In the past three weeks, I have been scanned, patted down, forced to remove my belt and shoes, and asked to wait in line for the privilege, in San Francisco, London, Lisbon, Madrid, and Philadelphia.
Collectively, we’re wasting hundreds of millions of dollars on this nonsense, money that could be invested in schools, parks, and public health.
At Heathrow, a guard ripped a rag doll from the arms of a panicked, confused, one-year old child just ahead of me in order to scan it. Busybodies in uniform confiscate duty-free booze and expensive perfume. (Exploding Channel No. 5? Single malt munitions?) One nutcase tries to ignite explosives in his shoe, and we all have to take our shoes off. This is crazy.
The whole search-and-sniff apparatus was cooked up by the Bush Administration to convince the citizenry that we were at war. (Voters rally behind wartime presidents.) The Transportation Safety Administration and the goons the U.S. Government has coerced other countries to install at the entrances of airports are engaged in political theater.
Why don’t we shut down the frisk-everyone lines? In their place, pick 1% of passengers for a search and pat-down. That should be enough to divert terrorists to other targets if they really hanker to blow something up.
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I rarely agree with your political analysis, however, in this case you are spot on. It is amazing how people have thrown away their civil liberties, all in the guise of protecting public safety.