Swiss army knives on airplanes!

One fellow in our office forgot to bring his homebuilt circuit breaker simulator to a technical conference, so he asked one of the other techs in the office (an Indian fellow who was taking a later flight) to bring it along. The second guy took one look at this thing (a small PLC with switches and wires sticking out haphazardly) and said "There's no way in hell this brown guy is getting on a plane carrying that!". He shipped it by courier.

They'll just hack their free Obamaphones.

And they beep.

Australia practices border security. I don't have a problem with that. They should make sure the return flight is non-refundable so you actually do leave the country.

About half the illegal aliens in the US just overstayed their visa. This crap that they are poor people who struggled to cross the border just to pick fruit is complete nonsense.

If they're honest lost property auction or the 'forbidden items' display

Probably sold at auction: CNN claims that some of it is sold on eBay:

And they all have a bundle of exposed wires, of which only one and always one being cut will disable the bomb. All the rest either accelerate the clock like a bad joke or set off the bomb immediately.

They've finally realised that the only result of your trying to use it to hijack an aircraft is that you'll be taken off the flight on a stretcher (if not in a body bag) on account of the kicking you get from the other passengers how know how things work post 9/11.

Sylvia.

Over here the government does that a lot smarter. Any foreigner without enough money to live on has to have a sponsor (company or private person). If the foreigner does not leave the country, the sponsor is responsible for all the administrative and deportation costs. All of this is sorted out at the embassy in the foreigner's country at the foreigner's expense. Border security is just a matter of checking the visa.

That's about every oscilloscope...

I have travelled in the past with some real hairballs, batteries, wires everywhere.

They ask me to turn it on. A led lights.

"That's fine sir... carry on".

If, instead of an LED, a beep-beep-beep sound is heard and an LED display starts counting down from 30 seconds-- would they all run away?

There's a reason for the "turn it on" thing- fake batteries have been used successfully to get explosives onto an aircraft. Of course, "turn it on" won't stop even a moderately skilled individual (let alone a group) who really wants to make it happen (and the bad guy would have to do most of it anyway for the plan to work), but it gives a "feeling of security" because it might have caught it the last time.

Perhaps they're all smarter than that, and the visible tests are just a distraction as more subtle and secret measures are employed, but I am not very hopeful.

Best regards, Spehro Pefhany

e.

I caused a stir in Japan, possessing a SAK, I think it was, a decade before 9/11. They were nice enough about it, being Japanese--they packed it off and put in checked baggage for me.

Last time I flew in the States, with minutes to catch my plane, the unionized Touchers of Sensitive Areas spotted a 3/4" penknife on my keychain, a valued gift from a friend. They gave me the choice of missing my plane, or surrendering the knife. I told the Toucher he could have it, my gift. He said he couldn't accept it--they trash 'em. So, that's where it went.

I avoid flying whenever possible nowadays, a boycott. But, it might appeal if you had an urge to be naked in public...the govt's watching! Dress accordingly.

I came under grave suspicion for packing an LED flashlight. Very dangerous, those. The laptop and cellphone with full-up LiIon packs sailed thru, of course.

When I lived in CA, the most of 'em were building houses for $20+ illegal dollars-per-hour. (Or lurking at Home Depot, waiting to.)

Carefully cut the red wire. It's always the active wire. That's spec'd in the iNEC (inter-NEC) terrorist code, with massive liability for infractions. Violators risk fines, loss of terrorism license.

Over here we just let people stay. If you suggest they shouldn't, you're racist.

I guess that makes the Swiss racists--they unceremoniously kicked out my pal Wayne, after years working legally in-country, on less-than-24- hours' notice. He moved across the border to Germany, and commuted.

There's a lot to be said for shipping your stuff to the hotel, UPS Red.

(I don't think the Swiss are racists, obviously. The point was USians are being silly.)