Pros and Cons

July 27, 2007 Pros and Cons Hello, I’m responding to the question of “What’s wrong with America?”. I’ve been traveling and have made the observation that while we should note what’s wrong we should also note what’s right. Hopefully this will help illuminate the problem and remind us all of the reason we should fight for what we have. Some of the things I saw on my trip: Americans are traveling. The airports are busy. We have a tremendous economy of individuals pursuing their dreams to enrich themselves and all of us. The downside is airport security. The TSA is useless. The average TSA employee is half a step away from a welfare recipient. Many of them don’t speak English. Part of the problem with the TSA is the union. We should remember that good old Hillary was at the forefront when the battle was going on to unionize the TSA. She got her way. She looked at it as an automatic block of Democrat votes. What it does is water down the effectiveness of a potentially useful activity. I suspect that was her real intent. I couldn’t help but notice that when the ‘last calls’ were being made for missing passengers that all of them had an Arabic name. That’s profiling. It’s also simple logic. The Israelis have a real airport security system. You line up with your luggage and get on the plane. Luggage without a passenger does not fly. People that look suspicious also do not fly. We deserve real airport security. We won’t have it until another disaster takes place. A highlight of my trip was a tour of the Boeing plant in Seattle. This was the place where they build 737’s. I have long known that we build a plane a day. Still, this is something that needs to be considered. The reality is stunning. First, that we can do it and second that there is a demand that calls for it. High level manufacturing is the pinnacle of a technological society. A modern jet transport is the state of the art. That you can build a 100 million dollar aircraft in a month is amazing. That you can build 29 others along with it is a magic act. I got to tour the factory on a family day. This was a special privilege. I got to see Moms and Dads taking their families through and showing off where they worked. They were proud of what they do. The families were excited and happy. These are average Americans. Even though as individuals they are not exceptional, these are the people that make this country so exceptional. It is the nature of our system that average people can make their simple contribution and create excellence. I flew home on 737’s and 757’s and thought of those workers eating hotdogs with their families. I tried to put out of my mind the ‘last call’ for the missing Arab passenger. For the bomb in the hold that could end my flight. I thought instead of the guy that built my airplane pushing his daughter in a stroller. The only way terrorists can win is if we give in to terror. Ne illigitimus non carborundum…..don’t let the bastards wear you down. Crispus Attucks