Congratulations to the London Heathrow Airport Security Team on busting the dangerous character who had the AUDACITY to wear a tshirt depicting a picture of a fictional superhero holding a fictional gun. Who knows — perhaps that character could have jumped right out of fiction-land into reality and hijacked a plane.
I had no idea about this very serious threat to national security! I will heretofore make the sacrifice of leaving my Jessica Rabbit t-shirt at home from now on. I sure do wish my own country’s airport security crew was as observant and as quick to act upon credible security dangers; I admit I feel like I’m at risk in Canadian airports, where the security personnel would laugh heartily at the idea of a cartoon posing a risk to air flight. In fact, I won’t feel safe until we develop technology that can scan passengers to make sure they aren’t wearing Boba Fett Underoos…
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You know, throughout my lifetime, growing up in England (London and Leeds, specifically), we were under constant threat from the IRA. They lobbed bombs into Downing Street to the point where ministers had to hide under their desks for safety. To make a long story short, it didn’t affect airport/rail security one iota. When our reptilian overlords in Washington suffer their terrorist attack, we increase holding times without charge, kill innocent Brazilian plumbers on the Tube; in short, redo our whole society. It’s really sodded up and I hope we as Westerners realise what we’re doing before its too late.
How about making this real: A few years ago (16 to be precise) I had a loaded AK-47 pointed at me with a real threat of it being used for wearing a T-shirt with a picture of Marilyn Monroe on it. My crime? Her face was not covered and I was in Yemen.
The Heathrow story IS an example of the ridiculous overkill that has happened with airline security (I have seen a 4 year old girl be threatened that she would have to leave her shoes behind because they had lights in the heel that flashed when she jumped up and down) but the over-reaction and perceived threat of an image on a T-shirt has and will continue to be seen as grounds for people to lose sight of the real threats that face us. And no, those real threats generally do not exist on a commuter flight from Birmingham to Amsterdam or London to Frankfurt.