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Security is hard. Physical security is hard too. Just a thought: you can stuff anything you want in your big suitcase. So if someone wants to set an alarm bomb

by yeukhon 13y ago

Security is hard. Physical security is hard too. Just a thought: you can stuff anything you want in your big suitcase. So if someone wants to set an alarm bomb with some destructive chemical it is possible, no? Though I am in favor of airport security - even if false sense is better than zero. If it can prevent idiots or unstable from carrying a steel knife we should. Yes, you can't prevent more major terrorist attack easily - one could just drive a van full of gas and explode in the lobby if one wishes to do so - but we still need that basic security if it is doable. The truth is we as a civilization tends to blame all the time. When we fear danger we blame the government not doing enough and when we find inconvenience we ask for less protection. I see no one has yet attempt to provide a better solution - only complaint. Is TSA making people waiting? I often get to the airport two hours early so I think the waiting is fine. Is it embarrasing when someone stops you and scans you? I have been stopped before for carrying a coin in my pocket before going through the scanner. It's okay. Everyone is too busy to get through. The last point is last time when Schneier talked about the dry ice bomb he was wrong it being harmless. He just won't admit he is wrong.

twoodfin 13y ago
Just a thought: you can stuff anything you want in your big suitcase. Of course this isn't true. Checked baggage is screened just as carry-on luggage is.
- logfromblammo 13y ago
  Baggage screening, of course! That's why your laptop, camera, or tablet gets stolen if you check it. The amount of thefts from luggage during the security process is simply mind-boggling. One would think that anyone unscrupulous enough to boldly steal a $200 item--even under the supposed scrutiny of cameras and co-workers--and get the item home from the airport undetected could likewise do the reverse for an anonymous envelope of cash. If people can steal from luggage, they can also drop something into it. If you absolutely, positively must do evil in the air, you just apply for a low-wage unskilled job at the airport and do it as an insider.
aestra 13y ago
Throwing many millions of dollars on a non-existent problem is fine? Checked bags get screened. They sometimes get opened and rooted through by hand. Sometimes they leave notes saying they have rooted through your checked bags just for "peace of mind." I've gotten such notes.
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darkarmani 13y ago
> If it can prevent idiots or unstable from carrying a steel knife we should. Should we spend hundreds of millions and molest millions of passengers to prevent this? > Is TSA making people waiting? I often get to the airport two hours early so I think the waiting is fine. What is the cost in lost productivity of this? We are spending money to lost productivity to prevent a knives on planes??
- yeukhon 13y ago
  > Should we spend hundreds of millions and molest millions of passengers to prevent this? And talk about job creation too. Maybe. Often we use statistics. Well, we don't have good statistics or can't do experiment on whether or not the chance of surviving is higher or lower with/out the TSA screening. Can you? > What is the cost in lost productivity of this? We are spending money to lost productivity to prevent a knives on planes?? Losing how much time? An extra 10-20 minutes on average? You understand why terrorists like to plot terrorism on airplane right? Because we can't control an airplane once it is flying. On the ground you can run away or hope a rescue unit come to you in 5 minutes. So losing 20 minutes on average (which you should plan ahead for any air travel ANYWAY), versus keeping a sharp knife away from the mentally unstable passenger next to you is probably a good thing. Maybe the chance is very low, near zero. When that comes, your life might be over and that 20 minutes is negligible. Some people are happy to trade 20 minutes away but I am not.
  - Xylakant 13y ago
    > Some people are happy to trade 20 minutes away but I am not. Do you step out of your flat each day, take a cab, bus, walk short distances? Cross the road? The death risk in all of theses activities is many times higher than dying on an airplane because a mentally unstable passenger manages to stabs you with a knife he deliberately brought on board.
    - yeukhon 13y ago
      I already said the risk is nearly zero. Read it carefully. Yet, if there is a risk, even if it is at 0.1%, precaution is required. And when this impacts the lives of hundreds of passengers, the risk is more than just me dying on the street tomorrow. -- edit -- whoever downvote is probably a kid.

by yeukhon 13y ago

twoodfin 13y ago

Just a thought: you can stuff anything you want in your big suitcase. Of course this isn't true. Checked baggage is screened just as carry-on luggage is.

logfromblammo 13y ago
Baggage screening, of course! That's why your laptop, camera, or tablet gets stolen if you check it. The amount of thefts from luggage during the security process is simply mind-boggling. One would think that anyone unscrupulous enough to boldly steal a $200 item--even under the supposed scrutiny of cameras and co-workers--and get the item home from the airport undetected could likewise do the reverse for an anonymous envelope of cash. If people can steal from luggage, they can also drop something into it. If you absolutely, positively must do evil in the air, you just apply for a low-wage unskilled job at the airport and do it as an insider.

aestra 13y ago

Throwing many millions of dollars on a non-existent problem is fine? Checked bags get screened. They sometimes get opened and rooted through by hand. Sometimes they leave notes saying they have rooted through your checked bags just for "peace of mind." I've gotten such notes.

deleted 13y ago

[deleted]

darkarmani 13y ago

> If it can prevent idiots or unstable from carrying a steel knife we should. Should we spend hundreds of millions and molest millions of passengers to prevent this? > Is TSA making people waiting? I often get to the airport two hours early so I think the waiting is fine. What is the cost in lost productivity of this? We are spending money to lost productivity to prevent a knives on planes??

yeukhon 13y ago
> Should we spend hundreds of millions and molest millions of passengers to prevent this? And talk about job creation too. Maybe. Often we use statistics. Well, we don't have good statistics or can't do experiment on whether or not the chance of surviving is higher or lower with/out the TSA screening. Can you? > What is the cost in lost productivity of this? We are spending money to lost productivity to prevent a knives on planes?? Losing how much time? An extra 10-20 minutes on average? You understand why terrorists like to plot terrorism on airplane right? Because we can't control an airplane once it is flying. On the ground you can run away or hope a rescue unit come to you in 5 minutes. So losing 20 minutes on average (which you should plan ahead for any air travel ANYWAY), versus keeping a sharp knife away from the mentally unstable passenger next to you is probably a good thing. Maybe the chance is very low, near zero. When that comes, your life might be over and that 20 minutes is negligible. Some people are happy to trade 20 minutes away but I am not.
- Xylakant 13y ago
  > Some people are happy to trade 20 minutes away but I am not. Do you step out of your flat each day, take a cab, bus, walk short distances? Cross the road? The death risk in all of theses activities is many times higher than dying on an airplane because a mentally unstable passenger manages to stabs you with a knife he deliberately brought on board.
  - yeukhon 13y ago
    I already said the risk is nearly zero. Read it carefully. Yet, if there is a risk, even if it is at 0.1%, precaution is required. And when this impacts the lives of hundreds of passengers, the risk is more than just me dying on the street tomorrow. -- edit -- whoever downvote is probably a kid.