As I've oft repeated -- there will never be another 9/11 style attack. It was a one time shot that would no longer work one hour after the first plane hit the Tower. You have Flight 93 as the example of that.

You are correct Jim. Unfortunately, the TSA appears not to know this.

I'm not sure what you're complaining about here. Are you bothered that the knife made its way onto the plane, or that it was taken from her? Which is it?

> Which is it?

Are you new here?

(America, I mean?)

Remember: when you pass the stacks of items confiscated from law-abiding people, on display to show "how effective TSA is at securing air travel", you are looking at items that have flown on aircraft with no trouble to speak of for more than 60 years.

Including the leaf blowers, chain saws, hammers, etc.

You are being lied to at the airport, and everywhere else this is claimed to be effective.

"Are you bothered that the knife made its way onto the plane, or that it was taken from her? Which is it?"

That is was taken from her. More generally, that things like pocketknives are not allowed on planes.

Why? Two reasons:

1. Normal people are not going to do anything untoward with their pocketknife. Why inconvenience us by taking our knives and other tools away?


2. If some criminal type wants a knife on an aircraft, it is ridiculously easy to do.

Taking away pocketknives, nail clippers, tweezers, etc. is purely security theater. It provides no real security; it is nothing but a hassle for travellers.

Exactly.

Yet another reason not to fly. I carry a pocketknife. Most men I know do. It's a thing.

Wallet, phone, keys, knife. That's the modern "Man List" of what gets carried. It's not like we're planning to stab someone or hijack a plane. It's just that sometimes you need a knife, y'know?

I used to carry a little hot pink Swiss Army knife on my keychain. I've removed it so I won't have it taken from me or be arrested at the airport if I forget to remove it. I think of how asinine our "security" policies are when I need some utility feature it offers and it's home in a drawer.

I fly once a month, Orange County to San Jose. I'm a smoker and I get through with my lighter every single time (of course now I've probably jinxed myself), sometimes I even have 2 lighters in my purse. I have no doubt that I could get something far more sinister through the check point if I wanted to. Others have succeeded in doing just that because the morons monitoring the x-ray machines are just that...morons.

"Normal people are not going to do anything untoward with their pocketknife. Why inconvenience us by taking our knives and other tools away?"

Plus, it's the finding of small items that penknives and travel-size bottles of shampoo that justifies the ever-increasing invasiveness of TSA searches. Get rid of that, and you go back to the regime where all you need to look for are large metal items and explosives. Now you're back to metal detectors and explosive sniffers, no groping required. That's still a search of a sort, but one that would be acceptable to most passengers.

Personally, I blame MacGyver. He has taught us that all you need is a pocket knife, a tube sock, some gum and a spool of wire to do just about anything you want. Worse, he did it all without guns! This is what the TSA is afraid of. Thousands of MacGyvers, ready to strike at the heart of good ol' America.

See, proof!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gku0feXPBdM&feature=related

“Contemplate the mangled bodies of your countrymen, and then say 'what should be the reward of such sacrifices?' Bid us and our posterity bow the knee, supplicate the friendship and plough, and sow, and reap, to glut the avarice of the men who have let loose on us the dogs of war to riot in our blood and hunt us from the face of the earth? If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animated contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen!”

Samuel Adams

A friend of mine just went to the Georgia Aquarium. On entry, he was asked if he had a lighter. On saying "Yes", he was asked to leave it outside.

He leaned in close to the guy. "I have a gun, and the permit for it."
The reply: "Sir, I just asked if you have a lighter. They're not permitted."

This is what you get when you insist on working on the lowest common denominator: stupid policy. And it's everywhere.

Rad, what if you told him you had one of those gun-shaped lighters? Would that blow his mind?

@Radwaste - The Georgia Aquarium won't let you in with a pack of gum. I had 2 unopened packs with me on my first trip, and the idiot at the gate had to paw through my purse, touching everything, including my cosmetics, to get to the very bottom and confiscate my Trident. It wasn't for security, but it was invasive and annoying nonetheless. They never even looked at the diaper bag we had.

That reminds me, I'll have to leave my gum and my pocket knife at home when I go to Fernbank this Friday. I'm sure their security is just as obnoxious.

Rad and Kimber,

Can I ask what this stupidity is aide of?

In France, my kid - a 4 year old girl, had to hand over her plastic toy sword to security. They deemed it to dangerous to take on board. I can't think of anything I could have done with that sword that I couldn't have done worse using just my hands. Do you think you could bring a picture of a sword or gun on a plane? It's just silly.

And, in case you were wondering, I got her a new sword when we got home and she wasn't really upset. Surprisingly, she was allowed to go onboard, even though she was dressed in a Tigger-outfit (and, I must add, was very, very adorable).

even though she was dressed in a Tigger-outfit (and, I must add, was very, very adorable).

They must have mistaken your daughter for Rep. David Wu, and didn't want her to hurt herself with the sword.

I remember one afternoon, when I went over to the courthouse in New Haven to go to the Social Security office, and they searched my pocket book at the door, and I had forgotten I had one of those little multi-tool thingies that BF had given me. It was from Cabela's and was very handy. They took it. I asked one of the guards "can I have that back when I leave?" And he very curtly said "No." Bastards. It wasn't like I could have hurt anyone with it. It had a less than 2" blade and a philip's head and a flat head screw driver, as well as a little scissors. I could be very dangerous with those! Sheesh.

This is what you get not only with "Follow the rules or else" clowns, but when they worry about things instead of people. As pointed out above, objects that people flew with for decades were no problem because those people were not bad guys. But, rather than deal with the idea of bad people, they play games with objects so they can appear non-judgemental and PC.

So we get people physically abused and stuff stolen and the head of TSA telling us that he thinks flying is a 'privilege'.

"Can I ask what this stupidity is aide of?"

Not sure what you're asking, but it all stems from the notion that defending yourself is "somebody else's job". Here.

Even figuring out what is dangerous is totally beyond your capability!