Subj: Business Flyers are Getting Angrier
Date: 12/31/2001 11:57:10 AM Eastern Standard Time
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I am sure that none of you respond well to bulk mail and group mailings. I am sending this in the hope that at least one of you will take an interest.
It is high time that the Press adopts a responsible attitude and does not foster the all is well mentality of the FAA and Congress.
Everything that has been done (and written about) during the past few months as been done with one goal in mind...get grandma and grandpa NONFLYERS back in the air for the Holidays. Well, the Holidays are over and many of us have to get back to work.
Like many of the posters on FlyerTalk, I feel like I live on an airplane. I fly over 100,000 miles a year and have been doing so for over 15 years. The last several months have been Hell.
If what has allegedly been done really improved my safety, I would not be complaining. You know and I know and most professional flyers know that it has been window dressing.
The people that you have been interviewing have all said "wow it's great" "I'm safe" "I would stand in line for 6 hours if it means I will get to Kansas safely"
Well, the truth is, we are no safer today (or less safe) than we were on 9-11. But, we are being hassled, groped, felt-up, made to partially undress (women are buying bras with no underwire) in front of leering "security people" who are under paid. Many do not speak English and have not graduated from even High School. I was told (yes this is hearsay) that one particularly perverted screener delighted in playing with lacy bras and panties that were in carry-ons.
Our National Guardsmen are standing like wooden Indians with no ammo and really nothing to do. These proud kids are there because they are ordered to be there. They have jobs and families. Look at what they are loosing in the "sham" of security.
We are forced to stand in countless lines for countless hours and subjected to countless searches. I am losing time -- money- and patience!
Mr. and Mrs. Reporter, why don't you buy a fully refundable ticket to anywhere and watch what happens during the "random" searches at the gate. Why surprise of surprises, it is Mr. three-piece suit and Ms. Caucasian business lady (frequent flyers know not to be first in line for First Class any more) or Granny or Granddad....WHY? Because the airlines know that they won't complain and to be PC the FAA says they cant do truly random searches and call people over the loud speakers to be searched or God Forbid...they CAN'T PROFILE.
Where are the professionals who know how to ask questions, search, look in someone's eye and make him crawl even if he has done nothing? Where is real security that works?
Here are just a few of the many posts on FT the last few days.
I think it is time to stop taking the point of the infrequent flyers who really believe that all of this nonsense works. With everything "at a heightened level of security" we have shoe bombs, guns in Memphis, bullets in Ft Lauderdale and God knows what else.
None of us wants a repeat of 9-11. None of us wants someone with a bomb in his shoe to send us to heaven or hell. But, we all know that the system is very broken and not on the way to be fixed. We also know that it is still safer to fly than drive to the airport or to wherever because we refuse to waste 2 hours each way on a 2 hour flight.
You and I both know that now with allowing the current screeners with a years experience to stay instead of, at least, a high school graduation, will do nothing but keep all of our problems magnifying.
Thanks for listening and Happy New Year,
FYI: (There are many more posts from the past 3 months...please go look)
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[This message has been edited by mikey1003 (edited 12-31-2001).]
[This message has been edited by mikey1003 (edited 12-31-2001).]