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By Doug Terry at Terryreport.com, Washington, DC area:
December 30th, 2009
3:45 pm
In Europe, they talk to passengers and even travelers on trains to see how they react to simple questions. The security people who do this are trained to spot signs of nervousness or agitation. I was once asked, for example, if I were bringing any guns into the UK. I laughed and told them that I do not own any guns, even back in the states. (This was not while going through customs or immigration.)
I believe that I know a major flaw in the American system, as reflected by the fact that in Europe matters are handled differently: we have an extremely top down way of management here (in all aspects of business and government). The assumption of managers, who get paid far more than worker bees, is that all the workers are stupid. Therefore, you've got to keep it simple. Eliminate all or almost all discretion at the bottom of the system. Make the workers like automatons and drill them constantly on their duties.
As a result of these methods, the TSA people are not taught to spot potential terrorists. They are taught to treat everyone the same way, including frail, 82 year old grandmothers. The top down management style helps to re-enforce the notion that managers deserve the higher pay. College and graduate degrees do not, in themselves, mean that one person is far superior in security matters than someone who "works the line", but the system is set up so that the brains get paid and the hands get work.
We don't need better or more invasive screening at airports. The place to stop a terrorist is one thousand miles away from the airport and we had every chance imaginable to do that this time with the pants bomber.
How long will it take you to find a terrorist screening everyone flying from Kansas City to Dallas? I would guess five to ten THOUSAND years. Yet, the focus and the energy is on that silliness, while the agencies that actually had a chance to catch this guy are still working independently, not sharing information and, apparently, don't have computers that can crosscheck data bases. Insane!
The Bush administration, if you can call it that, was all reaction, reassurance and, importantly, politics in its response to the events of 9-11. Unfortunately, as far as we can see, the Obama gang has not gotten a handle on this and exerted true leadership. The whole big show of security at the nation's airports is more designed to make nervous passengers feel good than it is to catch actual terrorists.
One sign of the top down management style is the ridiculous measures imposed on travelers. I have seen, with my own eyes, a TSA agent in LA take a baby from its mother's arms and pat it down. The baby, by the way, was nearly naked except for its diaper and a small T-shirt. I have seen a grandmother near tears because her sewing kit was being confiscated in Denver.
We need a trained citizens corp of people who can be on the lookout for potential terrorists, both in the air and on the ground. The government would hate this idea, because it indicates they can't do the job and, also, it takes power away from them. They would argue that it would lead to far too many false alarms and might cause terrible disruption in the air if citizens act on their own. To that I say baloney.
Yes, some people would be overzealous, but would be any worse than closing an entire airport because one person missed the metal detector? The citizens, further, could be carefully trained not to act in anything but a real emergency and they could under go re-training every year. These citizens should be allowed to carry non-lethal means on board aircraft to allow them to assist in stopping a hijacking By that, I don't mean a taser, pepper spray or anything similar. In short, nothing that would in anyway threaten general safety on an aircraft.
We have a wonderful country with a lot of patriotic, capable citizens. During WW II, the entire nation was called into action, not because it was assumed that their efforts would always be helpful, but because the idea of mobilization created the basis for involvement and energy in the war effort.
Citizens without official roles should not be thought of as the first line of defense. That is really up to the intelligence agencies and coordinated action against terrorists in their bases of operation. But, citizens can be part of the middle line against terrorism. We have seen three wonderful examples of unbidden citizen action: the aircraft that came down in Pennsylvania, saving either the White House or Capitol from at least partial destruction, the action against the shoe bomber eight years ago and, now, the quick response to the pants bomber over Detroit. It is time to make this role a serious part of the effort against terrorism. Thousands of volunteers want to know: where do I sign up?
In my own case, as a frequent professional traveler with more than half a million miles in the air, I would welcome any chance not to be treated like a common criminal at the airport or in the air. My experience in the air and potential ability, like many others, to spot potential terrorist before they strike is being wasted. Instead, I am the suspect, just as millions of others are every day. What a waste.
Doug Terry, 12.30.09
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