12/27/2009 1:50 pm
POV
Margo Howard: Fuming Over More Airline Restrictions in Wake of Terrorism Attempt
My frothing at the mouth is all about the idiot who strapped a firecracker to his leg on a flight from Amsterdam to Detroit. Not only did his father warn authorities that the kid was dangerous, but he was also listed in a U.S. terrorism database. The result of this governmental incompetence is that the rest of us can now only take one carry-on piece aboard, can have nothing in our laps the last hour of a flight (that includes pillow, blanket, laptop) and we must stay in our seats for the last hour of the trip. (Heretofore that was only for flying into Washington, DC.) This of course makes zero sense, but there you are. All this craziness lousing up travel is going on while the terrorist lists (not carefully done to begin with – the late Ted Kennedy was on such a list) are ignored. And let us not forget the nonsensical TSA rules about toothpaste.
My next trip is to Washington, and before this jerk who only succeeded in getting second-degree burns on his shins caused the latest reorganization of air travel, I had decided to take Amtrak. Alas, the trip after that cannot be taken by train, and I am already rips&*% about the thought of having to get on a plane … as if things weren’t bad enough already.
I have already seen too many little old ladies in wheelchairs patted down and others having to spill the contents of their suitcases when a normal person with judgment would know these people are just … travelers. Where is common sense in all this? And if there are watch lists, how do people slip through the cracks? I am sick about what has happened to air travel in the world, and angry about the people in charge who can’t seem to manage anything. (We will not even discuss officious TSA people who confiscate things that could in no way be weapons, like eyebrow tweezers. You show me someone who can overpower a flight attendant, let alone a pilot, with a pair of tweezers and I will show you someone who could more likely do that with his bare hands.)
One cannot escape the observation that there are too many people in the bureaucracy, if not too many dumb people in the bureaucracy. Good luck to the airlines, say I, and, alas, good luck to us all.
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Sometimes I think the government needs to stop talking. When it was revealed that Iran had more than one nuclear facility, they said "We’ve known about this for years." When this incident on the plane happened, they said, "Oh, we knew about him." I would feel better if they said they didn’t know rather than they did know, and did nothing.
Obviously the previous restrictions inspired the truly adamant to become more inventive, and the same will happen again. A determined person will do whatever it take to achieve their ends. Which comes to the next place they will stash their wares…
I stopped flying commercial in 2002 when I realized that despite arriving 15 minutes before departure I was whisked through check-in and through security with only a cursory check of my laptop and carry-on. I could have had a bomb in the laptop. I did have scissors, nail files, hair spray, and lighters in the carry-on. It made me wonder what everyone else had managed to get through. I should add that this was the second attempt at boarding. I got paranoid the day before about it and feigned illness and went home and rescheduled for the next day. I didn’t bother to reschedule. I didn’t even use the credit I didn’t ask for and still had with Orbitz. Nice to know someone at least noticed I hadn’t boarded. Wonder if they checked to see if I had actually checked baggage in. Maybe I don’t look like a terrorist. Or maybe I’m on some sort of "do not disturb" list. One thing is for sure. I will never fly commercial again. Ever. Forever.
And seven years later it appears not much has changed. Including this Department of Homeland Security. I was already in shock that someone managed to board two planes despite his own father warning the US Embassy in Nigeria about him. Withour a passport according to some reports. I was completely insensate that Janet Napolitano stated that "security worked" in this case. Actually security didn’t work. The passengers on the airplane worked. And god knows what might have happened had they not although in probability he probably would have attempted to set off the bomb a second time and gotten lucky.
More and more people are flying what are becoming the "private airlines" which are sort of an odd "time share" way to fly. You pay an annual fee for some and then book flights based on availability but there is usually at least one flight out of every major city to another major city in the country. By sharing the flight the cost is similar to first-class on a commercial flight.
And everyone is screened. No nuts from Nigeria. No yo-yos from Yemen. No sociopaths from Somalia. And best of all no thieves working for the government going through your things to see what they can steal.
People have known for a long time what may and may not be taken on flights. If a TSA agent misses something, or appears overly zealous, that’s the way it is, period - there are a lot of them, and more than a great number of passengers. And, it varies from city to city. One TSA agent stole the wallet out of my purse (she was "checking") in Baltimore, and I wasn’t aware of it until we were close to Austin (at which time, SW Airlines ‘flew’ into action on my behalf - we never did find it but my voter’s registration had been "tranferred" to another state a year later (Texas caught that one!).
I have to say, flying SW has encouraged me more than any other I’ve flown since 9-11; more than once they performed "at the gate" checks as we were boarding, and I did not notice even 1 passenger objective - we LOVE SW. However, at one airport when I kept setting off the bells and whistles, it took ‘the suits’ to arrive and declare that "the wand" was defective, not me! Did TSA re-scan everyone who’d gotten through ahead of me? NO. SW did - at the gate!
What does irk me, worries me, in fact, are passengers on any list even being to board in other countries w/o being body scanned! The technology is there, and we’re here - this should never have happened, and it was not intended to occur, in fact. Amsterdam! I’m shocked. There is no excuse for this having occurred! None whatsoever; more so because of this young man’s family report recently. The U.S. can seal off it’s borders in a few minutes, and other nations need to know this fact. We’re not stupid, and should not be naive.
People who take liquids of any kind in carry-on bags really surprise me. There are plenty of travel containers for use to take small amounts, or not take them! I adore my favorite perfume, but I will not risk losing one drop because I foolishly tried to carry it on-board. At the same time, once in Austin I had stopped by Whole Foods with a friend, grabbed some oils I have wanted, and we drove to Bergstrom.
Oh oh! Did I ever get caught - these were sealed, I had the receipt, and in the WF bags, but I did not expect TSA to let them ‘slide’ by; nor SW! However, they did everything possible to let me board with them, and again, "the suits" showed up. I had to laugh - one pointed to one of the bottles of "nutritional oil" and said, "You don’t want that one opened … uh uh! Not here - it’ll evacuate everyone." Guess which "nutritional oil" that was - my now adult kids roared when they heard this.
Alas, one suggested they get it to my checked luggage, or at least try to and I agreed whatever the outcome may be - I still hate Whole Foods for not having mail order!
OTOH, I’m a pain for TSA, and know it - I am on ‘wheels’ and have other needs traveling. I’m used to having whatever "done" to me to validate others feelings of safety, and … my own. If TSA and my airline is checking me out well, we will all be safer. Yes, at times, I’ve been asked if I minded more extensive searching, I never do. My power-chair has to be scanned, etc. too, and should be. Would I mind if they took it away from me, and put me in one of the airport’s? No. I will not travel anything but SW since 9-11. I had to once, and the darned airline "lost" me, and I missed a connecting flight. Never again.
Everyone IMO appears to work well together at the airports, and the only times I saw, or heard passengers creating havoc about anything were twice since 9-11, and frankly, I would have detained them myself. One woman, about 40, we furious because she had to take off her boots! I had to wonder if she had crawled out from under a rock - all she huffed and puffed about was the "damn Democrats taking over our country - they’ve sold us out." I wanted to offer to send her to … just to see how she was really ‘sold out.’ Another was a couple in Lubbock, yelling at a SW ticket agent because they overslept and would not be able to get their flight out on time… because they had about 9 pieces of luggage to be checked and carry-on. Idiots! That agent was so patient! I wasn’t!
Frankly, if something is taken away from me because I should not have taken it into an airport, that’s my just desserts - maybe the stuff will go to the homeless. I hope so. ;-)) I vote for safe travel. I’ll wear a TSA jump-suit if they want me to wear one for safety reason!
Incidentally, I have flown privately, with a Class I and II license for years - flew with Edna Gardner White , had my own plane. Edna was my flight instructor and suffused every cell of my being with flight safety, in fact. I do not budge when it comes to safe travel, and have little time for those who speak out without ever knowing the high number of variables that may endanger lives. At some point, we have to trust those who know more than we do, about many things in life.
I do, too! I have found a lot of the stuff Whole Foods carries is on Amazon.com in the grocery and that is mail order.
Lexi, thank you! I have ordered from Amazon for this season but never thought to look at that section! In fact, I ‘fell’ for their "Order now and get delivery by 12/24!" Didn’t happen - they all arrived yesterday! I’m sure its another Fed Ex drama, because one item I specifically chose to come via USPS (because I didn’t need it quickly) arrived before the "last minute" holiday gifts! Bah Humbug!!!
They do… My ex husband used to work for FPS down by the boarder. So when people would cross the boarder from mexico to CA, they would confiscate knives and all sorts of nifty things.. These things would be placed in a box. My ex would then collect all the knives made by Benchmade and Kershaw. He would send them to the manufacturers to get them replaced or refurbished. Then when he received these refurbished knives or brand new ones he would sell them on ebay or give them away to friends…..