be used in a terrorist act. I realize that this could be broadly interpreted, but I think it would at least provide some protection to the average citizen. I don't think it's right for someone to be searched and have nothing that would mark them as a terrorist but still get arrested for, say, marijuana possession when there would have been no probable cause for a drug search in the first place.

newhampave,

The police do not need probable cause if someone voluntarily allows them to search their bag.

If the police find drugs after someone has consented to the search, then it does not matter what the police originally said they were looking for, they can still arrest the person.

This program reminds me of another recent winner from the DC police department--voluntary home searches.

Samer: I've lived in Israel, and never noticed any significant (we're talking more than 5 minutes) waits at HUGE public gatherings where they checked all bags, so I doubt very much there would be a significant delay here. And we have to start somewhere with upping our security measures-- better this than nothing.

IMGoph: Israel is an open society, it is a democracy--the only one in the Middle East.

Caribou Barbie: While the security guards are searching bags, they are also looking at the biometrics of the person whose bag they are searching-- so even if you don't have a bomb in your bag, but one strapped to your chest, your body language will give you away and the security guard will take necessary steps to keep everyone safe. And you are right, carrying a handgun in Israel isn't as big of a deal as it is here, because Israelis are trained by the military on how to use them safely.

I just think we need a little perspective on the entire security issue. We have lived in a bubble for a very long time and need to weigh a little inconvience against the possiblity of violence.

naomiray: you say in your reply to samer that

we have to start somewhere with upping our security measures

we don't have bombers walking into restaurants and blowing people up. we don't have a "palestinian" group to go with the "israelis" around here (if we equate american citizens to israelis).

you're advocating israel-style militant security here because of what? the daily threat of terrorism that exists there does not exist here. we don't have suicide bombers walking into cafés on a daily basis.

again, i ask why you feel this is necessary. because, to any rational observer, what you're advocating sure ain't necessary.

I'd totally be in favor of Israeli-style security checkpoints and random shakedowns, so long as I were allowed to openly carry my Galil SAR assault rifle onto the Metro, into Bar Pilar, and any Chinese carryout. Until then, you can eat it raw.

As for weighing "a little inconvience against the possiblity of violence," for years I have been demanding Government funding for some sort of early warning system that will alert people to the possibility of monkeys flying out of my ass. Yet my pleas continue to fall on deaf ears and I have to make do with a makeshift solution: a klaxxon horn that wails every 5 seconds to inform people that monkeys are not flying out of my ass.

I know what you're saying: "But monkey, isn't there some biometric solution to the imminent problem of monkeys flying out of your ass?" One would think that, unfortunately biometrics can be easily defeated using common household items.

Wake up and smell the pee, people. SCIENCE DOES NOT REMOVE THE TERROR OF THE GODS! THE WORLD ENDS TOMORROW AND YOU MAY DIE! QUIT YOUR JOB! SLACK OFF!

i always thought distant early warning was less about the russians and more about al qaeda. people just didn't know back then.

"Americans are asking, why do they (terrorists) hate us? ... They hate our freedoms -- our freedom of religion, our freedom of speech, our freedom to vote and assemble and disagree with each other." - George w. Bush, September 20, 2001, Address to a Joint Session of Congress and the American People

We don't have any more freedoms. The threat of terrorism is over. "Nothing to see here, please move along."

first it was airport bag xrays, cool no big deal; then random personal searches at the airports; taking off shoes; now its random bag searches on public transportation. next we will hear that its imperative that we check people in all public spaces. random checks on the sidewalk outside your apartment. people walking around outside starbucks or banana republic need to be searched. shouldn't police be checking bags on the streets of georgetown. maybe we will start with 'near the monuments' how bout people playing kickball on the mall... or picnicking at screen on the green - lot a people there to both search and protect... (and although we aren't searching for people drinking wine in a public place, we will fine you for it)

tmoney: the problem is that the great majority of americans are very small-minded, and to be blunt, stupid.

they see this "theater" and they're happy to say "well, at least government is doing something, and they go back to watching TV or whatever-the-hell they were doing to kill brain cells. it doesn't actually have to be meaningful, or work, there just has to be the façade of meaningfulness...

They're doing random bag searches, not performing ethnic cleansing. Gimme a break on the over-dramatization.

How much of ordinary crime prevention is 'theater'? Everyone on this blog likes to say why having beat cops walking the streets is a deterrent, just for the mere fact they are there and showing their presence. Yet this goes too far as a meaningless gesture that will have no impact? How about the fact that personnel who will hopefully be trained in spotting suspicious behavior will now be present within the metro system in case of trouble. I'd say that's important enough a reason to be willing to put up with silly bag searches to justify their presence there (and hopefully some homeland security funding to do so).