« Oh, Just Lovely | Main | You Try This... »

December 20, 2006

"Airport Security" Joins "Jumbo Shrimp"

On the list of contradictions in terms. This is completely insane

A woman going through security at Los Angeles International Airport put her month-old grandson into a plastic bin intended for carry-on items and slid it into an X-ray machine.

The early Saturday accident — bizarre but not unprecedented — caught airport workers by surprise, even though the security line was not busy at the time, officials said.

A screener watching the machine's monitor immediately noticed the outline of a baby and pulled the bin backward on the conveyor belt.

Where the hell was the worker who was supposed to be watching passengers as they load the bins?

Of course, then there's also this lovely news via Tim Blair

Britain's border controls were condemned as "non-existent" today after it was claimed that the suspected murderer of a policewoman fled the country by disguising himself as a veiled Muslim woman.

Police reportedly believe that Mustaf Jamma, a prime suspect in the fatal shooting of Pc Sharon Beshenivsky, used his sister's passport and wore a full niqab to evade checks at Heathrow airport.

Shadow Home Secretary David Davis insisted there should be an urgent inquiry.

At the time of the 26-year-old's apparent escape between Christmas Day last year and New Year's Day, he was one of the UK's most wanted men and the airport was on high alert in the wake of the July 7 bombing attacks.

But it is thought that staff rarely ask those departing Britain to remove veils in order to make sure their identification is valid.

Words fail me at things like this. I really hate to despair at this time of the year, but sometimes it is very hard not to. Good god, how could this happen?

Posted by Mr. Bingley at December 20, 2006 09:13 AM

Comments

Well, we did cede control of airport security to union government workers. I guess we got what we should expect.

Posted by: Mike Rentner at December 20, 2006 11:55 AM

Well, we did cede control of airport security to union government workers.

A major reason as to why I fly less these days.

Posted by: The_Real_JeffS at December 20, 2006 03:11 PM

I was more struck by this:

"bizarre but not unprecedented".

Damn but we need to take some of the safety interlocks off of our civilization, so that stupid people actually reap the rewards of stupidity.

Posted by: John at December 21, 2006 08:12 AM

As a side issue, it was noted on one report the other day that the woman who put the kid in the scanner was the grandmother who does not speak English and could not read the signs.

Wonderful, ain't it?

Posted by: Firehand at December 22, 2006 12:31 PM