02 July 2009

Stow it

The New York Times has an editorial about the problem of stuffing your crap in the overhead racks on airplanes:
Go ahead and blame the airlines, whose carry-on rules fail ludicrously and whose baggage fees make the problem worse, but that won’t solve anything. We could ask passengers to be less thoughtless, less inept in packing and less addicted to stuff. But that won’t happen.
Is there any hope at all? Well, there’s Congress. Representative Daniel Lipinski of Illinois introduced a bill in June that would limit passengers to “only one carry-on bag and one personal item, the dimensions of each, when loaded, shall not exceed 56 centimeters in length by 45 centimeters in height by 25 centimeters in width.”
Don’t bother measuring. It may not be enough for the bag with your souvenir sombrero, three months’ Slim-Fast, and your bowling ball, but it’s plenty. How would it be enforced? With a template that fits over the security machine. If your bag is too big, it won’t go through.
It’s a simple but smart idea to enforce carry-on rules at the security checkpoint, not on the plane. In a world that involves so many trade-offs, so many brain-numbing indignities and tests of patience, this is a plan worth lining up behind.
Rico says that stupid people will still try and get some giant POS through security; shooting to wound may be the only solution...

No comments:

 

Casino Deposit Bonus