The TSA has relaxed rules concerning pocket knives to really confuse an issue!

After all these years of endless lines to board an airplane with the mandatory bare-foot stroll through body scanning x-rays and TSA approved mini-physicals we're now told we can bring knives with us while traveling.  Of course there are rules.  The knife can't have a blade longer than 2.5 inches long or wider than half an inch.  I don't get it.  A knife with a blade shorter than 2.5 inches long may not look intimidating in a stand-off with a bad guy but I'd bet multiple jabs to a jugular vein could be very deadly.

Changes in the knife-carry prohibition will not effect box cutters for whatever reason nor will the new relaxed restrictions allow you to board a plane with a baseball bat or hockey stick.  Makes me wonder why TSA would allow you to board with a small blade that could cause death but won't allow you to bring a big stick with you.  With a knife you really don't need much of a backswing to cause damage but to really injure someone with a bat or hockey stick it seems like you would need more room than is available on most planes.

With a small knife you could remove the weapon from your pocket and open it for attack in a stealthy manner and nobody would be the wiser until you struck.  On the other hand if a flight attendant or passenger saw you reach for your Louisville Slugger or hockey stick they probably could assume you were about to unleash some anger or frustration.

I'm glad TSA has decided to at least relax this rule but think about this.  You still have to get cute little sample size bottles to transport any liquid including dandruff shampoo and cough syrup.  Of course TSA says an explosive with more than 3.5 ounces of liquid could crash a plane....I guess 3.25 ounces will only make the plane lean in one direction.

All of this comes at a time when leaked documents from TSA workers say none of their regulations make us any safer.  Since terrorists have not been caught trying to blow up or highjack a plane you would assume something must be working.  TSA agents have said terrorists haven't been caught because they haven't tried.  Really makes one wonder, have the terrorists quite trying because they're afraid to get caught?  Maybe they know 3.25 ounces of liquid or 2.45 inches of cold metal won't do the job.  As they used to scroll onto the silver screen in the day of silent movies, "Curses, foiled again".

Thank goodness Amtrak doesn't have better service across this great land otherwise we would be backed up at train stations as well.

 

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