Econintersect: The headline is provocative but so is the data presented in the info graphic below. The data paints a picture of a Transportation Safety Authority (TSA) that is bloated, inefficient and even downright incompetent. Authorized and formed under the Homeland Security legislation that was enacted after 9/11, the information available and summarized in the info graphic raises a lot of questions about just what is being accomplished and what opportunity costs have been endured to operate the TSA. An academic study has calculated that the total costs for the ten years 2002-2011 are over $1 trillion, without including such costs as two miltary wars, additional crime not prevented or prosecuted, costs engendered because of restrictions to funding for Mediacare, Medicaid, education, etc. and diminished effectiveness of responses to natural disasters.
Click on graphic (twice) for larger image.
Created by: OnlineCriminalJusticeDegree.com
Sources:
- Terror, Security, and Money: Balancing the Risks, Benefits and Costs of Homeland Security (John Mueller and Mark G. Stewart, Ohio State University and The University of Newcastle, 1 April 2011)