[JohnHuang2]

Wednesday, July 30, 2003

Quote of the Day by goldstategop

[squidly]

Reminds me of that movie where John Malkovich built a plastic gun to kill the president with.

[First Amendment]

That settles it. No planes for me. If they can use knives made of plastic which are invisible with Xray, what has stopped them so far?

[CyberAnt]

Well, Geeeeee .. why don't we just print descriptions on how to do all this stuff - just in case the terrorists haven't figured it out yet ..??

[riverrunner]

This is nothing new this info has been around for years, sword canes have been around for hundreds if not thousands of years ect ect.

[Question_Assumptions]

Do airlines have blankets? Do carry on bags have retractable poles to wheel them along with? Do passengers carry laptops?

People used to fight "cloak and dagger", using the cloak to block and tangle. A blanket could be used. Snap off those retractable poles and you could have a good club or, with sharp edges, a nice knife of your own. Laptops? My iBook would make a heck of a bludgeoning weapon -- of course you need to be willing to sacrifice the laptop.

But, somehow, I don't think passengers will be as passive as they were on 9/11 and I don't think they'll have much of a pause before the passengers "roll".

[spodefly]

I have a pen that also has a very sharp blade concealed in it, ostensibly as a "letter opener". They are available for around $10 ... I have carried it in my coat pocket for years. It is a good pen.

I also accidently carried it on several flights. It was in the coat pocket of the coat that I wore that travel day, and I didn't realize it until after the flight. The 9/11 hijackers would have loved the blade on this pen because it makes a box cutter look like a toy. It is razor sharp, and pointed, and about 4" long.

Now I am more careful not to have that pen in my coat pocket, but the fact is, I travelled on at least 3 trips where it was in the coat pocket. No one caught it.

[Plutarch]

Heck, I have, by mistake, brought my trusty Swiss Army Knife on board several flights with no problem. If there are any hijackers with concealed knives, I am ready to do battle!

[el_chupacabra]

couple of years back I borrowed a suitcase from my wife's uncle and took it back and forth to Chicago. While unpacking the back on my return, I learned that I had taken his freaking 10" hunting knife on a nice round trip in my carry on.

[mhking]

Everyone keeps joking about Bic pens and pencils and other such items.

Ceramic knives are generally extremely sharp, and readily available.

As an example, the Ming Tsai line of ceramic kitchen knives can be found at your local mall. They're a bit more expensive than your standard steak and butcher knives, but as we've already been shown, the bad guys have deep pockets.

This is a lot more serious than we might think. (Not to say that the potential terrorist will probably be the recipient of a severe beatdown, but this is not the sort of throwaway alert that we've become accustomed to.)

[AngryJawa]

I'd be shocked if every able bodied man and woman didn't grab any available blunt object and beat that terrorist(s) to death. Laptops, keys, purses, tray tables, chair arms - anything. Yeah, some of the good guys might get hurt, but there won't be enough terrorist left to fill up a mop bucket.

[dogbrain]

In light of recent reports concerning the possiblilty of more airliner take-over attempts, there has never been a better case for "racial profiling".

Oh, you're feelings have been hurt?

I'm sorry, but let's review.....

[thepainster]

I doubt that there will ever again be a organized terrorist hijacking of an airline in order to use it as a bomb. With passenger awarness as it is, and the reinforment of cockpit doors, the chances of success are very small.

It has been my observation that terrorists seem to find the path of least resistance to exploit. The next big attack in this country will be something that has not been attempted before. I have several ideas, but I refuse to speculate on this forum for obvious reasons.

I hope and pray our homeland securuty is also thinking as I do and implementing preventative plans behind the scenes for such scenarios. I hope there is a think tank of wise Tom Clancy type people who think outside the box and keep us one step ahead of the jihadists.

We need to be pro-active. Being reactive is a recipe for another 9/11.

[Gritty]

Speaking of weapons on airplanes, here it is almost two years after 9/11, and we still don't have armed pilots on airplanes. Granted, there are a few going through training now, but they are a drop in the bucket.

Our bureaucracy travels at blindingly glacial speeds. One can only pray Al Qaeda does the same!

[snooker]

Don't take a knife to a gun fight. That is unless the pilot isn't armed. They are, aren't they?

[CarmelValleyite]

Well that settles it. We must all fly totally nude, have body "cavities" examined first, and be permitted NO carry-ons whatsoever.

Sounds like a party I won't want to miss!

[ibbryn]

Anyone here like the mini mag on the lanyard? After you crack someone on the head with it you can use the light to see if his pupils dilate.
If so, crack him again!

[gridlock]

Oh, just great.

And I'm off to the airport this morning.

Alaska Flight 11. Hope it makes it!

[ATOMIC_PUNK]

Got long fingernails?