I'm impressed. I go through LGA, DCA, IAD and other airports several times a month; have not seen TSA pulling pulling machine guns at all, much less during polite discussion.

It's changed some. This was during the early days.

Unless TSA has been mass murdering travelers with their metal detector wands I presume you are referring to damage to your ego.

No. My ego is unimportant. I am referring to the damage to the freedom
of Americans to just be a little odd if they feel like it. The freedom
to fly small airplanes near the Capitol or the Space Shuttle. The
freedom to eat like a civilized person aboard an airliner. The freedom
to buy an airplane ticket with cash. The freedom to read without being
scrutinzed by law enforcement. The freedom to do a hundred little
things, neither of which matter much, but in aggregate add up.

I'm also talking about the resources spent on "protecting" stuff that
either doesn't need protecting, cannot (in principle) be protected
anyway, or is being protected from the wrong thing. I'm talking about
the way of =thinking= that has changed in this country, where people are
looked upon with suspicion if they are not Good Christians or Good Jews.

I'm talking about the mindset of fear that has half the country eager to
surrender even more freedoms for the illusion that "Good Government" is
going to make all these problems "go away", as long as we give up our
own ability to defend ourselves and just trust in law enforcement (front
page news yesterday in the NY Times - police detectives murder for the Mob)

I'm talking about the people who will one day be shot down for violating
one of those stupid pop-up TFRs meant to protect the egos of the high
officials and of Disney World.

Terrorists can destroy our economy (and kill many people as collateral
damage) just by running naked through the airport security area
backwards. If we profile young Arab males, the next attack will be from
an older German female. The next weapon will be casually dropped into
an American granma's bag, and retrieved later (or left to be discovered
by the TSA). There are =so= many ways around profiling, and if you
think Osama hasn't thought of this, you underestimate him and his ilk.

All he has to do is destroy the heart - the foundation - of this
country, and he has won. Profiling =is= the evil against which we stand.

Jose
--
Math is a game. The object of the game is to figure out the rules.
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