Not just a complete waste of time, but also a gigantic waste of money too. Proof and arguments here.
We’ve become inured to the airport hassle so it’s unlikely to go away no matter how ineffective it might be. But worse, we’ve done this across the board with a great number of civil liberties.
I’ve not heard commentators discuss the economic crisis in these terms, but here’s what I now think: We’re losing Bush’s so-called “war on terror.” The attacks on 9/11, with all due respect to those who lost their lives and their families and friends, weren’t about killing people as much as it was about prodding the US to destroy itself through massive overspending (primarily military–the real estate bubble was a bonus).
If we detach from the horror of the 9/11 events, it’s obviously true that three unarmed planes aren’t going to take down America. But what those three planes prompted will, and we’re seeing the results of that now daily.
In this respect, a President Obama could be the terrorists’ worst nightmare. First, he’s smart enough to spend money more wisely (infrastructure, healthcare, education, etc.), and second, he has advocated very publicly that the military target the Al-Qaeda bases and individuals in Pakistan if we get actionable intelligence.
I don’t know if the lack of terrorist action on the Homeland since 9/11 is the result of Homeland Security (which I doubt, frankly), the war in Iraq (which I really doubt), or Al-Qaeda’s inability to mount another operation over here.
More likely, I think, is that they are sitting back and watching us destroy ourselves by throwing money away on things like a bogus Airport security system that’s a designed to make us feel safer while providing no real protection.