I just came back from Israel 2 days ago. To show how insane TSA rules are, I submit the following. First, before I get to the ticket counter, I am questioned by an Israeli security agent, very normal procedure. Both my check on and carry on go through an x-ray machine. Afterwards, obtain boarding pass. Next to the departure area, and again through a metal detector. Final stop, immigration, then departure terminal. Again, normal for Israel. When I get to the departure area, an announcement is made. All passengers departing on either Continental or Delta, are prohibited from carrying any liquids over 3 oz in their bags. This does not apply to El Al or other airlines with destinations other than the USA. Mind you, I have been through security twice, and even if the liquids are purchased at an airport shop or duty free, I cannot carry them on the plane!

This is insane! I can buy water in an airport terminal in the US and take it on the plane, but I cannot do so in Israel. The bigger insanity is that when I arrive in Newark, I must go through customs and immigration, recheck my bag, and go through security again at the Newark terminal for the domestic leg of my trip. I could not have gotten off my Israel flight and then taken the water in no matter how I tried. I have had the same experience with liquids in Buenos Aires, Santo Domingo, and Panama City, Panama. Of course, if I am not going to the US, the additional security does not apply. The TSA is a hidebound bureaucracy that has insane rules with no rhyme, reason, or thought. That is why no one respects them. Changing their uniforms will not create respect. Thoughtful regulations, and proper, courteous behavior by TSA agents would do the trick-I don't expect that they will ever do this, as the people who run this agency have no clue about what they are doing, or what real security means.