Sunday, August 14, 2005
I just read a news item about a Federal judge in DC blocking implementation of new Homeland Security labor rules because they failed to respect the workers' right to bargain collectively. This seems a sign of sanity to me, and I'm not defending unions or Federal employees either. Also the TSA is considering revising the rules for airline travel, even to the extent of not making everyone take off shoes on the way to the gate. These items both point to a sort of backing off from operating out of a position of fear, which if true is a good thing.
The airport security is supposed to make us safer, but there have been reports of real evidence that it hasn't really helped at all. Not that I don't feel safer in the air these days. I feel safer because I believe that anyone trying to hijack a plane with mostly Americans on it, particularly American men, will find the job more than a little difficult. If I were on that plane, I'd figure the hijackers meant to do us in anyway, and plan to take them out first if at all possible. Since the hijackers on 9/11 were outnumbered by about eighty to one, an effort with that attitude would most likely have thwarted their scheme, particularly when coupled with tougher cockpit doors and other onboard measures that have been implemented. They still might succeed, but it's a lot less likely than it used to be, and with or without the increased checks at the gate I think we're safer when we fly than we were prior to 9/11.
Which brings me back to fear. The hijackers on that day got away with a lot by playing to fear and by assuaging fears by saying that if everyone cooperated no one would be hurt. They were lying (fanatics' gods seem to condone all sorts of questionable behavior) but the ruse worked because people were afraid to die. Now, believing that to be inevitable, most people don't see anything to fear any more and actually decrease their chances of getting killed by not worrying about it. Bad for the terrorists, good for us.
The resort hotel and casino where I work has seven thousand (7,000) security cameras. Everyone knows, or should, that there are eyes everywhere in an operation like this. Nevada law demands top security for one thing, and for another you'd have to be pretty stupid not to protect the millions you collect every week. We have a bit over nine thousand employees working three shifts, so there is no way to monitor all those cameras all of the time. If you're in the casino, you're likely being watched, but if you're not on the gaming floor or near an entrance the odds are that no one is watching you. If you commit a crime or cause a disturbance, though, you can count on being identified when the recording of the area is reviewed. I mention all this because it seems to me that the only way to use security in a free society is in this "after the fact" manner. We don't have the will or the manpower to do a "big brother" type surveillance, so unless you're in a casino or in one of those cities where you can get a ticket from a tape of your car running a red light you can probably count on the fact that nobody is watching you, even though potentially someone could be.
Our security actually comes from those of us who are basically good people being alert for anything that doesn't feel right, and for keeping our perspective and not letting fear decide our course of action. After all this is a dangerous world and the only way out of here involves becoming dead, so in reality there's not a lot to be afraid of. That would be, and is when we manage to do those things, much more effective than relying on "authorities" or "security" to keep us safe.
The airport security is supposed to make us safer, but there have been reports of real evidence that it hasn't really helped at all. Not that I don't feel safer in the air these days. I feel safer because I believe that anyone trying to hijack a plane with mostly Americans on it, particularly American men, will find the job more than a little difficult. If I were on that plane, I'd figure the hijackers meant to do us in anyway, and plan to take them out first if at all possible. Since the hijackers on 9/11 were outnumbered by about eighty to one, an effort with that attitude would most likely have thwarted their scheme, particularly when coupled with tougher cockpit doors and other onboard measures that have been implemented. They still might succeed, but it's a lot less likely than it used to be, and with or without the increased checks at the gate I think we're safer when we fly than we were prior to 9/11.
Which brings me back to fear. The hijackers on that day got away with a lot by playing to fear and by assuaging fears by saying that if everyone cooperated no one would be hurt. They were lying (fanatics' gods seem to condone all sorts of questionable behavior) but the ruse worked because people were afraid to die. Now, believing that to be inevitable, most people don't see anything to fear any more and actually decrease their chances of getting killed by not worrying about it. Bad for the terrorists, good for us.
The resort hotel and casino where I work has seven thousand (7,000) security cameras. Everyone knows, or should, that there are eyes everywhere in an operation like this. Nevada law demands top security for one thing, and for another you'd have to be pretty stupid not to protect the millions you collect every week. We have a bit over nine thousand employees working three shifts, so there is no way to monitor all those cameras all of the time. If you're in the casino, you're likely being watched, but if you're not on the gaming floor or near an entrance the odds are that no one is watching you. If you commit a crime or cause a disturbance, though, you can count on being identified when the recording of the area is reviewed. I mention all this because it seems to me that the only way to use security in a free society is in this "after the fact" manner. We don't have the will or the manpower to do a "big brother" type surveillance, so unless you're in a casino or in one of those cities where you can get a ticket from a tape of your car running a red light you can probably count on the fact that nobody is watching you, even though potentially someone could be.
Our security actually comes from those of us who are basically good people being alert for anything that doesn't feel right, and for keeping our perspective and not letting fear decide our course of action. After all this is a dangerous world and the only way out of here involves becoming dead, so in reality there's not a lot to be afraid of. That would be, and is when we manage to do those things, much more effective than relying on "authorities" or "security" to keep us safe.
