Quote:
Originally Posted by epitome
The guy in The Atlantic article makes a great point.
If a terrorist wants to shut down air travel and kill a lot of people, they can just do what they're going to do in the security line.
When you think about it that way, all of the security is a bit ridiculous
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Such an attack would shutdown an airport, but not the entire system.
Furthermore, the government would like spin such an attack as an example of the security working, since it would have occurred outside of the security checkpoint.
Airliners themselves remain a primary target of terrorists, in large part due to the amount of destruction one can do with a large jet fully loaded with fuel, as was well illustrated in the 911 attacks...
Pilots of large jets are trained to ditch away from populated areas when in doubt of being able to land safely, such as the pilot who ditched into the Hudson. Terrorists know the power of jets and hence remain a highly sought target.
Such an argument about the security line itself being as much a threat as what they're attempting to protect against would be more applicable to public schools - if one is seeking to attack a school, the security line is likely among the best places to do it.
But, to reiterate, for a terrorist fixated on airline travel, the plane itself remains the primary target - and in that regard, despite all the theatrics and shortcomings of security screenings, the current focus of TSA security of keeping terrorists away from the planes is the correct emphasis.
Ron