Ravenwood - 12/01/04 06:30 AM
The groping going on at our nation's airports is not going unnoticed. More and more women are getting fed up with the fondling and are finding other means of transportation.
Rhonda Gaynier, a New York real-estate lawyer, was flying home from Tampa, Florida, and passing through airport security when she was asked to step aside for additional screening.Airports will soon have the option to return to privatized security. Complaints should be sent to the airlines and airport management as well as the TSA. As the complaints mount, these screeners are sealing their own fate.What happened next shocked her: Using an open hand, a security agent touched her on her shoulders, under her arms, around her waist, across her bra strap, and between her breasts, Gaynier said -- all in front of other passengers.
Wouldn't it be pretty to think so?
I think the hue and cry of thousands of federal workers crying out about the loss of their jobs will resonate more with lawmakers and government bureaucrats, and I would expect to see the return to privatization banned by some fiat or another.
Or it will last until the first incident or aircraft loss which spurs lawsuits that drive private screeners out of business. Because although you can sue companies for normal systemic failures, you can't sue the government for chronic negligence.
Posted by: Brian J. at December 1, 2004 9:00 AMIt's a roust. When you can't do anything, you inconvenience as many people as possible. Wesley Pruden pointed that out right after 9/11 and it hasn't changed. If we can't have security, we can at least have inconvenience.
Losing airliners doesn't matter much. There's the usual news template, the interviews with loved ones, and back to Laci Peterson. People avoid flying for a couple weeks and then venture back when nothing's crashed in a couple of weeks. Not exactly terrorism material.
Incidentally, even nail file frisks did improve security, there's no reason for lines. Any line can be eliminated with more servers. They're saying what the bank says to you when you queue up for a teller : our time is more important than yours.
Posted by: Ron Hardin at December 1, 2004 5:51 PM(c) Ravenwood and Associates, 1990 - 2014
