Today the first person got shot from an air marshal onboard an airplane. I don’t have all the details, but apparently the person that was shot did not actually have a weapon or so, but somehow verbally threatened the persons around him and seems to have mentioned having a bomb. The air marshal got involved, and when that person reached for his bag, the air marshall shot him.
That’s weird on its own. What scares me even more is the reaction in the news here in the USA. On NBC they actually said something like that: “There are rules when you board an airplane. Stop talking, do not make jokes, and do not mention words like ‘bomb’ “. Hello? Don not make jokes or talk, otherwise you risk getting shot? To make it even better, in a discussion with the head of the pilots association they agreed that bringing scissors “or other sharp and therefore highly dangerous items” should be banned.
Don’t get me wrong. I agree that there has to be security. I just hate that split mentality. Everyone can walk into WalMart and buy a shotgun with ammunition - but when you are in an airplane, you can’t carry your manicure set or a lighter. What about pencils? They are SHARP! What about paper? Never heard about papercuts? What about scarfs and ties - they can be used to strangle people! Shoelaces as well!
I might change my mind once I hear of the first airpline highjacking that was conducted while threatening the crew and the captain with scissors and a lighter. Remember, the door to the cocpit is bulletproof. They say nothing about scissorsproof.
The office-supply terrorists! Watch out! Buy more weapons to protect yourself!
I just don’t get it.
UPDATE It gets even worse. I am just watching a channel called WFOR. Seems like the guy that was shot was indeed mentally ill. But not only that - once he started to freak out and talk about a bomb, his wife, sitting next to him, immediateley informed all people around them about the situation of her husband and that there was no threat whatsoever. Nevertheless the air marshal shot him down. And it gets worse than that. A pilot and aviation lawyer just commented - on TV! - that: “We are at war. The air marshals are soldiers. As in every war, there is collateral damage. Here, that was this person.” So, following that thought, whenever boarding a plane in the US, you are entering a war zone. Where it seems to be totally justified to shoot innocent people. I really like the people I am dealing with here in the US, but the administration of this nation is nuts. Totally. All this “war against terror”. Bullshit. Since 9/11, the government of the US has used “war against terror” as justification for all kind of crap. War in Afghanistan. War in Iraq. Infringing the rights of its own citizens. Now a cop who shoots an innocent, mentally disabled person is a soldier in the war against terror and the victim is nothing more than collateral damage. I am really happy not to be a citizen of the US, and I hope on the planes I will be on when I leave there will be no stupid children, playing with their Superhero figures, screaming at each other “watch out! I have the machine gun! I will kill you!” “No, you watch out! I have a big bomb! I will blow you up!”.
