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January 24, 2004

To get us all scared as hell

I read Jerry Pournelle's blog-like website, called "Current View", for various reasons.

(1) As a memorial to the glory days of BYTE magazine and his Chaos Manor column. (2) To hear his passionate, if often inaccurate, perspectives on personal computer products and subjects.

I usually skip over his screeds on politics, and political analysis. But I believe there's some truth in this:

There are ways to increase aircraft security, but in fact the 911 scenario of taking over airplanes and using them as cruise missiles won't work any more: some pilots are armed, cockpit doors are strengthened and locked, and passengers aren't going to passively submit. Yes, it's worth keeping guns off airplanes unless they are in the hands of commissioned officers or police; but they aren't going to take over airplanes with boxcutters any longer and we all know it. The purpose of TSA is to pay itself, and to intimidate passengers, and get us all scared as hell, not of "terrorists" but of being sent to jail for 15 years for saying the wrong thing. Or for that matter being accused of it. Speak up, don't mutter...

Posted by jghiii at January 24, 2004 12:40 PM
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