Stop bitching, stop buying and do your jobs…terrorists are watching.

January 4, 2010  |  Is That A Joke?!, Today's Headlines  |  0 Comments

Just days after the Christmas terrorist attempt near Detroit Airport, our family experienced such ignorance on behalf of the TSA that we thought it was worthy of our inaugural 2010 post.

Hours after the said attack, every talk show was discussing two things: did our government fail us and how can we add better technology to our airports to make flying safer?

As a technologist, I can tell you there’s always more technology can do, but it costs money, convenience and at the end of the day, nothing is fool proof.  Should the government have listened better, yes, but we’re used to that right?!

Sadly, I’d like to think that the hardest thing I’m dealing with today is writing 2010 versus 2009.  Instead, I’m still finding it hard to swallow our return flight home from Denver International to Albany Airport.

First let me say I appreciate the efforts to keep traveling with children relatively easy despite pressure to up the ante on restrictions each time our government decides to ignore a terrorist warning and us citizens have to stop an attack.

That being said, I think all parents would agree that we want safety first.  So when my husband went through the metal detector first, then my two-year-old daughter followed, and I took up the rear with our bags as they cleared the entry point of the computer monitor.

While putting my shoes back on, our one carry on suitcase was taken for further hand screening by a TSA representative.  They caught my facewash, damnit.  Then another TSA representative, still looking over my diaper bag in the computer monitor yells to me,  “Ma’am, do you have yogurt packed in here?”

Thinking to myself that I know I only have dry foods, I responded no.  The TSA representative proceeds to tell me she’s picking up something “dense” on the computer screen and it’s hard to decipher. I tell her there’s no yogurt and so she just approves the bag and sends it on its way back to me.

Something was haunting me…what was dense? We had no liquids, no medicines, a few Barbies, DVDs, M&Ms and animal crackers.

Then it hit me. Play-Doh. We had two containers of Play-Doh.

Now I’m no expert, but I watch enough Discovery Channel to know a bit about explosives.  And so I’m sure you can imagine my shock (and my husband’s) when we realized that just days after a terrorist attack, two huge substances involved in bombs and explosives were let through the pearly gates and sent on its merry way to a plane ride.  Clay is often used to hold down bomb wires and chemicals in Play Doh are often used as parts of explosive material. My husband the engineer was up in arms.

So I argue that it’s not your technology that’s the problem. And you can’t always blame the government.  I argue you need to do your job and help support what technology offers you in assistance.

If there’s a red flag, send it up the flagpole. Children or no children, these are the reasons terrorists keep catching the US with our pants down.

The lesson for today is simple. Do your job. Do it well. Stop blaming and bickering about what is the best thing to spend more taxpayer’s dollars on.  Instead, stick to what works and do a better job using it.

On a positive note, this hiccup reminds me of what a great year 2010 is going to be.  We have tons of great interviews coming up, tons of company news, new technology to discuss.

Stay tuned for more rants, more raves and more reviews…talking all things tech in New York.

Happy New Year.