Rodent Regatta

IT’S THE POWER SYNDROME
A job for so long without power now has unquestioned authority to intrude

On a Mississippi back road, the most powerful person in the state is the flagman who controls how traffic passes during construction. For too many years, security people were asked to be transparent to the traveling experience. Now, not only are they asked to be visible, human nature has them exerting their power over busy travelers.

Our wise leaders might dump those ”random” security checks at airport gates. I don’t know if random checks could do any good, but they might be a little more useful if they were actually ”random.” They’re not, and everybody knows they’re not. If you’re first to the gate, you get a bonus search. This is how it worked at the beginning of the year, and this is how it works today. Why bother? I think the airline employees just enjoy hassling the eager beavers who rush the gate. [Ken Layne]