Edited by author 12-22-2002 06:19 PM
Last year, the U.S. Airline system carried a total of 660 million passengers. To think that Mr. Monahan's story--or even 1,000 like it--constitutes the advent of a totalitarian machine is, quite simply, naïve and uninformed.

It'd be nice if we lived in a perfect world, where the people who are put into positions of authority are all perfectly sensible, perfectly smart, and perfectly courteous, and the people who are subject to that authority are all perfectly reasonable and in full control of their tempers at all times. But we don't. It's a human system, created by humans, run by humans, and administered by humans.

roadknight, you should probably express your indignation at the bursting of your ideally happy bubble to the folks who popped it, although you might find that difficult, because they died along with the 3,000 people they murdered last year. There are many things in this world that just "shouldn't be allowed to exist." Instead of indignantly wishing it away, why not put some energy into thinking of ways to deal with the reality of the situation which take into account our need for increased security and the fundamental American respect for the rights of individuals?

Woot--at the risk of feeding you troll-biscuits: perhaps you would care to tell me where I can find the bodies of all of the dissidents who were killed by the American State Police during our purges in the 30s, or the 10 million Americans who were deliberately starved to death by our government during the 40s. The intelligentsia (or "smart people," as you call them), are the sort of people who tended to disappear in the middle of the night in the Soviet Union...yet, here they are in America, with a substantive voice, presenting ideas that are being debated and then discounted not because they're being suppressed, but because many folks have heard them and decided that they disagree with them. It's called "free speech," and it's one of the many freedoms that American citizens who are willing to make some small intellectual effort enjoy. It's why I can post to this forum without fear.