Homeland Insecurity
Besides not recognizing 67 out of 70 test violations of airport security checkpoints during a recent exercise, the Transportation Security Administration failed to identify 73 airport workers potentially associated with terrorism. Former acting TSA administrator Melvin Carraway denied the Department of Homeland Security’s finding that the TSA missed potential threats, insisting, “The term ‘missed’ is inaccurate, in that it implies a fault with the TSA vetting system or manual review process, which is not the case.” (USA Today)
Drone On
Army officials blamed a data link for causing controllers to lose track of a drone being used “in support of increased force-protection measures” at Colorado’s Fort Carson. The 4-pound drone crashed in a civilian’s yard 12 miles from the military base. “I couldn’t figure out who owned it, so I wrote my telephone number on a piece of paper. . . and held it in front of the camera, thinking someone would call me if they wanted it back,” Colorado Springs resident Ronald Fisk said. No one responded, so Fisk called police. (Colorado Springs’ The Gazette)
Litigation Nation
Anna Goldshmidt and Elan Stratiyevsky demanded that New York City’s Waldorf Astoria hotel return the money they paid for their wedding there or risk a lawsuit. The couple contends the hotel cut short the event because a guest at the reception accidentally fired a gun, grazing a woman in the head. Lawyer Benjamin Brafman said the couple is also considering suing the guest. A hotel official said the reception was canceled immediately after the shooting due to safety concerns. (Associated Press)
Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time
A Welsh bus company promoting its new fleet of buses posted ads on the back of them showing an apparently topless woman holding a sign saying, “Ride me all day for £3.” Outrage on social media prompted an apology from Cardiff-based New Adventure Travel, which explained the slogan was “a little tongue in cheek” but promised to remove the ads “within the next 24 hours.” (Britain’s The Guardian)
