One of my current pet peeves is hearing people complain about airports and airport security. It's happening a lot today, as I've heard people on the news bitch and moan about the extra wait time or the fact that they can't bring a drink on the plane. It also happened a lot on my last couple of flights. On the way to Michigan, a flight attendant (!) complained that her open canned lunch had to go through the x-ray machine, which she didn't think it would do without spilling. She was a complete bitch to the airport security folks, and ended up just throwing away her lunch in a huff and walking away. You'd think that they would be on the same team.
On the way to Ohio last weekend, the flight was delayed while on the ground because a bracket fell off of some fuel gauge and the authorities needed to fill out a report and replace the bracket. We were only delayed about 45 minutes, but the man next to me decided to call someone on his cell phone and loudly complain that, "Soem bureacrat decided that he didn't want us to fly anytime soon." Even when the pilot came back to answer questions about it, he was rude.
Maybe it's just me, but I like all the red tape when going to an airport and taking a flight. It makes me feel safe. There have been no major plane crashes in this country for the last five years, since 9/11, and that's pretty darn good. Something about airport security is working. Quit your bitching.
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6 comments:
But, we all need something to bitch about. I figure, as long as people are bitching about airlines, they aren't bitching about me.
In the end, isn't that what's truly important?
A-MEN to that.
I mean, people wait in line for two hours in NY for half-price theater tickets, but our national security isn't worth it?
I couldn't agree with you more.
The problem is that the current checkpoints are entirely reactionary. You take your shoes off because of a failed 'shoe bomber', now you can't fly with liquids because of another failed plot. There are still a lot of ways that an airplane can be attacked.
What are they doing about the next attack vector? Maybe explosives or something woven into fabric? Or carefully engineered Lithium-Ion batteries in laptops that can explode on command (rather than the random explosions we currently have)? Just how reactionary and restrictive do you want to be to ensure you are safe flying from BWI to DET?
Something else I think you are missing are the incredible costs that the old and new restrictive screenings and rules are. There are the obvious costs of to all the people who have lost knives, nail clippers, etc and now liquids such as perfume, make-up, etc. But the non-obvious ones are also there. Now if you are traveling for pleasure that extra hour you need to spend at the airport to ensure you might not miss your plan don't cost your directly anything out of your pocket. But consider if you needed to leave the restaurant an hour early and forego wages and tips for that hour to make a flight? Now consider all the business travels who need to do that. All those costs impact the economy.
Also consider that now travelers won't be able to just fly with only a carry-on bag. This will cause more bags to be checked and put an additional strain on a baggage handling system that already over burdened and frequently looses bags. Dealing with getting you checked bags will also add tot he indirect costs of the new restrictions.
The trouble with all those costs is no one is counting them and seeing just how much benefit we get for our money (both out of pocket paying for the TSA and in these extra societal costs). This is because the the TSA's mission is to just protect travelers. The other costs are so spread out that no one entity is in a position to lobby for any changes.
-paul
I couldn't disagree with you more. If I'd shown up at the airport and was told, with no prior notification, that I had to discard hundreds of dollars of makeup, perfumes, lotions etc., because some wing nut in London failed to attack my country, I would have every right to bitch. It's not as if these people were warned, it's not as if they're less patriotic. What they are is massively inconvenienced, in a fairly abitrary way at that. The british government was watching these people for a long time. It's not like they just showed up at Heathrow and got busted. If MY government is watching my actions and seeing cause for concern, fine. Otherwise I want my diet coke, I want my 9 dollar face cream, and I want to be left alone.
If being treated like a criminal makes you feel safe, more power to you... but some of us who bitch are just acknowledging the fact that we're paying an awful lot of money to be treated like crap.
Paul: I guess I don't see a problem with officials reacting to new terrorist tacts. Nor do I have a problem with a government agency not worrying about cost when keeping fliers safe.
Danielle: Nobody had to discarad their stuff; they had to check it. There's a big difference, and I don't see much of a problem with having to check face cream when terrorists have figured out a way to put bombing materials into creams and liquids.
People act like flying is a constitutional right. It's a privelage. I'm glad the government does whatever it can to keep people safe. And it's working.
Epiph, I think you are missing the point. If TSA's guidelines about what are and aren't allowed onto plane is about keeping the planes secure and safe they should be looking at all possible threats not just the ones that have made the news. For instance consider that instead of using a liquid for an attack you use some solid or combination of solids?
Take a look at well known security expert t Bruce Schneir's blog entry
Last Week’s Terrorism Arrests He makes the case much better than I ever could.
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