.
AIRLINE SECURITY AND HAITI. Strange bedfellows to be sure, but hold that thought. Since 9/11 our defensive response to tighten airline security, despite throwing millions of dollars at it, has remained a bit of a joke. Our knee-jerk reaction is understandable, but we can do much better if we just think about the problem.
Let's start with HOMELAND SECURITY. I suppose a shaky case can be made that we needed it for psychological reinforcement, but I think not. It's creation was just another stupid political blunder.
(1) WE HAVE THE F.B.I. management, structure, and power
in place to protect Americans within the national borders.
in place to protect Americans within the national borders.
(2) WE HAVE THE C.I.A. management, structure, and power
in place to protect American interests out side of our
national borders.
in place to protect American interests out side of our
national borders.
I dont think there was ANY GOOD REASON to create another bureaucratic agency.
HUGE U.S.S.R. AIRCRAFT 2010
WHO ARE WE AT WAR WITH? Terrorists? Oil interests? The answer is neither one. Our government, for some unknown reason, hesitates to name our enemy? This is crazy. History tells us that there will always be a lunatic fringe of anti-anything terrorists. Their number is usually small and they can be handled as a police matter. That case is closed. The ISLAMOFASCIST case isn't.
But first: HOW ABOUT OIL? The oil issue is entirely bogus and always has been. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) people have known that over 4 BILLION BARRELS of oil is readily available to us from under North Dakota and Montana. That's 25 times the 1995 estimate. They call this discovery THE BAKKEN FORMATION and it contains enough oil to replace ALL current American sources. At the present time the government prohibits development. Interesting isn't it. Okay then, if it's not oil what is the answer.
WE ARE AT WAR WITH ARAB FUNDAMENTALIST ISLAMIC TERRORISTS. This war has been ongoing on in other parts of the world since before the nation of Israel was established. Only recently has it directly attacked targets on American soil.
FUNDAMENTALIST INTERPRETATIONS OF THE MAJOR RELIGIONS CAN BE DANGEROUS. The Holy Bible contains episodes of horrible violence, brutal murders, and innocent death, yet rational Christians and Jews do not use these examples to justify similar violence in the world today. The Qu'ran contains similarly awful episodes and IS USED BY RADICAL FUNDAMENTALIST MUSLIMS to justify similar behavior today. That's a pretty significant difference.
RADICAL FUNDAMENTALIST MUSLIMS are a small part of the Islamic religion. Despite being a minority within the many divisions and sects of Islam, the RADICAL FUNDAMENTALISTS now control the entire religion. The much larger number of peaceful, moderate, and rational Muslims have become thoroughly intimidated, and there is no organized Islamic resistance. Therefore, ALL MUSLIMS MUST BE CONSIDERED OUR ENEMIES UNTIL PROVEN OTHERWISE.
POLITICAL CORRECTNESS MUST BE IGNORED. We can generally identify our possible and potential enemies by racial and religious profiling, and we must do it. This business of concentrating billions of dollars and employing thousands of government employees charged to pat down / wand / x-ray / and question 80 year old American Grandmothers and babies at the airport . . . is inconviencing ALL AIR TRAVELERS. Great long lines of angry passengers wait to be checked through a security system that may or may not catch a dysfunctional Arab with a bomb in his shoe. We are destroying our airline industry in order to catch a very small number of real enemies. Look at the numbers:
(1) Recently there has been 1 AIRLINE TERRORIST incident over 16 MILLION FLIGHTS.
(2) There has been 1 AIRLINE TERRORIST incident in over 12 MILLION MILES FLOWN.
(3) In the 8 YEARS before 12/30/09 there were 3 attempts by AIRLINE TERRORISTS.
(4) In one year there is 1 CHANCE IN 500,000 of being hit with LIGHTNING.
(5) How much are we spending on preventing LIGHTNING STRIKES?
More numbers:
(a) Excepting 3000 killed on 9/11, between the years 2000 and 2010
only 469 people were killed by AIRLINE TERRORISTS.
(b) AND FINALLY it appears that as many as 40,000 people have
been killed in HAITI during last weeks earthquake.
It's not a fair comparison, but it furnishes a little perspective.
Dixon
Comments
At the same time Rain, I am reasonably convinced that between off shore drilling and new methods of extraction from shale deposits and untapped Alaskan reserves, that America COULD be free of dependence on middle eastern oil. As for the environmental impact there are several new technologies available (slant drilling, etc.) that should reduce the impact quite a lot. I'll look further into this.
Stay dry.
Dixon
Dixon