Screeners Fail To Catch Bomb Components

[thardey]

There are so many back doors into airports that it's not even funny.

After 9/11 our little airport (it has the "international" rating just because we get a shipment from japan or somewhere once a year) went nuts on new security measures.

They even put up a security shack in front of the terminal to check for car bombs of everybody who drove in front the terminal. Total knee-jerk, Barney with a gun, reaction stuff. Hyper-vigilant, you know?

Drive 100 yards past the airport, and you get to the fuel companies, the rental office, the private hangers, etc. Nothing changed. Ever. The only placed they did anything about security was in the areas that the general public could see it, and feel better about getting back on the planes.

All the security is not about security, it's about selling a product. Do you honestly think all the extra $$$'s that are/were spent on visible security measures didn't have a projected return on that investment? And apparently, it paid off.

 

[CoryKS]

I agree with the consensus that the procedures in place seem to be more about selling an image of security rather than actual security, but to play devil's advocate for a moment, let's recap: we have airline security that is useless and makes us no safer; we have a misguided war which has not only made us no safer but also spawned thousands, nay millions, of enthusiastic martyrs; we have a port authority that is woefully incapable of detecting explosive/radioactive materials aboard incoming ships; and we have a border which cannot be secured. It sure is lucky for us that our enemies have decided not to attack us anymore.

 

[Empty Hands]

Pat me down, strip search me run a backgroud check I dont care. As long as they get me from point A to point B safe thats whats matters.

Well, I care. I would accept the one-in-a-trillion chance of being involved in a terrorist attack over the one-in-one chance of humiliating, inconvenient security theater every time I want to fly. Even when our security was so apparently terrible, the chances of being struck by lightning or certainly getting in a car wreck were much greater than being involved in a terrorist attack. That never stopped me from driving or going outside, nor would I accept intrusive government infringement to protect me from the terror of lightning.

 

[Empty Hands]

It sure is lucky for us that our enemies have decided not to attack us anymore.

The real fact of the matter is that none of our security measures, no matter how draconian we make them, can stop determined attackers all the time. They only need to be right once, while we need to be right 100% of the time. That just won't happen.

Look at governments past and present that use draconian security measures to stop some behavior or another. Mexico will shoot border jumpers on their southern border, but that doesn't stop thousands of central americans from getting into their country anyway. Same with North Korea, except they are trying to keep their people in. Even East Germany couldn't keep everyone from making it into West Berlin, and all they had to guard was a few miles of wall!