More reasons to avoid the airport

[JamesB]

I want to stay home more and become more disconnected from society each time I read one of these stories.

http://www.informationweek.com/news/...leID=202401630

when will it end.

James

[okcwannabe]

They always say things like "your privacy will remain protected" and it never works. Watch soon after they start using them it will come out they have been laughing and giggling about what they see or telling their family and friends about it! I am a nurse and we have to follow HIPPA regulations for privacy of our patients-does something like this apply for these security guards?? I understand it's for safety but it seems like we are doing good like we are so far, right?

[janetg]

i actually saw this on the news - it looked pretty innocuous - the screener is not allowed viewing of the actual person either -

as long as i'm safe in the air -

UNLIKE the incident sunday night - where all hell broke loose - as some guy took his 4 year old to the bathroom when the plane was taxiing to the runway. not a smart move. stewardesses came flying down the aisles..the plane ground to a complete halt...and everyone was scared ****less unless you happened to be sitting right in front of them (as i was) and well...let's just say - it was predicable. give a 4 year old 5 glasses of water while the plane is loading...

needless to say - we were bumped to 21 for takeoff... 90 minutes later we got to take off.

but from someone else's standpoint....they didn't know what was happening, just some guy getting up and walking to the back while the plane was ready to take off -

[JamesB]

Originally Posted by janetg

as long as i'm safe in the air -

this is a bad thing to say. you would be shocked to find out how many things are on board an airplane one could use to do a lot of damage with.

next time you fly you need to pay very close attention to whats around you and you may see what Im talking about.

James

[iCe]

None for me thanks. A few years ago I flew into DC with my daughter when she went on her band trip. Before we took off we were given "the speech" about how things would be really bad if we got up at the beginning of the flight. Sure enough, as we were climbing out, one of the 5 oriental gentlemen that were mixed in with the rest of us at the back of the bus got up to go to the bathroom. I leaned over and told my daughter that this should be good. The flight attendant stopped him by our seats and she explained to him that he had to sit down, rules, blah, blah, blah. He just looked at her somewhat perplexedly until one of the other gentlemen came and translated for him. He didn't speak English (which is no big deal because I barely speak English myself and I was born and raised in Texas And... I sure as he double toothpicks don't speak anyone else's language, though I have been known to butcher Spanish on more than one occasion. My beech is that they didn't take into account that someone wouldn't speak English.)

Then, as we were on final, literally over the Potomac (awesome view BTW) another oriental man did the same thing. Same drill. Short final. Clear to land. We weren't diverted. Bells didn't go off. Life didn't stop. So much for airline security.

I think that I flew twice after that... Houston to Chicago to Pittsburgh. It took forever. I felt like yelling MMMMMMOOOOOOOOO all the time. It was, overall, an unpleasant experience.

I drive when I travel. I carry all of my gear and rarely want for anything.

[JMI]

I don't fly anymore either. I drive.

I'm not scared to fly. I just don't do the "jumping through hoops" thing. **** 'em. It's all a big show to maintain the illusion of security. Well they can kiss my ass. NOBODY'S ever going to be able to hijack a plane again. Anyone who tries will be instantly beat to death by the passengers.

And that's as it should be.

[janetg]

well, it's good for those of you that don't have to fly - but i'm NOT driving back and forth to new hampshire 2 or more times per year...

i'm getting old!

[Adcox]

Originally Posted by janetg

UNLIKE the incident sunday night - where all hell broke loose - as some guy took his 4 year old to the bathroom when the plane was taxiing to the runway. not a smart move. stewardesses came flying down the aisles..the plane ground to a complete halt...and everyone was scared ****less unless you happened to be sitting right in front of them (as i was) and well...let's just say - it was predicable. give a 4 year old 5 glasses of water while the plane is loading...

needless to say - we were bumped to 21 for takeoff... 90 minutes later we got to take off.

If the flight attendants see someone get up while the aircraft is taxiing the first thing they do is call the cockpit. The crew is required to stop the aircraft until everyone is seated with their seat belts fastened. Air traffic controllers especially at bigger airports like to keep the flow of aircraft moving. If someone stops, there is a possibility that they will lose their slot.
That being said when you gotta go, you gotta go. The best thing to do would be to wait until the aircraft is airborne if able.

It looks like they are using the new scanning devices during secondary screening only. As long as you don't have a hip or knee replacement and as long as you take off anything containing metal you shouldn't have to go through one of these devices.

[Dobick]

"Privacy is ensured through the anonymity of the image: It will never be stored, transmitted, or printed, and it will be deleted immediately once viewed."

I have a problem with this part -- says that "it will never be stored...and will be deleted" -- if it isn't stored, then there is no way for it to be deleted. Impossible to delete something that has never been stored.

[fivegrand]

If they'd just get smart and deregulate firearms across the board...THEN everyone would be a lot safer.

Sure, there would be a lot of people getting killed for a little while, but that will slow down after the bad guys figure out that if they try something, odds are pretty good that gramma's gonna roll 'em up and smoke 'em.

I think maybe instead of moving to DFW, I'll move to Kennesaw, GA instead.

[iCe]

Originally Posted by janetg

well, it's good for those of you that don't have to fly - but i'm NOT driving back and forth to new hampshire 2 or more times per year...

i'm getting old!

Getting old is all in your head. I drove to Pittsburgh and back 8 times over the last one and a half to two years. Sometimes it took me 4 or 5 days and sometimes it took me a day and about 3/4. I'll still drive. One day I want to run up to Maine and then down the east coast. I would have to plan for weeks of driving for that trip. There's too much to see

[JamesB]

Originally Posted by fivegrand

odds are pretty good that gramma's gonna roll 'em up and smoke 'em.

Now thats a quote to remember funniest thing I have heard all week

James

[gardener]

The wife had a heart Pacemaker installed last year after her heart had some bad experiences with a medication she had been prescribed so she has to go through the patdown process everytime she steps on a plane. Although she ain't crazy about the idea, she likes to travel and is of the attitude that if this is what it takes to get on the plane then so be it. While the scanner idea is barely lukewarm in my opinion, I'm sure she (and I) would still rather be inconvenienced as little as possible yet not have some stranger hand patting all over herownself.
At least in my opinion, the scanner would be a lot less embarassing than standing in public with your arms outstretched like you're about to do some big bird imitation than to be anonymously scanned by a weirdo in a back room somewhere...
As far as driving everywhere, it used to be my favorite way to go until I got older and decided that I'd rather be where I was going than to take forever to get there and back while shortening the time I was actually at my chosen spot to vacation or whatever...