Comments on: Hitchens on Airport Security

By: More Reasons to Love Christopher Hitchens

More Reasons to Love Christopher Hitchens — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 20:38:06 +0000

[...] (Via Unreasonable Faith) [...]

By: nazani14

nazani14 — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 20:45:12 +0000

I think we must be thankful that terrorists have the little-boy mentality that likes explosions. There are only so many people one can kill in a single airplane, on or off the ground. We can all think of more effective WMD.

By: nazani14

nazani14 — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 20:35:47 +0000

Agreed. There have been cases where a “good friend” has given a passenger a special present to carry on board, later found to be contraband.

By: Jabster

Jabster — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 18:43:37 +0000

“… discounting the likes of the Isle of Wight it’s just one big island.”

I rest my case my lord …

By: burpy

burpy — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 12:31:37 +0000

@Jabster. I take it you´re not Scottish then? How about Skye, the Orkneys, the Hebrides. Then on the English side you´ve got the Isles of Scilly (the silly isles), Lindisfarne etc etc. ok pedantry over.

By: Jabster

Jabster — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 11:36:57 +0000

20% sounds more reasonable considering that the UK alone had 3.4m ‘vistors’ for the US in 2009.

By: Elemenope

Elemenope — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 11:16:32 +0000

I was stymied when trying to find an official number, but reasonable guesses derived from annual issuance statistics and the fact they last ten years under normal circumstances places possession at about 20% of the population. Apparently that number is the result of a sharp trend upwards over the past ten years, so when teh 7% myth first cropped up it may well have been close to reality.

On the other hand, I live in an American state whose largest linear dimension is forty-seven miles, and have met several people who have never left the state in their entire lives, never mind the country.

By: Jabster

Jabster — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 11:12:33 +0000

Brits and little islands … discounting the likes of the Isle of Wight it’s just one big island.

Oh and yes the US does now deserve the title of the new Empire builder it just does it in a more subtle way. We were just honest and said we are taking over your country whether you like it or not … awesome :-)

By: Jabster

Jabster — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 11:06:46 +0000

I always thought that 7% having passports was just a myth and although the figure wasn’t as high as say Europeans it wasn’t quite that low?

By: Custador

Custador — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 10:56:29 +0000

I said he was like a Republican, not that he is a Republican ;-)

By: Mike

Mike — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 10:42:34 +0000

93% do not have passports. Given the diversity within their own borders, perhaps not too surprising.

By: Elemenope

Elemenope — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 10:41:30 +0000

Well, every time you Brits manage to find your way off your little islands, the world breaks into a few more painful little pieces. We’re achieving in just a few short centuries the very same reputation. Perhaps it is best for us to never again venture forth.

Besides, as far as English-speaking peoples, I believe it is Australia’s turn to ruin something horribly.

By: Mike

Mike — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 10:39:55 +0000

Something wrong here. Hitchens is an ex-communist so either he CAN change his views or he is NOT a republican. Having said this, I find his pig-headed defense of the invasion of Iraq disturbing.

By: Custador

Custador — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 10:29:30 +0000

I thought most American sheeple didn’t travel outside of the US anyway?

By: Jabster

Jabster — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 09:24:52 +0000

Or the Australian one … do you have a criminal record; to which the reply is … I didn’t think it was still compulsory :-)