I am disgusted and appalled at certain attitudes in our government, yet again. Please have a read here:
http://www.gonemissing.us/indiainstruments.html
If you know what you’re looking at (the names), please PM me.
If you know how to get these jackasses fired, let me know.
Thanks,
Bill Whedon
Bill wrote (in the linked note):
“Apparently, the “TSA”, which I have never even heard of…”
You can’t be serious bill 
Does the date 9/11 mean anything to you?
Loren
Yes, September 11, 2001 was a sad day for the USA; it was the day George Bush got re-ellected.
As for what they are, the top one is obviously a bong. The brass one looks like a pennywhistle (a kind of American fipple flute that costs, in average, about ten thousand pennies).
g
Bill:
If you know what you’re looking at (the names), please PM me.
You might want to try the “Lark in the Morning” website. Their catalogue is on-line, and it’s quite extensive. If you don’t find examples therein, they doubtless don’t actually exist.
Here 'tis: http://larkinthemorning.com
It looks to me like they came from somewhere near India.
Bill again:
If you know how to get these jackasses fired, let me know.
Sorry, Bill, can’t help with that.
I brought one of those back from India. The extra tube is a drone. Mine leaks so doesn’t play to well. Would like to know more about it too.
Brian
You might actually be able to file a claim against the airport, or the TSA, or both, in this
case, though you shouldn’t expect it to go smoothly. It’d be small claims court, though,
probably, so there’s the added satisfaction of no lawyers… the responsible parties have
to show up themselves, ie, the agents in question, their boss, the manager of the airport,
whoever it is that they claim is responsible for the decision.
There’s a fellow out California-way who’s suing them for not letting them fly without a
photo I.D. … his point, essentially is, that nobody can show him any law saying he’s required
to show a photo I.D., therefore they’re doing it arbitrarily. (They actually claim there is a law,
but that they can’t show him because there’s another law saying they can’t show him… but
they can’t show him -that- law either.) I can’t remember his name, but he’s got a certain
amount of fame in certain circles.
Anyway, I’ve never taken an instrument onto a flight for just this reason. I do make sure
to bury my flutes and whistles as near to the center of my suitcase as I can, as they may
need the extra cushioning for the other set of airport hazards, but I always figured they
would do something stupid. Actually I figured they’d just confiscate it as a hazard. Sure,
it sounds stupid, but then, they confiscate -fingernail clippers- so go figure. I’ve heard
some people have flown with whistles successfully, but I don’t risk it, because there is
-no- concrete set of rules about what’s allowed or not.
(You -are- allowed to keep your property, though. You can always say, “Okay, I’ll not go
through the gate then”, go back to the airline counter, and ask for them to bring you
back your suitcase to put your whistle or whatever in. This may involve missing your flight
and going on the next one, though, and other hassles, but if either the property or the
point is valuable enough to you, you can do this. If everyone did for every non-illegal item
‘confiscated’, it’d put a serious dent in their absurdly high count for confiscated
‘potentially dangerous items’.)
And yes, the whole thing is f—ing stupid. They do many things that create hassles without
increasing security, and skip many important things that would create security with hassles
(but would cost money). They do, at least, seem to also be doing things to increase security
without increasing hassle, but that’s less visible.
–Chris
I just carry a copy of this: Letter from TSA Assistant Administrator for Security Regulation and Policy. Someone posted it here a while back.
Though I’ve never actually needed it, it states that as of 12/20/2002, musical instruments are allowed as carry-on in addition to the one bag & 1 personal item limit. Feel free to snag and print your own copy.
Does that work for a double bass? 
Anyway, I’ve never taken an instrument onto a flight for just this reason. I do make sure
to bury my flutes and whistles as near to the center of my suitcase as I can, as they may
need the extra cushioning for the other set of airport hazards, but I always figured they
would do something stupid.
My experience in January indicates that this might not be such a good idea.
Fearing for my flute’s life, I brought only an aluminum D whistle. It was in my shoulder bag. The bag went through the x-ray with utter disinterest.
My suitase was something else again. Because I had a number of large, thick medical books to carry, I had arranged them as instructed by the TSA website. Because of the books, I expected them to search my luggage. Everything was neatly packed so that it could be easily seen all the way down to the bottom just by opening the suitcase. Everything was neatly strapped in and zipped. The books were on top of my clothes, which were very neatly folded inside one another. In one mesh side pocket, I had instant oatmeal, dried fruit, and tea. In the other mesh side pocket, I had unmentionables. All neatly folded. All the loose bits were in ziploc bags.
They ravaged that suitcase. Except for the books and the clothing beneath which they had not searched, as it was still neatly folded and strapped down in the exact same position. The books hadn’t been opened at all. The tie-downs were still folded exactly as I had done them.
The remainder of the interior of the suicase was a tornadic mess of loose stuff. Like it had been dumped out and blown back in. The remaining straps were undone, the zippers open, ziploc bags open, and packages of oatmeal and tea bags everywhere. The worst was that they had taken all my unmentionables out of the side pocket and went through them individually, flinging them randomly about in the suitcase. One pair under here, another under there. They bent the underwires, and that was clearly intentional.
I have no doubt that an instrument in there would have been demolished.
Actually, Loren, I haven’t been anywhere by air since 9/11 incident. This situation was run into by a friend of mine who brought the instruments back from India as gifts for me. The instruments were in his luggage, locked in with TSA locks, which were subsequently opened with their TSA keys, and the result was the utterly stupid and senseless damage wrought by these cretins.
Just looking at them, it is quite evident that the intent was not to search, but to damage. My friend is kind of a “Casper Milquetoast” sort, who wouldn’t cause a stink if they’d dumped his suitcases on the floor and jumped up and down on the contents (which was apparently pretty close to what they did with that little whistle). I’m afraid I’d have been in jail, had it been me on that flight.
And anyhow, this isn’t about me knowing or not knowing the names of all of the assorted government entities engendered by the rather short-sighted and ignorant approach the Bush regime takes to security. It is about willful damage of the property of an American Citizen by those who are supposed to be protecting us. They have become the very terrorists it is their job to prevent from acting.
And it sucks.
Bill Whedon
Serpent Music
Yes, but you’d have to buy an extra ticket for it to be sure, because it wouldn’t fit in the carry-on compartments.
Yes, Bill, it sucks. I’m sorry that your friend, and your gifts had to experience this incredibly rude attack. Hope you both recover damages and that the actual damagers get held respsonsible… but I’m thinking we’re not likely to see that happen.
Good luck!!
I think probably both are obiously bongs. They probably went together somehow to make a double bong or something. The bottom part is probably for little bittly kids. They did right by killing it. Terrist are, like, evil.
You got me started so here goes . . . What really angers me about this whole airport farse is all the measures the current administration wants the airports and the travelers to take while our borders are left wide open. So far over 3 million people have walked across the mexican border to take our jobs and enjoy benefits that belong to US tax payers. GRRRRRRR . . .
Exactly! Thankyouverymuch! It was IN the luggage. Just like my bent unmentionables. Intentional destruction.
Bill, as I recall, there is a way to file a claim for things like this. Or at least a complaint. If you rummage about on the TSA webpages, you should find it.
While you might not be able to get compensated for it, you can still have the satisfaction of complaining. Complain to everybody up the line from where you think it happened. Do so in a cool and noninflammatory manner.
Be sure to remember the magic words for dealing with government workers everywhere . . . “I’m going to complain to my congressman.” And do so. This amazing technique works wonders because no federal employee wants to have to answer a congressional inquiry–they’re annoying and time-consuming, whether they’re founded or unfounded. Even if you don’t get any personal benefit from it, you still have the satisfaction of knowing you’ve caused that miserable little !#@%$ and his supervisor and HIS supervisor, ad nauseam, as much aggravation as they caused you. There’s hours of enjoyment in it, believe me. 
I travel all over the US and average one trip per week. I carry a recorder or two and a tin whistle either in my briefcase or in a separate instrument case. So far, I’ve had no problems at all with security. (I’m on the road tonight and catch an early flight home tomorrow - watch me get hassled at the airport this trip!) Occaisionally, a TSA agent will open my instrument case, look at the instruments and close it back.
I always carry-on my instruments; I do not put them in checked baggage. In fact, I do not put any valuables in checked baggage because of vandalism and theft, both of which were going on long before 9/11. While I can’t prove this thesis one way or the other, I’d bet the baggage handlers are responsible for a large portion of the damage reported, not the TSA.
I can understand why you are angry Bill and I sympathise with you.
In contrast, in Australia, my experience is similar to Walrii’s experience.
However prior to September 11, I had a problem with Australian customs when returning from overseas. I had originally taken my Indian tablas with me from Australia to the other country and was bringing it back with me on my return. Prior to my Australian departure I had obtained Australian customs certification for them and the certification registration no. was glued to each of the drums on the bottom (and is still there). The certification seemed to me to make the officials even more suspicious than usual and they spent an inordinate amount of time checking the drums out. By appearance and accent one customs officers was even a person of South Asian origin but this seemed to make little difference to their apparent incredulity! Finally one of them happened to DROP THE TREBLE DRUM ON THE FLOOR! Well that did it. I demanded to see a manager, obtained an apology and lodged a written form of complaint.
Later on, I had the that drum dismantled and inspected and reassembled by a professional tabla player and repairer. I was compensated for the cost of that inspection by the Customs Department even though the drum had not been damaged.
I don’t think I could have blamed the Prime Minister of Australia for this unfortunate incident. And I don’t feel I would blame your President for what happened to you. I feel it would be best to direct your anger iinto some positive action against the officials concerned. I think President Bush would be as appalled as you by what happened.
BTW, regarding the top reed in your pikky, this MAY help you:
http://chandrakantha.com/articles/indian_music/pungi.html.
although the example there looks a little different to yours at the top end.
I’m sure air travel has long since been abandoned by terrorists. One would be a fool to fly when he can walk in from Mexico and buy/steal a used van for transportation/lodging.
I also have taken high and low metal whistles on board planes numerous times and only once did the gate crew look at them.
As for TSA, this is a fine example of what happens when anyone, public or private sector, creates a large organization overnight. As I recall during the Homeland Security Act debate, the Administration wanted to leave airport gate security entirely in the hands of the airlines, as it always has been. (REALLY BAD IDEA) The airlines of course have always contracted gate security out to the lowest bidder. As a result of the Homeland Security Act, all those poorly trained and low paid gate security workers become Federal workers. I don’t know if this is good for national security, but it’s going to take years and millions of $$ to develop all 40,000 or so of them into a customer-focused, responsible workforce.
I’d encourage you to follow through with a complaint. You probably won’t get much satisfaction, but it might help a littel bit to get these guys bosses to pay attention to training.
Yes, i can’t wait for them to finally be as customer-focused and responsible as other government agencies like, say, the IRS or the INS (part of the Homeland Security behemoth now), or the consular service. When i think of my dealings with these fine customer-focused agencies, i start thinking that “the right to carry and bear arms” is not entirely a bad idea.
Defnitely complain. It may not do anything, but at least goes into some statistics somewhere. If they were my instruments and had monetary value, i’d try getting money from them, but these seem to be relatively inexpensive souvenirs. It may be too late to complain now, though. You should complain about damage done to checked luggage right when you retrieve it in the airport.