Jeff Foxworthy does a skit about how he was traveling through an airport where they had contraband items in a glass case, including a weedwacker and a leaf blower.... wah?
Seriously though, some of the seemingly petty stuff that security confiscates is what could be called 'demonstration of enforcement' so that - not so much the average person - but those fringe crazies or terrorist types who are enteraining the idea of carrying/using something on the plane that they shouldn't will see the nail clippers, files,...weedwackers (I still don't get that one) being taken away and think "Hey, if they are being that anal, I will not be able to get this X-item on board." There are far more procedural and technical changes that we don't see as we move in and out of the airport that have advanced airport security far more than any personnel security changes.
Terrorists and other determined types can be the ultimate of 'necessity as mother of invention' types in a malevolent way. It is a constant cycle that, like our MA training, takes things like money, access and time into consideration when security procedures/advancements are decided on. Unfortunately, most changes are reactive because of the 'track record' or 'bottom line' mentallity of the purse strings. It's a shame but a reality
