Many years ago, when black people were not allowed to ride a certain portion of a public bus, a lone woman stood up for her right and the rights of many others to ride anywhere they liked on a bus. It led to a major movement for equal rights here in the U.S. A morally right concept.
Fast forward to 2010 and we’re now having rights stripped away from us in such ways that are demoralizing at best. Take a recent adventure with a John Tyner and the government run TSA. I know that I’ve blogged about my own air travel in the past. It’s not fun when you’re pulled aside and given additional security treatment. At the time it happened to me, they weren’t doing these full body “pat downs”.
I have to applaud John Tyner. If it had been me, I’d likely do the exact same thing. In fact, I strongly encourage everyone with a audio/video phone to start doing this. John may not have been the first person to refuse this stuff, but he has essentially become the poster child for it. I, and I don’t think I’m alone on this, have to agree that the idea of a full body “pat down” is simple molestation. I also don’t encourage the use of the scanners either, especially any kind of x-ray. I don’t care how “safe” it is based on conjecture – it’s not natural to be x-rayed. Let alone the idea that those machines can store the images. I don’t care that it’s supposed to be some person not near the machine looking at the images. I’m not a prude, however, it’s wrong on so many levels from health to morals.
Next time I have to fly, I’m sure I’ll already be ‘singled’ out for screening because it’s happened in the past. I will make sure that I’m prepared to video/audio tape the encounter for the purposes of what could transpire upon refusal of the x-ray and the “pat down”. I don’t have any intention on ever doing harm to a plane, let alone any type of public transportation. This whole idea that it’s making us safer to grope us and or radiate us is ludicrous. Wanna have safe air travel? Safer than say, having no security at all?
**** Side note: think about this for a moment, terrorists could hijack a plane once a week and crash it and we’d still be statistically safer than if we get in our cars and drive. Think about that. Internalize that. Realize it. Understand it. ****
Lots of people say follow the Israeli method. It’s fast, it’s effective and they don’t have downed planes – especially for a hostile part of the world [which most sane people would understand is way more hostile than the US ever gets]. I’ve never flown in Israel, so I have no idea what it’s like there. But if it’s that easy, effective and yet humane, why isn’t the US doing it?
Personally, I’d like to go back to pre 9/11 and let the fellow passengers take down the “terrorists” if one ever did try to board. Simple. Quick. We don’t need to pay extra and be humiliated.
Ugh, time for some music.
I’m going with Foo Fighters due to their song with the title Learn To Fly, mostly because a vast majority of us have to learn how to step up against this destruction of our rights as humans to fly with dignity. I realize the song is more about finding one’s own way in the world. Oh wait, that actually fits better than I realized. Heck even the band name fits the concept of flying.
Powerful guitar parts and a rousing vocal, couple it with thumpin bass and leader that is like the energizer bunny and you’ve got a winning combo. Pure and simple. If you don’t know this song, you’ve been under a rock and aren’t likely flying much. Good thing you got a taste of it here. Now go be against the bs and be the rebel.