|
|
|
|
Computer Times
By Dr. Terry Kibiloski, Editor, Computer Times What are the motives behind John Pistole, the administrator of the Transportation Security Administration, wanting to lift the ban on knives and other weapon-like items aboard commercial aircraft? I believe that is the larger question of the day. Is he corrupted by power, ill advised by special interest groups, struggling with bouts of irrational thinking, or so egocentric and power mad that he is unwilling to reverse a decision adamantly opposed by those on the front lines of the airline industry? If a military commander made such an irrational decision, we would replace him or her immediately for the safety of all concerned. If this were a jury case, it would be a no-brainer. On one side, John Pistole arguing that small knives have miraculously transformed themselves into innocuous items that no longer pose a threat to aircraft security. On the other side, first responding flight attendants, pilots, airport screeners, federal air marshals, and airline executives, providing examples of how small knives, and other weapon-like items do pose a threat to public safety aboard aircraft. Not only would any logical jury rule against Pistole, they might request a competency hearing since “foolish” and “unreasonable” are two words used to define insanity. Who wants to fly in fear that someone who is angry about their seatmate taking too much armrest or overhead bin space, or who has too much to drink, might brandish a so-called legal knife? How should the first responding flight attendants be trained to disarm a potentially dangerous passenger who has a knife, without bringing harm to themselves or to innocent passengers? Many of us can quickly recall recent incidents of potentially dangerous passengers, like the unruly passenger on the Icelandic Air flight from Reykjavik to New York who had to be duct taped to a seat, and the passenger on the Spirit Airlines flight from New York City's LaGuardia Airport to Fort Lauderdale who threatened the crew after he would not comply with instructions to turn off his cell phone. And how many incidents like these occur that do not make the news? This is the real world, not Pistole’s sugar coated view. What about Pistole’s argument that it aligns the U.S. with international rules. Sorry, John. Mothers throughout the planet have seen through this argument for years, “If your friends jumped off a cliff . . .” Yet, in spite of collective intelligent opposition, his words speak volumes. "I think the decision is solid and it stands," Pistole said, "I plan to move forward with it." In my opinion, any rational person, at this point in the argument, might at least admit that maybe this decision needs further discussion since Pistole himself admitted that he did not receive input from key stakeholders in the airline industry before making the decision. In this era of divisive politics, we even see politicians, on both sides of the aisle, willing to put politics aside and let common sense prevail, as they voice their public opposition to this seemingly irrational decision that John Pistole refuses to reverse. Politicians like Massachusetts Democrat Rep. Ed Markey, Republican U.S. Senate hopeful Michael Sullivan, Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley, and others, have the courage to stand up for the safety of flying passengers and crew. While Democrat Rep. Cedric Richmond, of Louisiana, did not question Pistole’s decision, he at least questioned the process Pistole used to make the decision since he did not involve key stakeholders from the airline industry in the decision making process. Even Pistole admitted that he should have brought these stakeholders into the process earlier. Let’s look at some more of Pistole’s seemingly illogical arguments. He stated, that "today, we find an average of four guns at checkpoints, but we also find about 2,000 of these small pocket knives every day." He added, “on average that takes two to three minutes for the pocket knife to be identified, for that bag to be pulled, for that bag to be opened, for the knife to be found,” insinuating that this is valuable time when other more dangerous items could slip by security screeners. Oh, now I get it, when one weapon becomes prevalent and time consuming during the screening, the best way to fix this situation is to make that weapon legal so we can have more time to search for the less common weapons. As the article title stated, it may be time to ban John Pistole from planes, and from the position of administrator of the TSA. It is time to choose sides. The line has been drawn in the sand. To be silent is to take the side of John Pistole, who used an illogical decision making process, that did not include major stakeholders in the airline industry, to make a decision that could have dire consequences for the safety of all of us in the future. Will you be able to live with yourself when you supported a decision that, God forbid, cost the lives of people like you and your families, even after that decision was adamantly opposed by the very people dedicated to keeping you safe: first responding flight attendants, pilots, airport screeners, federal air marshals, and airline executives? I believe that author Lois McMaster Bujold said it best about choosing an action, “When you choose an action, you choose the consequences of that action. When you desire a consequence you had damned well better take the action that would create it.” In my mind, most rational people would choose the consequence of safety, not expediency. I also believe that John Steinbeck may have the answer to why John Pistole is acting so seemingly irrational, “Power does not corrupt. Fear corrupts... perhaps the fear of a loss of power.” Finally, John Pistole’s unilateral decision personifies the adage, “Absolute power corrupts absolutely.”
About the author: Dr. Terry Kibiloski, PhD, is editor of Computer Times (http://computertimes.com), full-time professor of leadership at Sullivan University (http://sullivan.edu/), and a retired U.S. Air Force officer. His wife, Gina, is a flight attendant with United Airlines.
|
|
Send mail to
comptimes@aol.com with
questions or comments about this web site.
|
