Thanks, AC!

It sounds, actually, like the forces of Reason my triumph here, ultimately -- hopefully the lower-level AirTran employee who screwed up will not make *that* mistake again.

I'm amazed that the FBI's word on this matter wouldn't be accepted by AirTran. How paranoid do you have to be, exactly, before your assertion that someone is innocent and safe is accepted by the airlines?

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http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1099322/PC -Konk-clown-strip-searched-airport-security-guards --thought-terrorist.html"

Thanks AC! This story has simply too many chances for ironic tag-lines, so I'll leave them for others to make.

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Thanks, AC! Without an articulated reason for stopping these folks, one might reasonably assume it was some combination of prejudice and ignorance. Certainly if I were one of the musicians, I wouldn't be satisfied with this explanation.

This might be another example of fear begetting anger. I sure hope the musicians got a nice apology, but if the article says so, I missed it. It'll be interesting to see where their filed complaints go. My guess? No particular answer -- some kind of bureaucratic reflex-response, but no responsible human being saying "golly, you were right. We're changing this, and we're sorry."

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I decry the discombobulation, but concede that "recombobulation" area helps!

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I travelled by air in New Zealand about a year ago, and I must say, I was pleasantly suprpised by how informal and relaxed it was. Apparently rules have tightened. A *leaky* chainsaw shouldn't have been allowed of course, but why not allow a clean one? It would be hard to imagine a harder-to-conceal weapon, or one more conspicuous when you're trying to start it up.

I can see hear the somewhat inarticulate complaints of our Zombie readers now....

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As the person who sent this to me put it: "Soon, only the terrorists will have balloons".

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I must say, in defense of TSA, they didn't try to confiscate the somewhat provocative T-shirts the reporter wore!

It's worth a look and a couple of hoots!

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An FAA technician at Boston's Logan International Airport decided that rather than take an airport vehicle to get to a runway light maintenance area, he would rather ride a bike. Unfortunately, in these uncertain times, anything out of the ordinary will trigger a security scare, and that's exactly what happened - State police were called in, and a runway was closed for 20 minutes, delaying 5 flights."

Thanks, AC!

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There you have it: disagree with the government, and you've committed a primary crime of being a terrorist. Can it get any more blatant?"

Thanks, AC! I confidently await the term "terrorism" being used to describe a parking violation.

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I'm not sure if this story qualifies as "Stupid Security" or "Bizarre Security". Anyway, it tells of a traveler at a TSA checkpoint, who mistook an instruction from screener, and uhhhh... well, he removed his trousers in front of the the TSA staff and other travelers in line. For some reason, this caused a panic amongst the screeners. As the "suspect" describes it: "People started yelling. It was a huge scene. Police were running through the airport, and TSA officers were running toward me and I'm like, 'What?'""

The same thing happens to me every time I drop my drawers at a TSA checkpoint!

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