John Steward of Jesus
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TSA communications

(Posted here on March 12, 2009)

December 24, 2008

To:  The Transportation Security Administration (TSA)

My wife, Mary Steward of Jesus (Stewardofjesus in some records) and I, John Steward of Jesus, have been Northwest Airlines Frequent Fliers for more than eight years, during which we have logged more than 100,000 miles combined.

We have chosen to live in the kingdom of heaven as followers (disciples, servants, stewards) of Jesus Christ, whom we recognize as our living king, here and now.

In obedience to the will of our king as we understand it, we live as peacemakers in his kingdom.  We are not citizens or residents in any of the coercive kingdoms of the world.  Therefore we are not able to obtain any photo identification commonly recognized in airport screening.

All our travel as Northwest Frequent Fliers has been done with passports and other identification issued by followers of Jesus in the kingdom of heaven.  Our documents have been examined and photocopied many times over the years by your agents and Northwest agents, and can be verified at www.EmbassyofHeaven.Org

We have learned to allow time for the screening, examination, cross-examination, and interrogation which we often experience at airports before we are permitted to proceed to our destination, as we have always been allowed to do.

Our most recent flying experience followed a family gathering in Iowa.  We had tickets (Confirmation Number 27W7JU) to travel on Northwest flight 2771 from Sioux City on December 11, 2008, with my sister, Marilyn Moore, and her husband, William Moore, to visit them at their home in Florida.

Our flight was scheduled to leave Sioux City at 10:56 am.  We arrived at the airport two hours before then and checked our luggage with the Northwest counter agent.  We had hoped to proceed with TSA screening.  Your screening line was not scheduled to open, however, until 10:15.  We were at the head of the line.  The time remaining was not enough for TSA to complete its interrogation and cross-examination.  My sister and her husband boarded and left as scheduled.  My wife and I were cleared just in time to board flight 2773 to Minneapolis around 1:00 pm.  As a result our arrival at Tampa was delayed more than six hours, at great inconvenience to all of us, as we were depending on my sister for transportation to her house.

The screening, interrogation, and cross-examinations in  Sioux City took more than two and a half hours.   Participating were TSA Supervisory Officer  Rossiter, Sioux City Police Department Uniformed Services Bureau Officers Jim R. Clark, W. Erickson, and K. Bonowski, and Sgt. John Pepple, retired from the Sioux City Police Dept., now working with Sioux City Night Patrol.  Those uniformed officers told me that the information we provided them would expedite future screening and permit us to travel without such delays in the future.

On our return trip our screening at Tampa was short and pleasant.  I was encouraged to learn that officers at Sioux City had called Tampa and facilitated the process.  In passing through Sioux City I inquired of TSA Supervisory Office Rossiter and learned that he had been told in a telephone conversation with his superior that the needed information would be entered into your data base and available in the future to similarly facilitate the screening when we are scheduled to fly.

I have written all this as background information before making two requests:
(1) Please confirm that the needed information is now available in your data base.
(2) Please tell me what I should suggest to TSA agents in the screening line at the airport in order to facilitate the process when they notice that our photo identification is not conventional.

We appreciate what you are doing to help keep airline travel safe for everyone, and thank you for your attention to this matter.

May you be given wisdom in all your decisions.

John Steward of Jesus
in the kingdom of God
via 21 East 13th. Avenue
Hutchinson, KS 67501


January 14, 2009

To: TSA-Contact Center

Recently my wife and I spent time at Grand Rapids, Michigan, to attend the wedding of a nephew.  We left Grand Rapids the afternoon of January 13 on flight NW1031 to Detroit.

When we passed through TSA screening three of your agents spent an extended time asking us about our telephone number, postal address, how long we had had that address, the name of the mortgage holder, the county, and names of our neighbors, and then making telephone calls regarding the information we gave them.

If it is possible, it seems to me that it would be better for all of us to shorten this process by entering information in your data base confirming that our identification is reliable.  Would that be possible?

Regardless of when you are able to answer my questions, please acknowledge immediately by return email that you have received this communication (and that you received earlier the communication below?).

Again, we thank you for your attention to this matter.

John Steward of Jesus


March 12, 2009 footnote

I have not received a response to these emails.

I spent hours calling the TSA Contact Center on February 13, February 20, February 25, March 5, and March 11.  In the first four calls I was told that I would receive a response soon.  When I called I was usually asked to give a call-back number in case the connection was lost.  Several times there was an apparent disconnect.  They never called back. I called back each time except the last call, when there again was an apparent disconnect as I was waiting to be transferred to an Assistant Federal Screening Director.  The customer service representatives repeatedly told me they were not permitted to give me information for more direct telephone or email contact.


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