I realize that we are all concerned about air safety but I think that what is happening at the airports (people carrying weapons, breaking through security lines, etc) needs to be dealt with in a better manner.
I believe that the airlines and air terminals should post signs warning of jail time and stiff fines for people carrying illegal items. If these same people are going to spend about 30 days in jail and pay at least $1000. fine then perhaps they'll start leaving certain items at home and behaving like intelligent travelers.
No, I am not referring to terrorists here so don't start the zapping so quickly - I am referring to those people who caused the airports to be cleared in three different cities over two days.

I doubt if warning signs would help these nincompoops, Jane.

Does this include a 1 inch toy pistol from a GI Joe doll? 30 days in jail for an absurd interpretation of a badly-written rule?

Many papers carried that item as an example of the absurdity of many of these "rules".

This happened a few days ago. Some minimum-wage guard decided the 1 inch piece of plastic looked just like a real handgun... and confiscated it from a crying boy. His mother had to go to the airport manager to get her little boy's toy back.

They are clearing the airports because of overreaction to a trivial incident.

For example... the airport manager bypasses a security checkpoint and is discovered. Airport security then stops all boarding, runs each passenger thru security again.

My question is... in what way is it necessary to examine passenger X because of tsomething the airport manager did?

The god awful truth is despite all this "security" we are not any safer now than we were before September 11th.
All this yapping about increased security is a pacifier to the relatively non-flying public. Those that fly a lot know that it is a charade. Taking a plastic toy away from a child is proof of these "Security Shenanigans"

ttt