"Sam O'Nella" wrote in message
...
Did we not learn our lesson from Tylenol?

http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/01/11/las....ap/index.html

If there's a laser related aircraft incident, I hold the news
broadcasters at least partially responsible.

I'd like to offer an alternate opinion on this if I may.

Although I sympathize with your feelings, and nobody detests the press
more than I do, I have to disagree with what you are saying.
It's very easy for good decent people to fall into this trap. What
happens is that the more you lean in a direction like this, the more you
lean away from the issue of personal responsibility.
It's not the press who has the laser, it's the person who pointed it and
shot it at the cockpit.
You NEVER want to lose sight of this perspective. To do so, is to play
right into the hands of defense trail lawyers, who know all too well
that they can tear this reasoning apart easily.
If the press is responsible, or even partially responsible for someone
pointing a laser into a cockpit simply because they reported it, then
every woman who has been raped because she wore an attractive dress is
guilty as well; and that's where decent people who care about these
things like yourself make a HUGE mistake if they begin seeing things as
you are seeing them here.
As rotten as the press is, and I think we all agree on THAT issue, it's
their job to report these incidents. In fact, it's actually a good thing
that incidents like this ARE reported so we can take action against
those doing these things.
It's true that there are nut cases out there who could be prompted to
use a laser on an airliner because they read about it in a newspaper,
but taking on the newspaper instead of the criminal isn't the solution;
that is unless you want to have no free press, and allow someone
pointing a laser in a cockpit to blame their action on something other
than their own desire to point it and fire it!
The day we lose the concept of personal responsibility in the United
States, is the day the trial lawyers win the entire shooting match.
Dudley Henriques
International Fighter Pilots Fellowship
Commercial Pilot/CFI Retired
for private email; make necessary changes between ( )
dhenriques(at)(delete all this)earthlink(dot)net