Airport Security

Demolocke’s Agenda Article/Post Caveat (Read First Please: Click the Link) (Note: I have great respect for those who enforce and do the job of airport security for it is difficult and stressful and necessary. I also know that many aspects of the job are spot on for that type of security and hold that in high regard but as to the less than appropriate security measures that are more misdirection than realistic - not so much.)

Recently I had family come visit us out here in earthquake land and it reminded me of the Airport Security. Apparently, the security has let-up a might on certain things that in the beginning were way over the top, in my opinion, because someone somewhere thought that the inconveniences and intrusiveness of it gave everyone a sense of security and safety. Poppy-Cosh!

How can I say this, well:

1. I am a retired physical security specialist who held management responsibility for a very large organization for a very large security facility long, long ago in a far, far away place now pretty much out of service.
2. I am a retired communications security management professional where I was help responsible for managing, controlling and securing a variety of high security materials.
3. I am a former special <guess the word if you can that goes here> mechanic/specialist. Part of that responsibility involved physical security processes and measures as well.
4. I am a former radiation control technician where those responsibilities also involved security of a different kind. 
5. I am and always will be a self-defense karate/martial arts professional who teaches about personal security.
6. I have a bachelor’s degree in security, security management and Security Technology that involves all sorts of personal, professional and even body guard/security responsibilities, etc. 
7. I have experience in IT security as well.

So, even tho this is a partial list and although my current responsibilities don’t entail in-depth security I am still keeping my hands in the cooking when I work, write and practice-train-apply those skills in tandem with my other skills. Oh, and as an aside, I was a member of one of the largest and most prestigious security entities in the world, the United States Marine Corps. So, I do have some expertise I bring to the table when I make comments as follows.

A good way to find out the illusions we bring to airport security you may do a bit of research work and find out how they handle that at a couple of the leading countries in this discipline such as Israel. When you make a comparison you might find a lot of what they make you go through at the airport to be more of a compliance type of effort that also triggers that deep down drive and need for survival, i.e., giving the ignorant a feeling that someone is doing something and it makes us “FEEL” more secure and safe yet …

Here is a “Non-Sequitur” that kind of gives us an idea of the truth of it for to make such a short-terse effort laughable it must be based somewhat on reality and truth. There is nothing more humorous than laughing at things that are kinda real. 

Click for lager, readable, view.

In the airport security systems favor those who enforce security do a bang up job and it is not their fault if some of the processes and requirements are pretty much fluff. As a society one of the things we fall prey to is that if there is a lot of stuff being done, like the quantity of security requirements, then it must mean things will be “Secure,” right? Not necessarily so because tests from my previous life indicated quickly what was window dressing and what would work. It was lucky that the particular industry involved actually did reality based training on that type of security and when you bring that down to normal security dependent on the loss quotient of damage vs. costs, etc., you find an appropriate level of security for that discipline, etc.

Please, note that such misdirections when used in a security venue where life and death along with grave bodily harm are involved it is not smart depending on such magic for it will fail - sooner than later. 

Another aspect as to why it works, the dangers are not as prominent or frequent so that some security professionals can lay out the magic to make everyone, including our countries leadership, FEEL safe and secure. Feelings are those things that cannot be put into a wheelbarrow (Thanks MM for the analogy) but we find real security measures “UNCOMFORTABLE and INCONVENIENT” and we can’t have that. We MUST have SECURITY but without the inconvenience and without taking away our comfort and personal gratifications of our FEELINGS.

Don’t get me wrong, there is a lot about our airport security that is good and does the job for what that job is but if we are every fully exposed to the reality of the dangers that the peoples of Israel, and others of similar nature, are exposed to on a daily basis then we will find that many great changes will have to be made and implemented that will be uncomfortable and very inconvenient, that is just the way it is.

The old saying you have to break a few eggs to bake a cake (for those of you old enough to know about baking from scratch, not out of a box, this analogy will make more sense) is true and to have security and safety it costs but as we are all aware when it comes to the bottom line costs outweigh security and safety - of us, the people, the little guys and gals. 

(Note: Please remember that many of the so-called security measures one might find irritating, irrelevant and more a misdirection to make us feel safe and secure HAVE been slowly removed or discarded over time. Not all yet but it is apparent the effort is there and that the system is learning - A VERY GOOD THING!)