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submitted 1 year ago by MicroWave@lemmy.world to c/news@lemmy.world

A Washington state senator was arrested at the airport in Hong Kong and charged with possession of an unregistered firearm, his office said.

Sen. Jeff Wilson, R-Longview, was detained at Hong Kong International Airport on Friday night after he found a pistol in his carry-on bag and reported it to customs officials.

He was released on bail Sunday and faces a hearing Oct. 30.

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[-] Pons_Aelius@kbin.social 205 points 1 year ago

he passed through security at the airport in Portland, Oregon, where it was not detected by baggage screeners.

Tonight on TSA's security theatre

[-] Treczoks@lemmy.world 34 points 1 year ago

As long as you can buy all the ingredients to build an IED from the duty-free shop after the screening, you'll know how much TSA's "security" is worth.

[-] GombeenSysadmin@feddit.uk 32 points 1 year ago

Had a razor taken off me at security. Went through, bought a magazine with the same one taped to the cover as a free gift

[-] reverendsteveii@lemm.ee 13 points 1 year ago

What's ironic here is that this isn't a matter of incompetence, it's a matter of efficiency. There isn't much of a threat of hijacking airplanes, and there never has been. It's just that after 9/11 the spectacle of that even has caused the average person to overestimate the threat of terrorism in airports by several orders of magnitude. Therefore, while we're in no more danger than we were on 09/10/2001, people believe that there is a danger and if someone doesn't perform security, they won't fly. So, in order to appease these people who don't actually understand the situation but have the power to affect it, we all have to go through a little dance that's designed to look very much like security. Take your shoes off. Throw out your water bottle. Has anyone asked you to put anything in your bag for them? Put your shoes back on. Take your shoes back off. 95% of weapons in carry-on luggage make it through TSA screening and onto the plane. Put your shoes back on. Take your belt off.

[-] ShunkW@lemmy.world 6 points 1 year ago

To be fair, the number of incidents was much higher in the 60s and 70s. Usually in the high 60s low 70s oddly enough, per year. Not really relevant nowadays, but an interesting fact.

[-] reverendsteveii@lemm.ee 15 points 1 year ago

https://fee.org/articles/tsa-fails-95-of-the-time/

An internal investigation of the Transportation Security Administration revealed security failures at dozens of the nation’s busiest airports, where undercover investigators were able to smuggle mock explosives or banned weapons through checkpoints in 95 percent of trials, ABC News has learned.

In one test an undercover agent was stopped after setting off an alarm at a magnetometer, but TSA screeners failed to detect a fake explosive device that was taped to his back during a follow-on pat down.

[-] sramder@lemmy.world 9 points 1 year ago

And yet my hands get swapped 10 years later for bringing a pair of sumo robots in my luggage.

[-] IamSparticles@lemmy.zip 7 points 1 year ago

Can't tell you how many times my bag has been flagged because of my fucking Kindle.

[-] afraid_of_zombies@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago

My bag is almost always flagged because almost every flight I am on is for work travel and I have my tools in it. I found stuff gets stolen less often if I put a checklist on the top. At least by America. The Canadian security stole a whole mess of cables as well as the checklist.

[-] sramder@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago

LOL they just pick on a few of us so we spread the word that they're vigilant.

[-] BeMoreCareful@lemdro.id 2 points 1 year ago

I know federal Congress doesn't have to go through airport security. I'm guessing it's the same for state?

[-] kowcop@aussie.zone 65 points 1 year ago

Australian here.. I have never actually touched a handgun, in fact, I have never seen a handgun with my eyeballs outside of police/security.. it is weird how casual this seems

[-] breadsmasher@lemmy.world 63 points 1 year ago

“Woops, got so many firearms I didn’t even notice one was misplaced into my bag”

And americans think that’s normal

[-] Kecessa@sh.itjust.works 38 points 1 year ago

"I'm a responsible gun owner!" say every irresponsible gun owners.

Fuck the USA and its constitution, it even becomes an issue the next country over because idiots get their firearms stolen and they make their way to Canada so gang members can shoot each other and kill bystanders at the same time.

[-] mondo_brondo@lemmy.world 36 points 1 year ago

There are a lot of us here that would like to change things.

[-] funkless_eck@sh.itjust.works 17 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

I used to work at a place where a guy would bring his guns in his truck to work every day.

To work in sales in an office in an industrial estate.

They were locked in that metal case in the back of his Ram, but if you were robbing a truck isn't that the first place you'd look? I also am willing to bet they weren't disassembled, cased, ammo separate either.

[-] Birdie@thelemmy.club 13 points 1 year ago

I'm older than most of y'all, 70. In high school, it was not unusual to have the student parking lot filled with pickup trucks...most of which had shot guns on gun racks hanging on the back window.

It's so weird to think about that now, how very normal it seemed at the time.

[-] JustZ@lemmy.world 9 points 1 year ago

My older buddy tells me about how he used to bring his rifle on the school bus because he was on the high school shooting team. In and of itself, I don't think anyone can say such a change is either good or bad, just that the culture is different, as it always is after as many years.

[-] remotelove@lemmy.ca 6 points 1 year ago

Same for me. I have been around guns most of my life and seeing them in trucks was very common. Hell, me and my friends all owned .22's at a minimum and nobody cared when we wanted to go shooting. Where I grew up it was just... normal.

[-] MaxHardwood@lemmy.ca 2 points 1 year ago

The big difference being about 5 billion more people on the planet since then and now.

[-] mosiacmango@lemm.ee 8 points 1 year ago

100% what you break into. Its exposed, and the exact place most people keep expensive tools and stupid people keep guns.

[-] afraid_of_zombies@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago

A guy I worked with had a handgun with permits and stored in his car. We made torpedo parts for the navy. HR found out and sent an email about weapons on the premises. Hehe

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[-] BarterClub@sh.itjust.works 7 points 1 year ago

Shouldn't be. But here in oh USA we treat it as our first born son. 🤦‍♂️

[-] afraid_of_zombies@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

You aren't missing much.

[-] Treczoks@lemmy.world 36 points 1 year ago

Idiots do idiotic things. Who let this idiot on a plane with a gun in the first place?

[-] Tronn4@lemmy.world 33 points 1 year ago
[-] Treczoks@lemmy.world 4 points 1 year ago

Theatre of Security Agency

[-] LEDZeppelin@lemmy.world 36 points 1 year ago

Run for public office and get 5 weeks vacation time with your beloved firearm while you deny basic human decency for the people who elect you.

Offer valid only if you have the magic ‘R’ next to your name

[-] zeppo@lemmy.world 32 points 1 year ago

How do people do this by accident?

[-] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 40 points 1 year ago

They're very, very stupid.

[-] itsgroundhogdayagain@lemmy.ml 10 points 1 year ago
[-] zeppo@lemmy.world 13 points 1 year ago

He found the gun itself and turned it in. Why would he have it with him on purpose when he willingly decided to turn it in? It wasn’t found by airport authorities first.

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[-] papertowels@lemmy.one 2 points 1 year ago

They're irresponsible gun owners is how.

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[-] TransplantedSconie@lemm.ee 18 points 1 year ago

I wish the Hong Kong police and judicial system well in dealing with this asshole.

[-] Treczoks@kbin.social 14 points 1 year ago

As in: "Keep 'em as long as you want"?

[-] TransplantedSconie@lemm.ee 9 points 1 year ago

Fine by me. One less insurrectionist.

Also, some people are saying he's a spy. They might want to look into that.

[-] SeaJ@lemm.ee 15 points 1 year ago

I hope he loses his concealed carry permit at the very least.

[-] TWeaK@lemm.ee 14 points 1 year ago

The Senator, pulled away by police with his pants round his ankles, "Hey, I thought this was America?!"

[-] draughtcyclist@programming.dev 12 points 1 year ago

He's from Longview, so that tracks better than you realize.

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this post was submitted on 24 Oct 2023
249 points (97.7% liked)

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