Spiff

US Newswire Article

"The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) will begin testing advanced explosives detection technology today as part of the agency's Secure Automobile Inspection Lanes (SAIL) pilot project. For the next 30 days, passenger vehicles boarding the Cape May-Lewes Ferry will be screened for explosives with Z- Backscatter technology. This prototype ferry security project is one in a series of TSA programs designed to test emerging technologies on various modes of transportation for possible use in future screening projects."

Wow! Screening cars on a ferry. Why not just take a big pile of money and set fire to it?

Japhydog

This way the money goes up in smoke, but at least it's in the form of fine cigars that your campaign contributors bought with the proceeds of the return on their investment.


(This is not a partisan attack. Applies equally to politicians of all stripes.)

L-1011

Considering the size of that pile, EPA would have severe objections

Doppy

Or it could just lie, like after 9/11.

"Oh yeah, sure, the air is great, as evidenced by the fact that our rescue workers are practically wearing scuba breathing gear.

What? Your nose, throat and lungs are burning? Well, that's perfectly healthy and normal. Doesn't that always happen when you breathe?"

FliesWay2Much

Spiff -- I can't link to the article for some reason. Nevertheless, the because of the introduction of these machines, the cops agreed to stop random searches of vehicles on the ferries.

Welcome to the United States of North Korea.

Japhydog

Armaggedon is a comin' from cars on the ferry. Or women with underwire bras. Or photographers taking pictures of ferries. Or ferries or fairies themselves. I'm so confused.

Spiff

Sorry, the article is gone.

Maybe it was censored by The Man so that those wily terrorists' ferry bomb plans are thwarted.

Japhydog

What about the faerie bombs? Have those been thwarted? I'm so afraid and confused.

Wheezer

Seems to work fine from here as of UT 0740.

CATSA Screener

What would happen if a Ryder truck with a fertilizer bomb exploded on a ferry? Here in BC we have ferries with 2100 pax/crew and 470 vehicle capacity.

Spiff

What would happen if one exploded at a football game? Or at the mall? Or on a bridge? There are some things that either 1)cannot be prevented or 2)are so improbable that there's no point in worrying about them happening!

CATSA Screener

2100 people would die as the ferry broke apart and sank instantly. I don't think a large container bomb could create that kind of carnage in these other examples you have listed.

Spiff

That many people and more could be killed in a public place just as easily.

And if it's one car's worth of explosive, that ferry isn't going to sink or it doesn't hold 2100 people.

damorgan

Spiff, you seem to be going down the route of acceptable losses here. At what point does the number of preventable deaths/injuries become acceptable against the perceived downsides of carrying out controls? That's next door to sticking your fingers in your ears and hoping it doesn't go bang.

A lorry bomb on a ferry is avoidable through the deployment of TSA checks. It's a possible threat, it's stoppable, why not stop it?

CATSA Screener

I was talking about a large cube-van or semi-truck loaded with explosives.

http://www.bcferries.com/about/fleet...er_island.html

The whole lower vehicle deck of one of these is dedicated to over-height vehicles such as semi-trucks and busses.

I'm not an engineer but I think it's reasonable to believe that a large truck bomb would pretty much instantly sink one of these. I don't believe such a truck bomb would be able to create as much carnage in any other land-based scenario (a few hundred perhaps). Can you think of a likely scenario?