1 This stuff is getting out of control, for sure. The last TSA officer I spoke with had the education of a nine year old. I wanted to ask her if her mother fixed her lunch this morning. She was clueless. Before I could ask her, she said she had to "go on break". I kid you not.

2 The Israelis are past masters at this sort of thing.  It's really a much more effective way to catch bad guys... only thing is, they use highly trained security people and our TSA uses folks that have the pay grade of supermarket baggers.

They're also not afraid to profile travelers in Israel.  We have problems with profiling in this country despite the fact that terrorists tend overwhelmingly to come from certain ethnic/religious groups.

I see a disaster looming.

3 I have this radical new idea for screening. Just hear me out.

First, you would look very closely at the people who did the crime(s) that set off all the extra screening, initially. (In this case, it might be, say, the actual "perpetrators" of the violence on September 11, 2001). You'd try to see if there was any common thread. Any sort of identifiable "pattern" present? Anything at all? Perhaps they're all of Middle-Eastern descent, and Muslim extremists, and between the ages of 18 and 35, and male, and have been responsible for similar acts of violence in other parts of the world in the past, both recently and further back? Something like that would go a long way toward identifying where extra "screening" might be needed.

Next, armed with this description and having narrowed the area where extra screening might be needed, you'd watch ESPECIALLY for people matching that description, wherever they might be, not just in airports.

So far, so good, but here's the twist: if someone matching that description is seen to be acting suspiciously, law enforcement would:

... ask non-intrusive questions and look to see how they respond.  Those who exhibit suspicious behavior like avoiding eye contract and struggling with answers will be pulled aside for more screening.

My idea was to call this process, "crimefighting" or "common sense," for short.

Completely crazy and un-doable, I know.

4 The real problem as everyone knows is "exactly who will they train to do the job?"  So far we've seen so many incompetent people doing TSA work, it does not give me confidence that they would hire anyone able to do the job even marginally well.  In various ways you have hit on every point where we will see problems.  I really wonder if it will work at all. 

5 I hope they don't ask me about my Obamatized 401K plan!

6 JG - you know they will now. LOL.

7 Great. I'm a dark-haired guy with a beard and the social graces of a scorpion with irritable bowel syndrome.

I'm so screwed.

8 But we love you anyway Harvey... just take me along when you want to travel and I'll be able to tell them how awesome you are. LOL.