A road traveled on a journey - a common metaphor for time. We look back, behind us, at things in the past, as they grow distant and disappear. We look side to side at things on the roadside, the present. And we look ahead, at the future. We cannot see very far ahead, or around the next bend. We can look back at September 11, 2001. But we do not have to look behind us to see it. It is staring us in the face and bearing down on us from either side, in the form of the Patriot Act, the Department of Homeland Security, and the way US airports treat us. Edward Snowden is the flagman, warning us of dangerous conditions ahead. Even if we refuse to look to the sides, or at the rear view mirror, we can still see it. If we look back at the horrific event itself, does it not seem somehow... almost perfect? Not one, nor two, but four airliners hijacked, not on the same day, but the same hour. Such perfection is terrifying. We must do whatever it takes, no matter what, to prevent anyone from achieving such perfection again. It is probably counterproductive to have every pilot write five essays every two years, each describing a new, original scenario, for something like 9/11. But that is what the FAA now requires. I hope those essays do not fall into the wrong hands.
Posted on: Wed, 21 Aug 2013 02:21:54 +0000
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