I'm glad you're not a trooper and please tell me you are not an FFDO.

To all those concerned. Suicide bombers don't announce their intentions by wearing flashing lights on their chests! Oh, one more thing. A Light Bright toy with a cartoon figure flipping you the bird is not an IED. Get a grip people!

I would also like to thank HSLD and the other admins. Political discussions like this (and more heated than this) are often a part of conversations on long flights. So this kind of post really is part of being an airline pilot.

Good point, I think that the US is in a position to be a global leader, we have been in the past and in many respects we still are. But what is it about the US that makes it "better" than China, Syria, or North Korea?

As our (Americans) freedoms are stripped away in the name of safety and security, aren't we becoming more like the countries you despise and less like the nation that was founded on principles of "Liberty and Freedom for all"?

BTW, I think that's the same Radio Shack breadboard my 6 year old uses to build IC circuits, maybe I should have homeland security look into it :rolleyes:

http://ak.imgfarm.com/images/ap/Fake...0921140244.jpg

Political correctness is harming this country much worse than any increased security measures taken since 9-11.

She got what she wanted...15 minutes of fame, just like that jackass that got tasered at the John Kerry seminar.

I'm not quite sure what you mean here but if you would like me to I can e-mail you some of my pictures from my deployments to Iraq. You might be surprised at some of the IED's that they come up with.

Mike, this is why they didn't shoot her immediately.

The world is not the happy place you seem to think it is. The other three quarters of the world lives in political oppression under the threat of annihilation. If we want to keep what little freedom we have in this great nation, we have to realize this and adopt the kind of severe safety measures we see with the TSA and Homeland Security. If you want to wear strange buttons and act carelessly you can stay at home. The world has long been a place of severe and deadly strife. America was exempt from this for many years by the grace of the sacrifices made by the WWII generation, but the threat to security is present now just asit was in 1942, but now in the form of terrorists. We have to do what we have to do to keep the invaders at bay. Terrorists use bizarre tactics, such as seizing airliners and sending suicidal maniacs to ruin our cities, but it's the same basic desire to destroy America and all she represents coming into play. Having the upscaled security policies we see in the airports today is a small price to pay for the freedom to post what you want to post and to say what you want to say. Try going to Gaza Strip if you don't see my point.

I am willing to forego wearing blinky buttons and willing to take my shoes off for the TSA if it means our nation is safe. TSA warns every single person entering the airports about the measures it employs, and the TSA serves a critical function in the security of America and cannot be faulted in this case. It's not a happy world, but if you ask me it is still a hopeful one because of the existence of the US of A. We preserve the kind of freedom no other nation offers. The heat is getting high, so this is my last post on this thread.

It was a reference to the Boston incident where some cartoon show promotion got misunderstood.
Attachment 1092

I would be interested in seeing the photos. Can you post some here? I understand your point. Is mine not valid?

Three quarters of the world lives in misery? Are you serious? Have you ever been anywhere else in the world? Sorry, maybe you've traveled all over. I only have experience North America and Western Europe. I admit these are two very highly developed areas. I think it is a stretch to say three quarters are miserable. Even citizens living in third world states can be happy (relative to miserable). Some of the happiest people in the world have the least to show for it.

Again, "They hate us for our freedom." is the dumbest, most disingenuous statement ever uttered by our fearful leader. Democracy at the end of a gun is not democracy.

She is extremely lucky she did not get shot for her stupid actions. FAM's shot a guy in Miami for almost the same thing. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/...8EC3O401.shtml He did not hold still as apparently she did and that is probably what saved her life. The FAM's were cleared of any wrong doing. Regardless of what some people think there is an acceptable level of conduct required when in public. If your going to do something stupid like her, you might win a Darwin award posthumously.

I've read the confidential report on the Florida incident. I've seen the uncensored photos of the dead man. I do not think the FAMs should have shot the man. However, they did act within the rules of engagement so they were not subject to disciplinary action. The rules of engagement are what they are but I think the FAMs could have and should have used better judgment.

Many witnesses said the man did not make a bomb threat. He thought there was a bomb on board. He was trying to get out. He was in the jetway. How many suicide bombers have a woman chasing after them saying, "He's not on his medication." Not many I'll bet.

I feel sorry for the FAMs. It must be one of the hardest things they have ever had to deal with. They acted within the rules but the rules let them down. I wonder if they are still FAMs.

Look guys. Don't jump on me for my OPINION about the incident until you have read the official report. Then if your opinion differs, consider it normal for two reasonable adults to have a different opinion. That's life.