Who is the Terrorist? (The horror that air travel in the U.S. is becoming)

The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette ^ | July 1, 2003 | Mike Masterson

[foreverfree]

bump

[Bon mots]

I had a similar experience in Atlanta and again in New York. Just search the stinking Muslims, leave the rest of us alone already.

[A_perfect_lady]

This is too bad, and I refuse to fly anymore. But Mike sounds a bit stupid. You really don't leave your bag and wander off like that. And I suspect he's leaving out a few smart-ass remarks of his own in the retelling of this story.

[Labyrinthos]

Mr. Masterson is obviously an idiot and shouldn't be entrusted with an airline ticket.

[Alouette]

Well, last February I was traveling to New York. I am a redheaded, middle-aged Orthodox Jew. I got pulled out of line for the random "special treatment." Meanwhile, while they were going through the linings of my shoes and the inside band of my hat and the pockets of my overcoat and jacket, several gentlemen of the Mohammedan persuasion, one of whom was carrying a large cane and the other, a young gent in his 20's wearing a bulging backpack, were obsequiously salaamed on through the boarding gate.

I asked the security professional who was thoroughly inspecting my person, why these guys were not being treated as thoroughly as myself. They gave me the fisheye and said, "So you think they should be?" At that point I figured that if I said HELL YES I would miss my plane so I just said, "it might be a good idea" and they let me board just as the jetway was being unlatched for takeoff.

[Catspaw]

I doubt if I'd been able to ID Richard Reid, Jose Padilla and Jihad Johnny Walker as a Muslim at first glance.

[discostu]

bing bing bing. Catspaw gets the prize.

It's really not terribly difficult to not look Muslim, even for an Arab. And as for the idea that all terrorists are Muslim tell that to people blown by the IRA and Ulster. Most of the people complaining are probably the same folks who complained about lack of security before. If people want security they need to understand it's going to be a pain in the ass, that's how security works.

Now if you'll excuse me I need to use a key to go to the bathroom and a badge to get some more soda... ah security.

[PackerBoy]

Lessons:

1. Check your bags before you go to the airport so that you can be sure to remove any "dangerous cargo". If you fail to do so, it will delay you.

2. Don't be a smart aleck at the security checkpoint in airports and they will leave you alone.

3. Never leave a bag unattended in the airport, not even to step away to get coffee.

4. Whatever joke or wisecrack you have just got to share with the security people, they have already heard it 100 times and are no longer amused.

Jeez, this guy seems kinda jerky to me, even if the security guys did go overboard (especially keeping his ticket, which I find completely unacceptable under any circumstances).

[MineralMan]

"But Mike sounds a bit stupid. You really don't leave your bag and wander off like that. And I suspect he's leaving out a few smart-ass remarks of his own in the retelling of this story."

Yeah. And, actually, I carry a butane lighter with me all the time. I put it in the little tray with all the other junk I forgot to take out of my pockets, and it just goes through. Cigarette lighters are allowed.

I always wonder about the folks who seem to have all this trouble. I travel all the time, and have been selected for additional screening a few times. I'm polite and cooperative, and it takes a couple of minutes, then I'm on my way.

Smart off to the folks, though, and simple psychology takes over. You want to be a smart***? Be prepared to wait a bit. Want to get on the plane? Be polite.

[Mike the Conservative]

I don't think that many people remember that the Muslim extremists were going to recruit Caucasians in Russia to commit terrorist acts, so just searching Muslims won't due anymore. But they should be a high priority.

[CedarDave]

Checked a 25 lb tote of work tools in Boise on Sunday. Southwest agent took me to TSA inspector who looked at the agent, she nodded something, and he put a cable tie on it and sent it to the baggage loading area. At the gate, the TSA inspector had me take my cell phone off my belt and said that I didn't have to take off my sneakers to go through the metal detector. My biggest hassle was finding a SmartCart to take my bags to the check-in counter.

In my travels, I have found that folks in the larger cities and those east of the Mississippi tend to be more surley, arrogant and more likely a pain in the a** than those out in the heartland. Could be just my liking my rural, western lifestyle, but maybe not.

[discostu]

Just searching Muslims would never have done. I'm not sure they should even get high priority, it takes about half an hour of skilled makeup application to change someone's apparent nationality. And even without that the areas of the world with a lot of Muslims have plenty of non-Muslims, take away the symbols and try to tell the difference between an Israeli and a Palestinian these are people of the same basic race who've diverged in religion and culture, same thing goes for India and its neighbors.

While I'm not against profiling by race or any other visible key we have to keep in mind that it's not a perfect system and we do have to work outside the profile as well as inside.

[A_perfect_lady]

Hey there, fellow godless atheist!

I always wonder about the folks who seem to have all this trouble.

Yeah, me too. Makes me think of that woman who was breast feeding her baby while going 65 mph on the Ohio Turnpike. Why did she ignore the officer trying to pull her over for 3 miles? Well, she's been "sexually assaulted twice" and "assaulted by a trooper" as well, you see.

Or a relative of mine who is inexplicably harassed by every single landlord she's ever had.

Or the guy who has a string of rotten bosses all through out his working life.

I mean, many of us run across a jerk, but some people just draw them like flies. Do they ever contemplate the possibilty that THEY are the jerk, the smart-ass, the passive-aggressive SOB? No, of course not! They're just... so darn unlucky!

[MineralMan]

"In my travels, I have found that folks in the larger cities and those east of the Mississippi tend to be more surley, arrogant and more likely a pain in the a** than those out in the heartland. Could be just my liking my rural, western lifestyle, but maybe not."


It does seem that way. I solve the problem, usually, by flying out of regional airports instead of the big city ones. The cost is usually the same, and you skip the traffic, parking, and other annoyances.

Further, I travel in sweats...a nice workout suit. I carry one carry-on and check one other bag. In it, I don't put anything suspicious, like big bottles of shampoo and the like. Just clothes.

I no longer take my laptop on most trips, since I moved my email to Yahoo, and can check it anywhere. If I need files, I burn a CD. When I go through security, I've moved _everything_ out of my pockets and into my carryon bag. No metal, no beep. I just travel clean these days and don't have anything anywhere that sets off any alarms.

Also, don't be the first to board the plane. Don't jump to the front of the boarding line. They seem to choose folks at the front for gate screening, almost exclusively.

But, the best tip of all is to fly in and out of regional airports. The folks working there are a lot nicer.

[hopespringseternal]

I doubt if I'd been able to ID Richard Reid, Jose Padilla and Jihad Johnny Walker as a Muslim at first glance.

Get your eyes checked, and don't drive until you do.

If you put me to screening planes, those three would be the first ones to get the treatment.

But it's not just that. I will guarantee you that if the nineteen hijackers tried that stunt today, the passengers would be far more useful in stopping them than the shiite-for-brains in TSA.

[Catspaw]

You mean you could tell the religion of Richard Reid, Jose Padilla and Jihad Johnny Walker by just looking at them? Do tell how you could discern their religion by their appearance.

[CyberSpartacus]

Airport security did not stop 9-11, nor will the obsessive and oppresive security measures now in place. I refuse to fly until the government stops being politically correct, enforces our borders against illegal entry, and tries traitors for treason.

[MineralMan]

"I mean, many of us run across a jerk, but some people just draw them like flies. Do they ever contemplate the possibilty that THEY are the jerk, the smart-ass, the passive-aggressive SOB? No, of course not! They're just... so darn unlucky!"

You have a point, for sure. I'm a big guy and look like a crazed biker, with my _large_ full beard and longish hair. But...when I'm dealing with others, I wear a big smile and say "thank you" a lot. It works wonders for clearing the way through things like security lines.

I try very hard to look around me and to follow the directions posted on signs, etc. If the sign says that laptops need to be screened separately, I don't just shove my carryon on the X-ray belt with the laptop inside. I read the sign, take the laptop out, and have it on already when I get to the screening area. Sheesh! How hard is that?

I can't believe how many people beep the metal detector, and _then_ they take all the junk out of their pockets, holding up the whole line for the rest of us who have done our best not to hold up the line. Have these folks never flown before? I see it every time I go through security. Beep, then out comes the change and the keys and the Zippo and all the other stuff. Go through again. Beep! Then they get wanded. Oh, you mean that big old belly cover rodeo belt buckle registers on the metal detector? You mean my steel-shank cowboy boots trigger it? Who'd have guessed.

Of course, then the person starts getting huffy, like it's the screener's fault that they're an idiot who can't think ahead when travelling.

It would be amusing if it didn't hold everyone else up so much.