As we were waiting to board the plane we were informed that because this was a commercial flight we could not bring knives, razors etc aboard the aircraft. On the surface this may sound reasonable seeing as we were making a layover in Bangor Maine and would be entering the terminal in the secure area where other passengers had been through security. What made it idiotic was we were carrying fully automatic weapons, every one of us had an M-16, We were boarding the plane with over 500 M-16's and 9 mm pistols and you want us to hand over knives?Because knives are dangerous, mkay? More specifically, because knives are against TSA regulations, and regs are regs. Philosopher Kings, right there.
It reminds me of the scene in Aladdin where the monkey is being chased through the market by the city guards, and he grabs a sword to threaten them. One guard says "Look out! He has a sword!" The chief guard says "You idiot! We all have swords!"
Zero tolerance, zero brain.
ReplyDeleteAs okay to destroy the world if you obey all the rules first.
ReplyDeletePrince John: A knife! He's got a knife!
ReplyDeleteEleanor: Of course he has a knife, he always has a knife, we all have knives! It's 1183 and we're barbarians!
-The Lion in Winter
Great film, Erich.
ReplyDeleteI..., no.
ReplyDelete*headdesk*
It's stories like this one, that get me thinking Rome deserved to fall to the barbarian hords, and so do we, if we can't get our act together.
ReplyDelete:-(
Josh
It is always the will and intent of the individual.
ReplyDeleteOn my last couple of trips through Pristina around mid-decade, my M16 was put through the x-ray conveyor while my pistol stayed in my holster as I went through the typical x-ray. The NATO guy running the machine explained that they were aspiring to "meet international standards"...
ReplyDeleteI saw a story about this kind of idiocy a year or more back; the soldier even gave the TSA grief about being allowed to carry automatic weapons but not nail clippers.
ReplyDeleteYou're dealing with jobsworths; what do you expect?
@ Rick C: Probably this one.
ReplyDeleteThe kicker is that the flight was entirely made up of returning soldiers. It seems they 'thought' that one soldier with a set of nail clippers would be able to overpower 200 other soldiers all carrying rifles.
It's the same stupidity that leads them to take a steak knife away from the pilot, when it's the exact same airline-issue knife that they give every passenger with the in-flight meal.
TSA = The Stupid Agency
Y'all forget that the true mission of the TSA is to inure Americans to following stupid and meaningless orders without question.
ReplyDeleteIt's like the (sales) closing technique of asking a series of seemingly innocuous questions, each of which would usually be answered with a "yes", until the final question is asked: "Do you want to buy this now?"
Except that the final question in this case will resemble the "final solution". Something along the lines of "Would you please empty your pockets and remove your shoes, then step into the boxcar?"
Mind you, we could not carry magazines for those weapons, thus in the eyes of the TSA rendering them totally inoperable!
ReplyDeleteBut yes, no knives, going, coming any time I've gone to Iraq. Nothing pointy. No fists either. Or sharp pens.
Oh...
Wait..
Sigh....