Minor fact change:

Annie Jacobsen's misadventure and related coverage happened during the summer of 2004, not 2003 as it says in the article.

I wrote extensively about Jacobsen and the Arabs-who-Queued-in-the-Sky that summer. Here is an overview post with links to a great deal of previous coverage elsewhere:

http://www.liberalavenger.com/2005/09/annie-jacobsen-and-xenophobic-horror.html

As a frequent flyer to Europe, I am completely disgusted with the American response to terrorism. It is a whole lot of showy fanfare, and fairly little that will actually deter people who are determined to bring planes down to make a point... if anything can. European governments see the real issues, and address them calmly.

Thanks for your sane look at this subject. Instead of worrying about which commie/druggie/terrorist is hiding around the corner, we should be worrying about making our own country more secure in ways that matter long-term... better education, better health care, nobody in any level of poverty, less dependence on foreign oil, a balanced budget... hey, NONE of the things that Bu$h the corporate stooge believes in.

We will be hit by another terrorist attack. The arrogance of our government officials on the international stage virtually guarantees it. All forms of public travel will remain safer than privately-owned and -operated envirocriminal SUVs. Much flag-waving will ensue and more soldiers will be sent to die fighting people who had nothing to do with the terrorist attack. It's all about money and oil, and it's completely pathetic. We have already lost our superpower status, but it's hard to see that if you never leave your own state.

Mr Smith, thank you thank you thank you for being a sane, reasoned, knowledgable writer about all things air-security wise. Pointing out exactly why the 9/11 plot worked then and wouldn't work now is something sorely lacking from the discourse relating to aviation security, and it is sorely needed.

"The terrorists" are playing the role of latest invisible scare, just as the communists did before them -- a rallying cry for those who traffic in fear."

There's an excellent three part BBC documentary on just this topic. It's called "The Power of Nightmares" and it covers the switch-over from fear of the USSR to fear of terrorists. It's well worth watching if you can get a hold of it.

Thanks again to Patrick Smith for pointing out what I thought was obvious: that keeping scissors off airplanes does nothing to improve security and that fear is our worst enemy.

Brett

Patrick is right, the fixation on finding small objects in our carry-ons in and of itself adds nothing to aviation security. I would suggest that it actually increases insecurity.

When we fly these days, we are worked into a lather about the supposed threats around us. We are reminded of the dangers from the time we are dropped curbside, through check-in, through the security checkpoint, interminable in-terminal announcements, and extra random screenings prior to boarding. Not only is removing our shoes at the x-ray annoying, it also makes us anxious about all the possible threats around us. By the time we get on a plane we are ready to jump out of our skins, fearing any brownish passenger and praying that the sky marshalls shoot anyone who displays erratic behavior.

In this environment where we are all hyper-sensitive to any perceived threat, it is more likely that we will over-react and actually cause the very tragedies that we are hoping to prevent - sky marshalls shooting passengers, or full-fledged race riots in mid-flight, for example. (Sure, the latter hasn't happened yet, but imagine a flight on which a Middle Eastern rugby team was on the same plane as a well-lubricated group headed to an NRA convention, for instance.)

Thinking back to some flights I've been on this year: did it make us feel more secure in Denver when my wife had to run from the security check back to the post office to mail herself back her nail scissors? did it make us feel more secure in New Haven when the female screener inspected the metal underwire of my wife's bra? did it make us feel more secure when a screener in Geneva detained me for 10 minutes to repeatedly put my bathroom bag through the xray in search of an elusive pair of tweezers I didn't even know I had because "tweezers aren't allowed on aircraft flying to the US" - even though tweezers were specifically on the list of items approved for carry-on? In all cases, no - we would have felt most secure with a good screening that was coupled with some common sense.

Remember when flying was fun? Now the entire experience is designed to be completely terrifying. In that, Osama wins every time you have to break the one inch nail file off of your nail clippers, and the Republicons win every time you are reminded of 9/11 and for some bizarre psychological reason determine that you need to vote for them to make you more secure. This is what is known as a win-win-lose - with the loser here being us.

Dear Mr. Smith:

I agree with your thoughts on airline and airport security. I also agree with your thoughts on Ms. Jacobsen. I have paused so many times throughout this whole 9/11 fantasy-land to wonder just what is going on in Americans' minds. Around a year ago, on a flight from Orange County to SFO, I watched a proud, elderly gentleman who looked to be in his 80s take off his hat, his watch chain, his shoes, and the vest of his three-piece suit. Each item required painstaking effort on his part because of his age. Not only were all of the people in line behind him (including me) significantly delayed by this "security" measure, but we were all humiliated by the fact that we had to take part in the spectacle. Numerous people behind me were grumbling and commenting, but they weren't complaining about wasting time, they were imploring the security worker to just let the poor man go through to his flight. I felt ashamed; as the man sat on the opposite side of the metal detector to put all his clothes on, he took off his glasses to wipe his eyes - we all knew that he was close to crying. His hands shook as he tried to button up his vest again. You could not have watched this without feeling debased.

This seems to me to be emblamatic of your point. Everyone knew this man was no terrorist and no one could have watched this without asking themselves, does this actually help me feel safer? And to those who answer yes, I wonder, do you only become paranoid when there is a middle-easterner on the plane? You shouldn't, because that elderly couple next to you from Ohio seems nice, but they could be terrorists too. Trust no one. That's the message: not we're all in this together but every man for himself.