xyz123

Just read in a London newspaper that our paranoid government is thinking of imposing rules on carriers travelling into US air space not to allow passengers to queue to use the lavatories! What next? Having to sign up for a specific time to use the lavatory?

In addition, their new regulations will require British citizens, supposedly our closest ally, to have to get visas if their passports are issued after October 2004 because of the new rules requiring machine readable biometrically approved passports.

Whatever happened to land of the free? And does anybody really think these moronic measures will stop any sophisticated terrorist operation? Like they had rules about bringing weapons on flights and the sub human animals who hijacked the planes on 11 September still got on board.

And folks still do not understand what kind of country Bush and his cronies think the US should be.

elaine

this is not to say that I either agree or disagree with your statements, but did you have a travel question?

xyz123

Of course it's a travel question...unless you swim there you have to take a plane and believe me I have waited on long queues at Heathrow passport control and you can be sure if the US imposes these rules on the UK, the UK certainly should and will reciprocate and imagine the queues then.

Patrick

Frankly I'm starting to get amused at all these silly posts complaining about every attempt to make our world safer.

Here's an idea. Instead of complaining that what's being done is wrong, why don't you just explain your brilliant solution to the problem. What's your idea to stop the terrorism? Maybe your idea is to have all terrorists voluntarily register? Or maybe your idea is to just post a notice at each airport saying "Sorry, no terrorism allowed here." If you have some better solution that will really work, we're all sitting here waiting to hear it. If you don't have a better idea, then shut up and stop complaining about everything that the experts are trying.

This is not just to xyz123, but to all those who constantly seem to indicate they know the solutions, but everyone else is an idiot.

Patrick

Whew. That felt good to get that off my chest. Ok, now some of you can slam me all you want.

Budman

I believe the "no queue" rule is for the lavatories in the front of the plane nearest the cockpit. I certainly don't have a problem with that.

I hope it doesn't take a plane crash into Buckingham Palace for you to realize this. "Bush and his cronies" are doing what they feel best to protect Americans. I don't have a problem with it. If foreigners don't like it, they should stay home.

HeatherH

To be honest, Patrick, I completely agree with you. Obviously, something more needs to be done, and even if it causes some relatively minor inconveniences, it is worth it, and something that all of us will have to live with.

TuckH

Patrick, no slam - just a suggestion for a solution, per your request...

How about putting the 130,000 troops and the $87B into an effort to catch the bona fide terrorists - the ones who truly were the 9/11 culprits? They indeed are the source of the present-day threat, not some Baathists in the Sunni Triangle.

Then, with that "Mission Accomplished", our world might be safer.

swalter518

Thank you Patrick, well said. I'm so sick of people who jump to criticize yet offer no alternatives. Is it that big of a deal to wait until no one is in line to go to the bathroom, especially with the number of bathrooms on planes flying overseas? These are also the first people who would jump up and place blame if, god forbid,something else happens.

Weadles

I absolutely agree with you, Patrick. If all we have to "suffer" are long lines at immigration and outside lavatories, we'll be very lucky indeed.

Queenie

I do not think most Americans realize what these new regulations require.

The biometric or machine readable passports will be required to enter the US after October.

If you do not have one of these, you must go IN PERSON to the nearest US consulate for an interview, as well as other documentation.

This is not just the british, but basically all Europeans.

Biometric passports , it is estimated , will not be produced until mid ? 2005 (including in the US)

How are the US embassies in Europe going to schedule all these interviews when its tough to get an appointment now. This means if you need to go to the US for a business trip, you first have to see if you can get into the US consulate.

Yes, I anticipate a problem.

Keith

Thank you Tuck, well said.

Keith

SloJan

Tuck, I am with you. Perhaps we can add that the Gov't, should have a long term approach to solving the problem which means that we don't do the easy thing now, damning the consequences.

Do you really believe you are safer now than pre- 9/11???

Budman

Tuck, in case you forgot, the 9/11 culprits are all dead.

The "mission accomplished" was for the crew of the aircraft carrier. If you've ever been on a 9-12 month deployment without losing any aircraft, you might understand, instead of listening to the media spin it.

ira

TuckH wrote
>How about putting the 130,000 troops and the $87B into an effort to catch the bona fide terrorists - the ones who truly were the 9/11 culprits? They indeed are the source of the present-day threat, ....<

Excellent idea. Who do we invade first:
Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Syria, Ethiopia, Maylasia, Indonesia, The Phillipines, the Palestinian territories, Libya, Sudan?

ChatNoir

Don't you just love the angry alarmists who are hectoring the very people who are keeping us safe. Like spoiled kids jumping on Dad's neck while he's driving on a dangerous road.

The "mission accomplished" banner was erected by the crew of a ship that had ben at sea for a long, long time and
"mission accomplished" meant they would be going home. Simple, isn't it, but NO, we still have the media and some leftist spinisters lying about it to stiring old crap.

TuckH

Budman, the 9/11 culprits are all dead?
Osama bin Forgotten is dead?
Ira, I think you know the answer to your own question, inasmuch as "Pre-emption" is our foreign policy now.

Giovanna

Let me see, do I understand this correctly? Those of us who disagree with the direction we are being taken by the current administration should shut up unless we have an alternative solution. Is that right?

Silly me. I always thought bitching about the government was an inalienable right!

It always amazes me how righteous you conservatives are. The dreaded "L" word drops from your lips like a mantra. As if that explains how totally wrong our positions on any given subject are.

TuckH

Chat, I'm as much of a patriotic American as I'm sure you are. I simply tried to offer an answer to Patrick's question.

And I said absolutely nothing about Karl Rove's known involvement in putting up the banner and getting the president positioned for the photo-op.

So please, I'm not one of "some leftist spinisters[sic] lying about it to stiring[sic] old crap."

kaudrey

xyz - what's the big deal about not being able to line up for the bathroom on a plane?

On domestic flights, you can't use the first class bathrooms if you are in coach. Big deal.

Also, if you are flying into or out of DCA, which I do all the time, you can't get up AT ALL for the first or last 30 minutes of the flight - not even for the bathroom.

So what if you have to look around to see if there is a line? Sounds like you are a little wound up, you know?

If one terrorist is thwarted because of the new rules, wouldn't that be worth it?