Wires in jacket snag Delta flight

"Sully777, many high-quality touring motorcycles are equipped with heated handgrips. Coupled with a heated jacket/vest, pants, and socks, you can ride in complete comfort in very frigid weather. The heated garments run on electricity generated by the motorcycle.

Hopefully this will save you from further embarrassment.

Regards,

~ Blue Jays ~"

And the rest.

Forgive me. Forgive me. Forgive me.

I was under the impression after 9-11 that everything would be viewed with heightened awareness and suspicion. After 9-11 new rules guided our lives in airports. After 9-11 we learned we could not trust everyday items such as box cutters, shoe bombs, jackets that plug into hogs, and other household items. I admit to ASSUMING everyone's foreknowledge of TSA crackdown and mental sobriety based on the results of 9-11. I mean when they stripsearched the senator because they found metal in his body, I thought everyone got the message that the TSA meant business and no one was above the law.

But you made me rethink my statement that the lady with the undeclared heater/radiator/jacket was a dolt. I mean, as I stand in line at the airport, I think to myself, "Make sure you follow common sense and all the rules on the TSA website, make sure you give them change and keys, take your shoes off well ahead of time and place them in the tray, turn off the cell and put it into the tray." But I don't usually think, Duh, forgot my heated jacket with the wires sticking out." Call me crazy, but I worry that the thing could be mistaken for a bomb. Now, you all say that I'm wrong.

My bad. Thanks for saving me from further embarrassment. Forgot the common sight of people riding high-quality touring bikes to the airport in the dead of winter but neglect to tell the TSA that the schematic-like inseam of wiring should never be mistaken for a bomb set-up. This is going to make me look even more dumb but I honestly was under the impression that a potential terrorist could reconfigure the wiring on the plane ala Mission Impossible. Freakin crazy, huh?

And while I'm exposing true ignorance, may I apologize for a post a couple days back about the guy that had razors and saws in his shoe. I called him an idiot as well. But, in light of my re-education, my statement seems tragically shallow and dumb. The man was a missionary! And as we all know missionaries, they ALWAYS have saws and razors sewn into their shoes to preach the gospel in a Ramboesque way. In the day to day worry of reciting Psalms, Ecclessiastes, Philemon, and Revelation missionaries must slash unfriendlies and heathen. Come to think of it, the stress of such chores must sometimes cause missionaries to forget to tell the good people at the TSA that they have deadly weapons in their shoes.

You're right: I assumed the closing down of airports was due to the foggy thinking of two half-wits when it was really my wit halved all along. Thank you all for setting me straight.

Good Morning All-

Sully777 (registered 08/28/2003), thank you for your detailed response #24. You provided several examples of people stopped from boarding aircraft that are NOT relevant to this story. Strip-searching senators and elderly Medal of Honor recipients has always been absurd.

The jacket in question does not have "wires sticking out" as you allude in your post. It is a single, finished, professional-grade plug. It is a garment very common to millions of motorcyclists around the world. How about electric socks that are very popular among skiers? People are now "half-wits" based upon their garments?

The terrorists laugh at us when they see this kind of response. Willingly accepting these kind of actions is sheeple-like behavior. Let me guess Sully777, you also support creation of a National ID card, compilation of a DNA database for US citizens, and firearm registration? Just a hunch...

~ Blue Jays ~

LOL. Actually I'm in favor of saving lives. And thus far, no terrorist have attacked US soil despite our overbearing anti-biker security.

LESSON ONE for the electric jacket lady or anyone with LL Bean electric socks is *Think before you board an airplane* If they and you all can't abide by simple common sense and follow procedure by affirming to the TSA that you have uncommon clothing that could be confused as weapons, go ride your Big Boy in subzero cold with your heated garments to your desired destination. I don't think that's unreasonable and unamerican.

BTW, was the missionary man sporting saws and razors one more exhibit of overreaching TSA gestapo tactics?! Probably.

As for national ID--I like the idea of barcodes implanted in my right forearm and behind my ear on the right atlas. WAIT--shhhh--gotta go! I hear the hush thumping of the black helicopter above my house. (HAHAHAHA just messing with you).

Actually, i think we have risen to the appropriate wartime level of security. By no means are we near WWII levels of security.

Bluejays, I'm SULLY777 (registered 8/03 on FR) but have been lurking for years on the FR. I consider myself more of a Adam's/Goldwater Republican than a neocon. My economics professor at college taught Austrian School/U of Chicago economics. My private university was very conservative; we collectively cried or shook our heads when we viewed Clinton's swearing in ceremony at the university's auditorium.

My family and friends are fighting terror on the frontlines around the world. One of mine is Special Forces. I knew someone that died in the WTC because the airlines refused to stop the 19 terrorists from boarding the four jets.

I prefer small german sportscars with broken heater boxes to motorcycles in the winter. If I had the money and desired to ride a bike, I'd buy a Big Dog.

I knew someone that died in the WTC because the airlines refused to stop the 19 terrorists from boarding the four jets.

Rather, that person died because in the last 40 years our government has disarmed the American aviation traveler, and 19 terrorists took advantage of that.

Requiring all airlines to honor CCW permits would do more for airline security than all of the "security measures" put in place since 911.

Do remember, the new tactic of using aircraft as guided missiles only worked for a short time. Specifically, it worked from the time that the first airplane hit until the unorganized militia aboard Flight 93 (unfortunately unarmed) reported for duty.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.