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16 comments on A Traveller's Notes

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Substrate on September 5, 2006 - 1:20pm Permalink | Subthread | Comments top
"...about taking laptops on the plane (I could)..."

So...how long do you give it before someone sneaks a laptop or PDA full of SEMTEX on board a plane?

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pbrewer on September 5, 2006 - 4:15pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
A laptop full of Semtex looks very different on an x-ray from a laptop full of logic board, hard drive, and dvd drive.   They're also pretty full--there's not much room to squeeze explosives into a laptop without removing those bits.
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Squalish on September 6, 2006 - 9:08am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
The key is the battery, which appears as a big black uniform rectangle on the machine.

In reality, X-ray machines aren't terribly good at bombs - they're designed to get the outline of metal handguns and knives - specifically, the outline of the FAA/TSA test handguns + knives.  We're wide open to any kind of attack from an inventive terrorist group with access to explosives and a few lives to spare.  Making people turn on their computer + such is one shallow measure to alleviate that.

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Dan Ur on September 6, 2006 - 9:24am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
Lucky I am not a bad guy, but as a writer of Mysteries and other fiction.  Give a mind a few minutes and you can get about 8 ounces of semtex or other nasties into a laptop and on a plane, and I am sure it is still scary to those that know how to do it for the good guys to know the bad guys can do about the same thing.

Give them time, and the only way to fly will be naked and baggageless.  

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Oil CEO on September 6, 2006 - 3:33am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
Ramsi Yousef did it over ten years ago. He got off the plane before his bomb exploded, too.

I wouldn't worry about it. It's just random. You've got more of a chance getting smoked in a car accident.

They're not trying to kill you. They are trying to make you worry. Once you understand that, you win.

Did you get what I just said? Stop. Take long, smooth breaths. Now read what I wrote again.

Here. I'll give you another piece of advice. If you don't want to get killed by a stingray - don't go playing with crocodiles.

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Substrate on September 6, 2006 - 12:57pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
"You've got more of a chance getting smoked in a car accident."

No joke.  1,000 9/11's happen every year in this country and no one hardly blinks an eye.

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Oil CEO on September 7, 2006 - 6:17am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
I was about to agree with you and reinforce your sentiment, but I think the numbers would be a little off. You are saying, if I'm not mistaken 3 million. I thought it was more like 30,000. But I could be wrong. I wonder how many involve SUVs or motorcycles(especially the fast Japanese ones which are mainly toys). But you're right. Nobody blinks an eye. All part of business, I guess. Just "accidents."
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Substrate on September 7, 2006 - 8:51pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
Woops!  Got a little trigger happy, thanks for catching that...indeed it's only 10 9/11's per year.  But that's every year, pretty much like clockwork and no one seems to be like "oH MAH GAWD, the automobilses are gonna get me!"
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Oil CEO on September 9, 2006 - 1:35am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top
Actually, the apologies are mine. I forgot they happen year in and year out. Excellent point. Imagine how much money, gasoline and lives would be saved by lowering speed limit to even 60. And enforcing it.

And I'll go out on a limb here. No productivity would be lost. You'd just have a better world. Or, at least, a better USA.

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16 comments on A Traveller's Notes

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