As I have noted before on this blog, if you happen to have replacement parts, as I do, one is subjected to the touchy feely pat down every time you fly commercial. It is invasive, time consuming, and overall a useless exercise, IMHO.

Don't remind me. The Logan Airport TSA crew is, I suspect, where surly and arrogant former record shop and bookstore employees go to die.

...or the wait staff at Friendly's

Last week we were waiting for coffee at PDX, just past security, when I started timing an event. It was the full pat-down of a muscular young man in a wheelchair.
The first thing I thought was-he's probably a vet. The blood in my veins reached near boiling, as this unfolded over the course of seven whole minutes, including a never-ending wanding of the chair itself.

Two pilots arrived at Coffee People, and I pointed the scene out to them, "hey, they've been patting that guy down for five minutes now." Their lips tightened and they shook their heads.

In the meantime, the Christmas day bomber wasn't on a no-fly list because there wasn't enough derogatory information, even though his own FATHER had fingered him as a potential terrorist.

The whole situation just makes me feel utterly sick.

The Federal Government, led by Congress, is indeed arrogant and out of control. It's not our government. And it will continue to grow worse unless enough of us decide to band together and change it. So far we're too divided to bring about sensible change.

Personally, I'm avoiding commercial flights even if it means driving, burning more imported oil.