I bet Tom Clancy has some ideas! Whenever I see that paragraph that you quoted, my first reaction is that they're going to somehow try to attack children.
Life as an air marshall................
In an interview Tuesday, Gillam said he has learned to remain focused on his mission—preventing hijack attempts and ensuring the safety of airplane passengers and flight crew—even when he's involved in casual conversations.
"I'm not allowed to bring a book on board, and I certainly can't sleep, so talkative passengers tend to target me," Gillam said. "I'm on anywhere between two to four flights a day. Usually, people just talk about their kids or jobs, but this week, I've heard about everything from working at Disneyland to breeding Wheaten Terriers. It's really not that bad. Although I am kind of tired of talking about how many airlines don't serve dinner anymore."
Continued Gillam: "I do a visual scan of the entire cabin every five minutes while we're in flight, to see if anything is brewing, but the people talking to me don't seem to notice."
When asked his opinion of the U.S. government's decision to order foreign airlines to place armed air marshals on some international flights, Gillam seemed indifferent.
"I guess that would be fine," Gillam said. "It's part of my job to be flexible. I'm not much of a talker, though. I can usually get through these short trips, but an eight-hour flight to Ireland beside a Chatty Cathy might be more than I could handle. I should ask if I'm allowed to wear headphones as long as I have the sound turned off."
Ridge praised the air marshals for helping to keep the nation's skies safe.
"The marshals are to be highly commended," Ridge said. "Despite being forced into excruciatingly mundane conversations about everything from stock portfolios to the proper way to make a pork roast, these men remain vigilant. Because of their efforts, an average member of the American public can feel safe babbling about his aunt's cataract surgery for two hours. For that, we should all be thankful.
http://www.theonion.com/4003/news1.html