Why Dori will bring a knife on a plane
Mar 7, 2013, 3:28 PM | Updated: 4:00 pm
On Wednesday the TSA announced that they would let people bring small knives on planes, sparking outcry from the flight attendant union, and from travelers who think this will make flying unsafe.
Dori said that he also worries about the TSA allowing two-and-a-half inch knife blades on planes.
Now people have to ask themselves how confident they are about their safety, and decide: am I going to bring a weapon on this plane?
“If bad guys can carry a knife on planes, I’m going to find the maximum size of knife allowed by TSA,” said Dori, “and I’m going to carry that knife when I fly – when I’m flying with my wife and my girls, or when I fly by myself. I’m not going to let someone have more weaponry than me. Is that an irrational reaction to this?”
Producer Jake agreed. People can be unpredictable.
“I don’t want to be the only one unarmed,” said Jake.
The TSA made the decision because they want to focus more of their energies on looking for bombs, rather than taking time looking for lower risk items. Now that cockpits are locked, there’s a much lower risk of planes getting hijacked if someone has a knife.
“Pre-911 the cockpit doors were open or unlocked during flights,” said Dori. “You could just look in and watch the pilots flying the plane.”
But now flight attendants are the first line of defense, and the flight attendants union has come out against the decision. Sarah Nelson, Vice President of the Association of Flight Attendants, appeared on the Today Show, said her organization was not consulted before the TSA made their decision, and that her union will fight the new policy.
“They’re a deadly weapon. And they’re unnecessary. It is unnecessary to put these on our aircraft. After September 11th the policy changed, and it changed for a reason,” said Nelson.
Dori often thinks that people take the small things too seriously, like suspending seven-year-olds for having gun-shaped Pop Tarts. But he’s concerned about the TSA’s new policy.
“I do think this one’s silly. It’s worse than silly. If my only recourse is to bring a knife on the plane when I fly, that’s what I’ll do,” said Dori.