A six pound laptop, flung Frisbee style into the other person's throat from five to ten feet away, is one of the most deadly missiles allowed on a plane. Yet over half of all commercial pax seem to be allowed to carry one or two on board.

A Cross ball point pen is a stainless steel rod almost as strong as a 16 penny nail. I am tempted to hammer an old one through a 2x4 scrap and carry it on just to see if the use of the pen constitutes a "simulated nail" in the alternative TSA World™. Although nails cannot be prohibited, I saw a magic set at EWR, with those interlocking puzzles your try to get apart, made out of real 16 or 20 penny nails, sold in the sterile area gift shop.