The TSA and the Utter Predictability of Systems

So I've been traveling, and as a traveler I've grown adept at airport security. I've got the choreography down: Boarding pass, ID, choose a line, wait, laptop out into a tub, cell phone next to it, jacket off, shoes in the tub, boarding pass, reassemble on the move. A couple of months ago I bought a one-way ticket home from Houston and flew the same day, and I knew going in that I was going to be pulled aside and triple searched. It went just as I knew it would go.

And that gets me thinking: Doesn't routine provide opportunity? Think of every bank heist or prison escape movie you ever saw; doesn't the plan start with an analysis of the guards' routines, looking for security cracks that can be exploited? Wasn't that the first thing the 9/11 plotters did?

So why have we settled on a security system that is so heavily dependent on routine? Why don't we put some unpredictability into the system, some complexity, by shaking the routines up? At the very least, why don't we break the routines into sub-routines, and mix and match those at random so there's no telling which security configuration you're going to run into on a given day? Maybe one day we're not quite so vigilant about shoes, but we're way more on top of packages that are being shipped in the belly of the plane, opening every single one and checking its contents? Then the next day the TSA floods the drop-off/pick-up areas with people, looking into trunks and just kind of making a visible nuisance of themselves but maybe not bothering with the second or third boarding pass check. And on and on in a kind of security mix-and-match.

As it is now, it's 100% impossible to get exploding shoes on aircraft because we guard against exploding shoes every single day. Hence, no terrorist is out there cobbling exploding shoes. That's good, but I'm guessing if we guarded against exploding shoes only 60% of the time -- and gave no indication which 60% of the time we'd be doing it -- exploding shoes would remain an unattractive option. We'd still be protected and we'd have more time to guard against other things.

Just a thought. I'd be interested to hear what you think.

Comments

[Broken Gnome]

All security (not securities) analysts say, " to protect yourself from the bad guys, change your routine. " Is TSA run by security experts or Cheney cronies?

[Mrs. A]

I found it interesting that they confiscated a dead lighter I'd forgotten was in my purse but let the two three inch nails go through. Seems to me one could do a lot more damage with nails than a dead lighter.

[Frank]

The TSA is indicative of why the government shouldn't run anything. I read of a case where a law enforcement officer was allowed to carry his sidearm onto the plane, but they made him discard his nail clippers.

It boggles the mind.

[Major X]

I get a little laugh everytime I fly. I keep some fishing line in my brief case just in case a couple of jihadis expect to repeat their last performance. Amazing how quickly that line and a couple of pens can be fashioned into a garrote! Bye bye, Haji.

[Rodger]

Interesting points, Tom.

However, I personally believe the next planes attacked by terrorists are going to be hit by shoulder-fired missiles from the ground. In that event, nothing in the airport or on the plane could stop the attack.