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Time to Arm the Pilots and Passengers by Don Hull The major portion of blame for the WTC attack can be laid at the feet of our government's foreign policy. For well over 60 and close to 95 years, Washington has seen itself as the morally anointed leaders of the world. Other nations often don't like our interference with their government and their way of life. A few are willing to give their lives in resistance. But a look closer to home, at FAA rules, is also revealing. The FAA, like much of today's government in America, is "anti-gun," so has disarmed the pilots in commercial airliners. Never mind that most of them are former military pilots to begin with and know full well how to handle side-arms, the FAA bureaucrats think they know best so have disarmed the pilots. The pilots, therefore, were helpless in the face of concentrated attacks by the hijackers last week. Additionally, the PASSENGERS have been disarmed as well. It's against the law to carry a gun or big knife on a plane. Consequently, if you're a dedicated hijacker who can figure out a way around the scrutiny, you can be the ONLY ONE ARMED on-board. And that's what happened. Now we see the FAA "cracking down" even more, eliminating glassware and pocket knives. So passengers who might be able to revolt against a hijacker, have EVEN LESS to work with. The Sky Marshall is another waste. Installing ONE armed man on-board is no obstacle to a team of hijackers. They will quickly smell-out the Marshall and dispatch him first, leaving the rest of the passengers, and the pilots, even more defenseless. Here's what to do: Passengers should be ENCOURAGED to board planes with substantial, sharp knives or razors useful as personal weapons, or even small pistols that fire rubber bullets which can’t penetrate the fuselage. Then you tell the hijackers that if they try to take over a plane, they could face the wrath of a plane-full of ARMED PASSENGERS. The philosophy that supports the 2nd Amendment works just as well with air travel as home protection. When EVERYBODY is armed, the aggressor doesn't stand a chance. But our government doesn't trust us. They only trust THEMSELVES and their own EMPLOYEES. Thus they keep the power of self-defense in their own hands and out of ours. Our government hasn't changed a bit since the WTC attack. They still see us ordinary people as the greater threat.
discuss this column in the forum Don Hull is an advertising/marketing consultant in Costa Mesa, CA and has run for Congress twice on the Libertarian ticket.
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