TSA Fails to Intercept Terrorist; We Pay the Price

I don't know what annoys me more:  Janet Napolitano saying "the system worked" when what she means is "the system failed, but smart passengers proved that the system is unnecessary", or the moronic new rules the TSA is apparently putting into place in order to "prevent" future such occurances.  The TSA's obsession with fighting the last war is so strong that I expect any day to see them building wooden forts at our nation's airports in order to keep the redcoats at bay.  Every time they miss something, we have to give up more liberty. 

Which is not to say that I make common cause with those claiming this as some special failure of the Obama administration.  Terrorists are bound to get through airport security if they really want, or do something worse, like blow up the crowds of people patiently waiting in line to go through airport security.  Maybe we could do it smarter, like the Israelis do.  But the Israelis also armor the holds of their airliners, making it very difficult to blow them up--and impossible to fly at a profit.

No, what this points out is not that Napolitano is incompetent, but that our elaborate system of security theater is probably next to useless.  I cannot imagine where this is going to end.  No, actually, I can imagine all too well:  with passengers checking all luggage and flying in specially issued hospital gowns.  And when some enterprising terrorist manages to sneak through that cordon by swallowing his explosives, the TSA will tell us that "the system works" and start the cavity searches.

This article available online at:

http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2009/12/tsa-fails-to-intercept-terrorist-we-pay-the-price/32651/