What, we're supposed to not laugh at something so clearly risible? This is a hoot.
Of course somebody can sneak gel onto a plane. Hell, they can do it easier that fake boobs, with a gel-filled baggie shoved up their butthole -- more room, harder to detect, and if they're going to blow it up it hardly matters which part of the body explodes first, does it?
So what's next, body cavity searches on every passenger?
Since there's no constitutional right to fly as a passenger on an airplane, why don't we all just forget flying and go back to trains and buses? /sarc
Me, I prefer to laugh about it. I'm flying cross country this Saturday -- I NEED to laugh tonight.
I think it all goes to prove that you will NEVER be safe on a commercial airline. You cannot think or expect that the government, the airlines or the poor working joes who scan people and luggage day in and day out, can prevent or protect you from a terrorist action on a plane.
If we can think of a scenario, you can very well bet that it's already in consideration by the terrorists and they have things up their sleeves that normal people haven't even considered yet. I'm a frequent flier so it's not a very comforting thought for me, but it's reality.
If I understood the story of the plane plot the gel doesn't explode on its own. The terrorists would sneak chemicals in and then mix them into explosives once on board. So under-the-skin sources won't do unless they are planning a little surgery in the bathroom. Suppositories would work. So would insoles. So would the external prosthetics that women who have had mastectomies often choose to put in their bras.
The way this except reads they are not looking for anything that can't be easily removed and put in a bag (although it would be an embarrassment).
Shalom.