There seems to be a lot of flap about the newly imposed airport screening techniques used by the TSA, presumably for our collective benefit. I have been following the tweets and finding quite a few opinions. Then I sat back and began to reflect on how things used to be and what they have come to now.
I remember as a kid going to our local airport to visit dad as he worked as security there. We got a big kick out of standing right there on the tarmac as the jets were revving up and I loved how intensely loud they were, the thrill of feeling those engines roar right inside my ribcage.
The passengers would file out in line walking to the plane climbing a ladder to board. I enjoyed jaunts from Southern California to San Francisco and I fell I love with the whole experience of flying. That flight was short enough but still allowed for some special treatment from the stewardesses offering refreshments. I felt like royalty. Friends would meet me at the gate (they originally called them gates because you actually came through a gate).
As time went by, I had watched how Orange County Airport went from a shack and a strip to the modern, all-covered, multi-leveled John Wayne Airport. It was fun in the old days when we could go into the hangar to see the famous star’s plane with the signature True Grit eye-patch adorning the tail.
Such freedoms are long gone. At first, it was the metal detector, and then the x-ray, then we had to start removing items of clothing. I find I am sanctioned inside a terminal where I can no longer see the planes, save for a glimpse of the nose as it docks for disembarking and preparing for the next flight. It all seems so clinical.
Fast forward to today. I have just seen images of body scans on television with reporters claiming they are not as secure as we have been lead to believe. While listening to the radio this morning I heard that there are further visuals of things so personal that I dare not even mention them here, but they can be seen on the internet.
There are mothers defending their children’s right to be exempt from such probing and searching. This sense of criminalization is intense. Being one of great shyness and miles away from any attempt to do anything that would remotely resemble an infraction, I am not surprised by the uproar.
There are those sympathizing with the TSA employees and offering it is not their fault, either. When folks argue that military personnel are accustomed to the treatment, I have to ask, are we citizens supposed to accept the same treatment when we are paying so much money for the privilege to fly to our chosen destinations? What about the injustice of planes held on the tarmac in excess of eight hours for delays in order to avoid the painstaking process of rescreening everyone should they leave their planted spots on the plane? This is more like unlawful detention to me.
All in all, I find myself no longer desirous of flying anywhere, just looking back fondly on the old days and marveling at the apparent erosion of our freedoms. The wanton needs of the few have outweighed the freedoms of the many. What have we lost in the bargain? Are we safer in this era of terrorism? Gosh, I am afraid just to type the very word.
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