Two interesting anecdotes from this weekends mileage run.

1. Boarding in SEA. Everyone was on the plane (although the boarding door wasn't closed yet) when the pilot comes on the PA and announces that everyone has to get all their carryons and deplane per the FAA Special Agent who just showed up. Everyone deplanes. Agent boards plane. Comes back out about 45 minutes later. Everyone has to be rechecked and we are allowed to board. No real explanation given. Pax reaction ranges from anger to fear. (Me? I was merely annoyed.)

2. I recently became Red Cross First Aid and CPR certified. On a last minute whim as I was packing, I threw my small first aid kit into my carry on. When I had a headache in flight and decided to get some Tylenol out of it, I realized that I had 2 syringes (in case I am in the 3rd world and need an injection) as well as safety pins, and a razor blade (not a safety razor, but an actual straight razor blade.) OOPS! I thought about trying to discard them but decided to bet that if security didn't notice them once that they wouldn't be noticed again. I was right. Carried them all the way across the country and back with no problems.

Stuff like this just reinforces my opinion that this new security stuff is just eyecandy designed to make us feel safer as opposed to actually protect us.