Another victory for pressure on Mineta. The TSA will end “random” screenings at airplane gates. This means an end to the practice known as Gate Rape.

These screenings were not random — frequent flyers learned just not to be first in line, and to walk onto the plane right after a screener had tagged someone else. These screenings were not effective, so this is good news.

For some reason TSA thinks that dumping out our passengers’ underwear at the gate after it has already been dumped out at the security screening checkpoint makes TSA look like they are on top of things,” (Continental Airlines Chairman Gordon) Bethune said in a speech to the Wings club of New York in June.

This good news comes after another idiotic measure was withdrawn — passengers may now carry drinks in paper cups through security. However, the TSA’s additional spin is just not credible:

The secondary screenings won’t be needed because primary checkpoints will be sufficiently staffed with trained U.S. workers, said Heather Rosenker, an agency spokeswoman.

The security checkpoints are a joke. A bad, obnoxious, dangerous joke.