Posted on 01/03/2010 4:09:15 AM PST by radar101
Since 2001, airline passengers — regular people without weapons or training — have helped thwart terrorist attacks aboard at least five different commercial airplanes. It happened again on Christmas Day. And as we do each and every time, we miss the point.
Consider the record: First, passengers on United Flight 93 prevented a further attack on Washington on 9/11. Then, three months later, American Airlines passengers wrestled a belligerent, biting Richard Reid to the ground, using their headset cords to restrain him. In 2007, almost a dozen passengers jumped on a gun-wielding hijacker aboard a plane in the Canary Islands. And this past November, passengers rose up against armed hijackers over Somalia. Together, then, a few dozen folks have helped save some 595 lives. {See the top 10 inept terrorist Plots.}
And yet our collective response to this legacy of ass-kicking is puzzling. Each time, we build a slapdash pedestal for the heroes. Then we go back to blaming the government for failing to keep us safe, and the government goes back to treating us like children. This now familiar ritual distracts us from the real lesson, which is that we are not helpless. And since regular people will always be first on the scene of terrorist attacks, we should perhaps prioritize the public's antiterrorism capability — above and beyond the fancy technology that will never be foolproof.
Instead, we hear this blather from President Obama: "The American people should be assured that we are doing everything in our power to keep you and your family safe and secure during this busy holiday season." He forgets that Americans have never really wanted the government to do "everything in its power" to keep us safe.
(Excerpt) Read more at time.com ...
A Comment by the person who made me aware of this piece:
I read through the current issue last night while trying to sleep.
When I read this, I thought, wow, this short vignette says volumes about how our government treats us everyday. It includes the active cop who is rude to the retired cop offering to help with traffic at an accident or fire, the social security, VA or DMV employee talking down to us like we are all children and can’t understand or perform the simplest of tasks. As I tell my doctor, treat me like I have a functional and educated brain between my ears, and we’ll get along fine.
Liberals’ worst nightmare — people rediscovering that they can - must - take care of themselves in the absence of a duly authorized Government representative on hand to take care of them....
Explaining to the public that that terrorists are certain to have occasional successes no matter how my effort is expended to prevent them is politically a lot less attractive that promising to keep us completely safe.
The incident of the cop and the retired cop illustrates this perfectly--civil servants don't see themselves as part of the community, and thus able to ask the average Joe or Jane to help out, or to have such help offered, as legitimate. It's a threat to their Eric Cartman-like Authoritah.
Until FDR made "helping out our fellow citizens" something the government did, Americans HAD to look after their neighbor--it only made sense, because we'd need our neighbor when we got in a jam...BUT it was all VOLUNTARY.
FDR and Obama and that bunch do not trust the average American to be as high-minded as they are (both rich men, of course). So they institutionalize "service to the public" and thus create the attitude of "Well they're charging me taxes so someone is there to do this work, so why should I do it?" Which of course leads to dependency...
Which leads us to "Obamacare"...which leads us to socialism.
The only plane I would fly in any more would have to be o.d. green.
The passengers on the flight with the suspicious imams were threatened with lawsuits, the imams sued in court and were rewarded with big settlements.
Is this the atmosphere that is designed to keep us safe?
We must grant instant immunity to anyone making a complaint about suspicious activity here in the US. That includes, planes, trains, subways, etc.
What is bad is when you can’t understand their broken English, unless there is no time to plan, flying is out of the question.
A recently published story exposed the TSA for hiring ILLEGALS. As for the Muslim with her head scarf on who is checking a Nun that is disgusting. Call me a bigot but according to all reports little old white women and nuns weren’t the ones who have blown up planes and tried to kill others.
When all is said and done - Welcome to AmeriKa.
I feel that if we continue to support this rediculous system by continuing to fly we are asking to be killed by a terrorist. STOP FLYING until someone in charge takes the threat seriously. Flying to get somewhere is still a luxury we can do without. I will fly when it says, on my ticket, that I have the right to use any means, including firearms, to protect myself and my loved ones in case of a terrorist takeover attempt. So should we all. They say, “But, if we stop flying, the terrorists will have won”. That’s rediculous. They’ve won when we are herded like cattle to board death missles.
This is why I don’t think we are going to see anymore take-over type hijackings. More and more people become determined and even empowered to deal with the threats on a plane. There is no place to retreat too, so you might as well as a community and deal with the common threat.
I think the jihadis are just going to blow the planes up rather than risk confrontation.
...I like to wear hiking boots when I fly...very strong shoe laces...take an in-flight magazine and roll it into a very tight cylinder...then do the same with another one...tie both ends of the boot lace to a cylinder...makes an impromptu garrote.
No, we are not helpless.
After all, the terrorist watch list means the passengers are expected to watch the terrorist on board and take appropriate actions.
Do you do that as soon as you board, or do you wait for the muslim to light his panties on fire? The rolled-up magazine is a good idea, but building the elaborate garrote would take way too long once the action begins and would get you a trip to jail if you built it every time you fly.
Other good passenger weapons include keys, metal pens, silk neckties, belts, hardcover books. And don’t forget, once the muslim attacker is fully beaten down and restrained, a pair of panties should be placed on his head!
> ...I like to wear hiking boots when I fly
Steel-capped Patrol boots for me, the ones that I wear every time I patrol with The Lads at night.
I have taken to treating every flight that I am on as just another patrol, and so I also wear my colors. And I tell the flight attendant at the gate that I am on board and will be delighted to assist if there is any trouble on the aeroplane. And where possible I ask for an aisle seat.
I wonder why you have not created a page explaining yourself. I have, go look. I have worked for the government for more than 38 years and can tell you that you have no idea what you are talking about. I am involved with the community and all of the folks that work with me are conservative and very involved. We are all very concerned about, the direction the country is going and we all vote, and we all communicate with our government critters. Find some other group to stereotype. Government workers for the most part are a dedicated, educated, hard working group.
I dunno, what if I’m the big guy near an obvious Muslim on a long flight, now I figure I gotta keep an eye on him the whole time. No sleeping for me, no relaxed reading, now I’m part of “the system”, per Janet Napolitano, an unpaid and untrained Junior Air Marshall.
Before 9-11, most people assumed that hijackers would negotiate for a while and then all (or most) people would be released.
Now, a plane hijacking is unlikely to be successful again, because after 9-11, uppermost in every passengers mind is if they don’t take out the terrorist themselves, they will all DIE.
Nothing inspires one to fight courageously more than self-preservation...
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