Interesting People mailing list archives
more on tsa and lighters
From: David Farber <dave () farber net>
Date: Sat, 3 Dec 2005 15:31:11 -0500
Begin forwarded message: From: Thomas Leavitt <thomas () thomasleavitt org> Date: December 3, 2005 2:13:49 PM EST To: dave () farber net Subject: Re: [IP] Digest 1.856 for ip Dave asks: "why did we ever elect clowns like this who want to ban small sharp objects but allow forks and plastic knives and glass drinking glasses etc." The same reason we elected clowns who banned lighters, out of fear that terrorists would have an easier time using them to ignite explosives than matches... when, aside from the apparently mentally disturbed guy who tried to light his shoes on fire, I doubt I could find a single case of a recent terrorist event where the explosives in question were not "ignited" by a detonator (probably electrical) of some sort. "They've also taken away 8.1 million lighters, the only item prohibited by law. Congress, concerned that terrorists would have an easier time igniting a bomb with a lighter than with matches, enacted the ban." When was the last time we heard of a suicide bomber igniting their explosives with a match or a cigarette lighter? Does anyone think the IEDs alongside the roads in Iraq are being "ignited" by lighters somehow turned on by a cellphone call? Can anyone seriously picture a terrorist trying to flick a lighter and ignite a stick of dynamite, in the face of a rush from angry terrified passengers? With the proliferation of handheld electronic devices, I have my doubts that a TSA screener is going to be able to easily distinguish an electronic detonator from an iPod Nano... so maybe it might be better to simply ban all consumer electronic devices from airplanes... but then, maybe we'll get a terrorist that has somehow programmed his pacemaker to also be a detonator. Thomas From: David Farber <dave () farber net> Subject: more on sorry Congress may try retain airliner "scissors" ban Date: Fri, 2 Dec 2005 15:46:15 -0500 http://www.cnn.com/2005/TRAVEL/12/02/passenger.screening.ap/index.html Begin forwarded message: From: Paul Levy <plevy () citizen org> Date: December 2, 2005 2:14:55 PM EST To: dave () farber net Subject: Re: [IP] Congress may try retain airliner "scissors" ban Was there supposed to be a link in here? Paul Alan Levy Public Citizen Litigation Group 1600 - 20th Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20009 (202) 588-1000 http://www.citizen.org/litigation
David Farber <dave () farber net> 12/2/2005 2:11 PM >>>
Do read this and then ask why did we ever elect clowns like this who want to ban small sharp objects but allow forks and plastic knives and glass drinking glasses etc. My reading is for once TSA has it right. Dave ------------------------------------- You are subscribed as PLEVY () citizen org To manage your subscription, go to http://v2.listbox.com/member/?listname=ip Archives at: http://www.interesting-people.org/archives/interesting- people/ ------------------------------------- You are subscribed as lists-ip () insecure org To manage your subscription, go to http://v2.listbox.com/member/?listname=ip Archives at: http://www.interesting-people.org/archives/interesting-people/
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- more on tsa and lighters David Farber (Dec 03)