Sometimes you just have to stop and ask, what are those who are charged with our safety and protection thinking about?
Yesterday, the Transportation Safety Administration (TSA) announced a new list of weapons which are now allowed to be brought on airplanes by passengers. Yes, weapons.
The rationale for this change is that it will apparently make security clearance faster. Included on the list of approved items for air travel are, for example, knives. Air travelers should be safe however, according to the TSA because the approved knives can only be less that one half inch wide. No apparent limit on length. Other approved potential weapons include such handy items as pool cues, lacrosse sticks, hockey sticks, ski poles,"novelty" baseball bats and two golf clubs (presumably determined by your handicap).
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Another rationale for the new approved list of weapons is the fact that the TSA has determined these items do not pose a threat to the flight crew, which are behind a sealed reinforced door in the cockpit. Good, the flight crew should be safe and secure at all times. The question remains, what about the passengers and flight attendants who are locked in a larger cabin with a terrorist, drunk or disturbed person swinging a one-half-inch wide blade or a sand wedge, or a "novelty " baseball bat? Do you think there is a risk here?
Recent news stories have told of heroic passengers who have subdued drunks and disturbed passengers during flights. Now add a weapon to that scenario and see what happens.
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Not to worry though, according to the TSA, razor blades and box cutters, the weapons of choice for the 9/11 hijackers, are still on the prohibited list of items which passengers may bring on an aircraft. And yes, the TSA is still prohibiting you from bringing too much shampoo on an aircraft.
We should all feel much safer knowing that the TSA has our back. Hopefully, no one will put a kniife in it during a flight.
Congressman King, this falls into your job description and pay grade. Please do something to stop this nonsense. Thank you.
