May Contain Peanuts

We won't be fooled again...

First off, Happy New Year! It's hard to believe it is actually 2010. It's the future, man. Too bad it is still the same old reality we have meandered along through so far. But I digress...

What I'd like to rant about is brought upon by the recent events of Christmas Day, those by the now infamous "underwear bomber". After the 'attack', noises were made, security was beefed, and Republicans scorned the President for not reacting fast enough (though Bush took longer after the 'shoe bomber' incident). Anyways, it has continued to be a story of note and a hassle to airline travelers everywhere. The thing that gets me is that the guy was stopped not by security or screeners or intrepid investigators hot on his tail, but rather the fellow passengers on the plane.

I continue to believe that there is no fool proof way to foil terrorists or terrorism or wacked out people forever. Somehow, someway, people will find a method that allows them to disrupt the way things are. The question arises when methods to stall or thwart these efforts interferes with the overall quality of life. Nobody wants a 'big brother' police state of constant observation and we can all assume this will not fully happen (Yes, everything is recorded nowadays, but nobody really watches). In a much lesser sense though, nobody wants to have to arrive 6 hours before a flight and sit around waiting in lines just to do some traveling. I have taken some flights recently, and though they security measures are not egregious, they are still a huge pain in the ass and depending on the time and day, could be a whole lot worse.

What I would like to propose is that we still keep a modicum of security on the front end of the airport process, but we really rely on our fellow passengers to do the heavy lifting. Of course you would still screen for weapons and knives (not nail clippers you ridiculous TSA members) and still check passports and look for suspicious behavior. But I feel nowadays, people are far more aware of their fellow flyers and will say something if somebody is mixing odd liquids in the seat near them. No more bans on liquid containters (Honestly, is 3 oz the absolute limit? If anything, somebody will find a way to make explosives out of 2.9 oz). No more rattling through the bags of 70 year old ladies or taking Play-doh away from kids. Best of all, no more rows and rows of lines for security. To be honest, the poor workers in these security lines don't all seem to be that into the job anyway. There is enough awareness in the flying population to speak up and alert when they see something out of place. No longer will anyone sit by on a plane if there's a chance it will crash into the side of a building.

On the downside of this people-based security is that it can be easily overruled by discrimination and racism. Yes, most of the terrorist and bomb suspects are middle eastern, or in the underwear case, Nigerian, so a profile of suspicion is already well planted. If a referendum was made that actually changed this and let people know they should be the ones looking out or themselves, the actions of every middle eastern or Nigerian person will be deeply scrutinized and followed. This would make everyone who isn't trying to blow up a plane pay the price for the one or two who looks like them that did.

I think what got me the most about the incident is the reactionary beefing of security when the security process was not necessarily the problem. There will always be loopholes and ways to get around the process (I mean, I personally do not want security personnel patting down my junk). The current system does more than enough to weed out potential threats. Despite our current pass-the-blame society, it is now the responsibility of the people to help keep themselves safe. Joining together as a community responsible for each other is the best security measure possible and it just may make things run smoother in the future.