I remember you made a big deal out of going to Dulles, for a special
event where the way was paved for you. But that's not the same as
flying over the Nation's Capital. Washington DC is =inside= the FRZ.

Well, the way into the Washington ADIZ wasn't paved for us -- we had to
do everything by the book. It took ten minutes, tops, and was no more
difficult than filing any other kind of flight plan.

Now, if you're talking about flying over the White House or the
National Mall, well, duh.

2. With only a few airworthy space shuttles left -- and a political
climate that makes replacing them impossible -- I see nothing wrong
with restricting the airspace around Cape Canaveral.

Why? Perhaps a little one mile ring to keep people who can't maneuver
an airplane with that degree of precision away, but if you think this
keeps intentional harm away from the complex, that is laughable.

You don't think it's appropriate to have a no-fly zone around the
Kennedy Space Center? Tell me, Jose, where DO you think a no-fly zone
is appropriate?

3. I'm sure I can buy wine anywhere.

So what? The freedom to carry =my= wine in =my= carry-on is not a silly
freedom.

Yes, it is. And it's just another impetus to spur the growth of GA, in
any case.

Besides, many of the wines one can get in California are not
available anywhere else. There just isn't enough made. I don't want
the government telling me what wine I can drink, which is what
effectively happens.

And if a terrorist smuggles four "bottles" of explosives on the plane,
killing everyone on board, well, that's just acceptable collateral
damage? After all, your merlot was an excellent year!

Gimme a break.

I guess you wouldn't understand though. You drink beer.

Exactly. ;-)

The wine rule came about because wine is a liquid, and somebody tried to
use liquid explosive. Ever played with powdered sugar around a heat
source?

Not recently.

4. Letting people carry weapons on an airliner has proven to be a "bad
thing." I believe this restriction is in the "common sense" category.

People carrying weapons is not a Bad Thing. It is only when Bad people
carry weapons where Good people can't that it's a Bad Thing. And a
Swiss Army Knife is not a weapon, except in the sense that anything can
be used as one (including a pencil).

The PA airliner didn't make it to the White House because Good People
fought the terrorists back. The solution is to keep weapons away from
Good People. Hmmm. Common sense?

No, the solution is to make all airline passengers fly naked. I'd fly
on THAT airline.

;-)

1. The library rule will be overturned. Luckily, it's so unworkable,
in practice, that it is not used.

Really? You must get more use out of your time machine than you do out
of the Pathfinder. I don't see any reason for the government to
overturn the library rule, and it's the government that made it. All
they have to do is keep quiet about it. As it is, most people aren't
aware of it, and many that are are of the opinion that "if you aren't
reading anything bad, you have nothing to worry about."

How do you know that the library rule is not used? Part of the rule is
that the librarians are NOT ALLOWED TO SAY when it's been used.

Because the librarians around here protested it when it first was
announced, and declared that it would not be followed. Remember, Iowa
City has gone so far as to declare itself to be a "Nuclear Weapons-Free
Zone", and is the only city in America to elect a card-carrying member
of the communist party.

No one rounded up the librarians when they said that, and no one will.
It's a dumb, unenforceable, unworkable law, that will fall by the
wayside like the 200,000 other stupid laws we've got on the books that
no one obeys.

2. I hadn't heard that US citizens could have their homes searched
without due process. Are you referring to wire tapping overseas phone
calls?

Anybody can have their homes searched without due process if the feds
use the magic words "national security". I'm also referring to aspects
of "home" that are not geographical, such as the contents of your hard
drive (which may be seized and searched if you try to bring a laptop on
an airliner), the expanded wiretapping and internet tapping
surveillance, and other tramplings of what we once considered private.
These measures are being pushed through without much resistance, in the
name of National Security. Each one passed makes it easier to pass the
next one.

3. I hadn't head that US citizens could be held without charges being
brought.

If the charges are based on National Security, the government could deem
them too secret to present to you. I have no first-hand experience with
this, but I am no longer convinced that we are not all vulnerable to it.

We're going to win the war on terrorism just like we won the war on drugs.

You may be right, but I haven't heard any alternative responses that
make any more sense.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"