- Joined
- Jul 21, 2001
- Messages
- 2,869
The knife a scapegoat
Make no mistake about it, I hate terrorism, the despicable low life semblances of mankind who are filled with prejudice, hatred and prey upon mankind like one of the evils from Pandora's box. With their last cowardly act they have destroyed the lives of thousands of people and placed a heavy burden on those of us who remain. The pain, suffering, fear and hatred could very well lead to more injustice to man. We cannot destroy terrorism from without for it will only lead to more hatred as innocent lives are claimed by the hatred of man for man.
We in America have been conditioned to believe that our big brother, government can and will protect us. We have relied upon the FAA and Airline industry to play the role of protector. Through our passive role we have been forced to rely upon them to protect us while we fly the friendly skies. We have been denied any role or responsibility for the security of our fellow travelers or for ourselves. I for one never feel as helpless as when I sit in a commercial air craft and wonder if the crew of the plane will be able to act appropriately should an emergency situation develop.
It is in an undeniable fact that the airline industry and the bureaucrats who govern her have obviously failed in their mission of trust. The head of each and every airline and government entity with any responsibility in preventing the latest tragedy, along with the next 50 senior employees should be summarily dismissed in total disgrace.
One of the goals of terrorism is to force government to become so controlling of the people that they individually and in masse rebel against regulation.
I feel that these last acts of inhumanity will have two long range effects. First, in order to displace the accurate accusations of irresponsibility, the bureaucracy will place greater restrictions on those they perceive as the enemy (us), thus inconveniencing thousands of innocent travelers by forcing unrealistic restrictions upon them. Secondly they will seek a scapegoat to blame for the tragedy, in this case, the knife. It matters not that there will remain many more and equally effective potential weapons in the airline environment.
We will be forced into another situation where we will be even more dependant upon big brother. No longer will a surgeon traveling on an airplane have a knife in his possession to perform an emergency tracheotomy or other life saving procedure, he will have to rely upon the medical kit on the airline, which will in all probability be locked up and if the present regulation stand will not contain a knife. No longer will I have my pocket knife to dig out a splinter or the screw driver to fix my spectacles. I am alone and with out tools that I and many others have learned to trust and depend upon.
I feel that these tragic events will have one major positive influence upon the future traveler. First because it has been inconclusively proven that we cannot depend upon others for protection, we all know and will fervently believe that we are primarily responsible for our own security. If we see or believe that something is wrong, it should be reported immediately to the authorities. If they do not act decisively it is up to us to complain vocally and publicly about their lack of action.
Second, we all know that from this point on hijacking will not be simply an inconvenience and that the big brother will bale us out in the near future. Any of us that find ourselves in a hostage situation must be immediately aware that it is life threatening, not only to us but possibly of much greater potential loss of life, such as the twin towers and pentagon events.
It will be our responsibility to act. Never again will the odds be in the favor of the terrorist, if a plane contains 130 passengers, the odds will be 130 to one against the terrorist. The pilot and crew who while they are in positions of power and authority will have immediate support from all concerned. All will immediately recognize that they are players in a critical life threatening drama and they individually and in concert have and must exercise control over the events.
These last acts can and should very well leave the probability of another 'successful' skyjacking ever occurring over American soil at absolute zero. I remember reading some time ago about a skyjacking attempt of an Israeli aircraft by a terrorist; the passengers acting in concert shredded him. This is the way it should always be, security and safety is the responsibility of each and every one of us, when we allow ourselves to depend upon others for our safety or security we will surly be disappointed.
The events of Sept. 11, 2001 have been referred to as another Pearl Harbor. I hope this is so and that the prophesy of one of the players of the Pearl Harbor drama also apply. "I fear that we have awakened a sleeping giant whose anger and resolve will be a terrible foe". Admiral Anamoto, of the Japanese Navy.
Now and forever more, security must be the responsibility of all the people, for without the true participation of everyone, none of us is safe.
I would suggest that we write our congressmen, send letters to the editor and be ready should we eventually face the need to act responsibly in achieving our safety. Illicit weapons are not necessary the human animal survived with hands fists and feet for many thousands of years.
Make no mistake about it, I hate terrorism, the despicable low life semblances of mankind who are filled with prejudice, hatred and prey upon mankind like one of the evils from Pandora's box. With their last cowardly act they have destroyed the lives of thousands of people and placed a heavy burden on those of us who remain. The pain, suffering, fear and hatred could very well lead to more injustice to man. We cannot destroy terrorism from without for it will only lead to more hatred as innocent lives are claimed by the hatred of man for man.
We in America have been conditioned to believe that our big brother, government can and will protect us. We have relied upon the FAA and Airline industry to play the role of protector. Through our passive role we have been forced to rely upon them to protect us while we fly the friendly skies. We have been denied any role or responsibility for the security of our fellow travelers or for ourselves. I for one never feel as helpless as when I sit in a commercial air craft and wonder if the crew of the plane will be able to act appropriately should an emergency situation develop.
It is in an undeniable fact that the airline industry and the bureaucrats who govern her have obviously failed in their mission of trust. The head of each and every airline and government entity with any responsibility in preventing the latest tragedy, along with the next 50 senior employees should be summarily dismissed in total disgrace.
One of the goals of terrorism is to force government to become so controlling of the people that they individually and in masse rebel against regulation.
I feel that these last acts of inhumanity will have two long range effects. First, in order to displace the accurate accusations of irresponsibility, the bureaucracy will place greater restrictions on those they perceive as the enemy (us), thus inconveniencing thousands of innocent travelers by forcing unrealistic restrictions upon them. Secondly they will seek a scapegoat to blame for the tragedy, in this case, the knife. It matters not that there will remain many more and equally effective potential weapons in the airline environment.
We will be forced into another situation where we will be even more dependant upon big brother. No longer will a surgeon traveling on an airplane have a knife in his possession to perform an emergency tracheotomy or other life saving procedure, he will have to rely upon the medical kit on the airline, which will in all probability be locked up and if the present regulation stand will not contain a knife. No longer will I have my pocket knife to dig out a splinter or the screw driver to fix my spectacles. I am alone and with out tools that I and many others have learned to trust and depend upon.
I feel that these tragic events will have one major positive influence upon the future traveler. First because it has been inconclusively proven that we cannot depend upon others for protection, we all know and will fervently believe that we are primarily responsible for our own security. If we see or believe that something is wrong, it should be reported immediately to the authorities. If they do not act decisively it is up to us to complain vocally and publicly about their lack of action.
Second, we all know that from this point on hijacking will not be simply an inconvenience and that the big brother will bale us out in the near future. Any of us that find ourselves in a hostage situation must be immediately aware that it is life threatening, not only to us but possibly of much greater potential loss of life, such as the twin towers and pentagon events.
It will be our responsibility to act. Never again will the odds be in the favor of the terrorist, if a plane contains 130 passengers, the odds will be 130 to one against the terrorist. The pilot and crew who while they are in positions of power and authority will have immediate support from all concerned. All will immediately recognize that they are players in a critical life threatening drama and they individually and in concert have and must exercise control over the events.
These last acts can and should very well leave the probability of another 'successful' skyjacking ever occurring over American soil at absolute zero. I remember reading some time ago about a skyjacking attempt of an Israeli aircraft by a terrorist; the passengers acting in concert shredded him. This is the way it should always be, security and safety is the responsibility of each and every one of us, when we allow ourselves to depend upon others for our safety or security we will surly be disappointed.
The events of Sept. 11, 2001 have been referred to as another Pearl Harbor. I hope this is so and that the prophesy of one of the players of the Pearl Harbor drama also apply. "I fear that we have awakened a sleeping giant whose anger and resolve will be a terrible foe". Admiral Anamoto, of the Japanese Navy.
Now and forever more, security must be the responsibility of all the people, for without the true participation of everyone, none of us is safe.
I would suggest that we write our congressmen, send letters to the editor and be ready should we eventually face the need to act responsibly in achieving our safety. Illicit weapons are not necessary the human animal survived with hands fists and feet for many thousands of years.
