The Long ViewLooking for a cat in a doghouse

In a reversal of rules for boarding aircraft here in the United States, passengers will now soon be allowed to carry small sharp objects onto planes with them. Many items were strictly prohibited from getting anywhere near a plane after 9/11, but on Friday, Transportation Security Administration chief Kip Hawley will announce that the restriction is becoming less stringent. Under this change, passengers will now be able to carry small scissors that are less than four inches and even screwdrivers that are less than seven inches. In a statement, Air Transport Association spokesman David Castelveter said, “What we believe, as does the TSA, is that we should be focusing on what poses the greatest risk.” This greater risk of which they speak pertains to detection of explosives.

Here we believe that the reversal of restrictions of items that are allowed to be brought on planes is a mistake, but a bigger mistake is the attention that these small screwdrivers, scissors, and other items garner from TSA. There have probably been many of studies and reports to lead officials to make such a relaxation of rules for onboard items, but maybe they should have spent more of this effort on regulating cargo in the bottom of passengers planes that continually is allowed to go through airports unchecked (as mentioned above in story number 2).

-read more about this in this Los Angeles Times report