Flyertalk is reporting that the new special security lines for the upper class are now available out at Dulles airport. If you’re a First Class or Business traveler, or maintain an elite membership in an airline, you can now use their special security lines, which will have a shorter queue.
I’m not sure how I feel about this. Part of me says that it’s a whole classist “if you can pay for first class seats, you can clearly pay for faster security” thing, part of me says that if you’ve got the cash to shell out for the service, you might be important enough to need it. But, doesn’t this circumvention of the basic security principles show that the TSA’s mere presence is generally unimportant overall? That they’re really just an incredibly expensive panacea in general?
The TSA, to my knowledge, has been shown to be fairly susceptible various threats including the disassembly of bombs into pieces and moving them through security in that fashion amongst a group of passengers. Has there been a case where the TSA actually stopped someone bent on causing harm? I’m sure we’d have heard about it, trumpeted to the high heavens if they had, but I’m fairly sure they’re no more effective than the screeners we had before. No, I’m not foolish enough to believe that just because you can’t see a visible effect from the presence of a group doesn’t mean they’re without effect, but really, do I need to take off my shoes for these guys?
What do you make of these new “express” security lines? More waste? Less?
This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs
I live and work in the District of Columbia. I write at We Love DC, a blog I helped start, I work at Technolutionary, a company I helped start, and I’m happy doing both. I enjoy watching baseball, cooking, and gardening. I grow a mean pepper, keep a clean scorebook, and wash the dishes when I’m done. Read Why I Love DC.
