On 23/10/11 15:42, Fly Guy wrote:
William Black wrote:

The increasingly onerous physical searching that goes on in
airports under the guise of "making flying safer" are primarily
designed to detect the movement of wealth (paper currency and
other negotiable bills, gem stones, etc) as well as drugs.

Having carried reasonably large amounts of folding currency
through various airports over the years I have yet to be asked
by anyone how much there was, or even had it queried.

That would be false.

When you fly between countries, you must declare if you are carrying
more than $10k (or equivalent in local currency).

I know, I do.

Except that in the UK there's nowhere to tell them...

There's no immigration check on leaving the country, just airline
officials and airport security...

So you just walk through with your wad of notes in a pocket...

The security wonks are far too busy humiliating elderly gentlemen by
making them take their lace-up shoes off in places where there's nowhere
to sit down for them to worry about a few thousand quid in notes.

In the USA the security wonks are government officials, but in the UK
they're private so they have no right to do anything but search you,
and only then with your permission.

What cops there are, usually a single uniformed constable all hung
about with low power firearms, wandering about the security search
areas are not interested in the stuff in your hand baggage unless it's
explosive...

My wife also carries considerable amounts of jewellery
containing precious stones and nobody has ever queries
that either.

Does she do that when crossing between countries that requires you to
answer to customs and duty regulations and inspection?

Of course she does, but previously owned jewellery isn't declarable.

Well, again, it may be in the USA but it certainly isn't in the UK,
the Middle East or India.

Only the new stuff is.

The searchers know it's there, it goes through the scanner, but they
don't care...

--
William Black

Free men have open minds
If you want loyalty, buy a dog...