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| Gail Koch is a junior journalism major and writes 'And Another Thing' for the Daily News. Her views do not necessarily agree with those of the newspaper. |
The shocking blow of 9/11 left few people in this country questioning the need for tighter security in U.S. airports.
For months after the event, passengers forced to wait in even longer lines than usual said to themselves, "Fine by me ... search my belongings all you want if it keeps a terrorist off my plane."
But not anymore. As more and more airlines are pushing the boundaries of courtesy with full-body friskings and ridiculously thorough luggage searches, travelers are finding that what they keep in their bags may no longer be sacred -- and it's beginning to tick them off.
In a recent USA TODAY article, frequent traveler Alan Gerstner revealed his most embarrassing moment with security after being caught red-handed carrying Metamucil in his toiletry bag.
Gerstner's story (retold to the newspaper) went like this:
Screener: What's in the jar?
Gerstner: Metamucil.
Screener: (speaking loudly): What is Metamucil?
Gerstner: It's a laxative.
Screener: A what?
The screener fetches a supervisor, who asks Gerstner, "So what is this stuff?"
Gerstner: Metamucil, a laxative. Go ahead and taste it.
Supervisor: No way!
Once the supervisor fetches a manager to examine the contents, the jar is ultimately confiscated.
"It was a slow morning," Gerstner recalled of the experience. "There was no one there when I got there, but there was a crowd when I left. And they all knew I had Metamucil."
A similar story that made me laugh was the retelling of University of Texas-Pan American professor Walt Greene's own humiliating experience with an airport screener.
While hunting through his belongings, the screener questioned Greene about a medical device the 73-year-old was carrying with him that helped him to maintain an erection.
"She dropped it back in my suitcase and turned beet red," he said. "And she didn't want to inspect anything else."
As humorous as such embarrassing accounts may be, they do remind us of just how far screeners will go in order to do their job -- including pulling out personal items from your bag whether you want them to or not.
And while I've never experienced a security-check nightmare like Gerstner's or Greene's, I was the recipient of a very thorough (including the removal of my boots and socks) frisking the last time I traveled on a plane.
The body search didn't really bother me, but I admit I would have been mortified had a screener opened the side pouch of my luggage to reveal my undergarments to everyone else in line.
I suppose, however, that being forced to sacrifice one's dignity while proceeding through security may be worth the hassle if it means traveling safe.
According to statistics revealed last week from the Transportation Security Administration, airport screeners have seized more than 4.8 million items -- including guns, knives, a kitchen sink pipe and circular saw -- in the 13 months the federal government has been in charge of airline security.
Such numbers are a comforting reassurance that, inconvenience or not, the hassle of security checks is worth the risk of a red face.
Just remember that the next time you pack your bags.
Write to Gail at glkoch@bsu.ed
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