My wife, a smoker, was happy to hear this bit of news in the New York Times:
Federal aviation authorities have decided to stop enforcing a two-year-old rule against taking cigarette lighters on airplanes, concluding that it was a waste of time to search for them before passengers boarded.[...]
“Taking lighters away is security theater,” [TSA Assistant Director] Hawley said. “It trivializes the security process.”[...]
Security officers have been collecting some 22,000 lighters a day nationwide, slowing down lines at check points. Even so, many smokers had found ways to sneak lighters through checkpoints, often by placing more than one in a carry-on bag. Disposing of the seized lighters has cost about $4 million a year.
By lifting the ban, Mr. Hawley said, security officers could spend more time looking for bombs or bomb parts. “The No. 1 threat for us is someone trying to bring bomb components through the security check point,” he said. “We don’t want anything that distracts concentration from searching for that.”
I imagine that matchbook dealers near popular smoking spots at airports around the country are disappointed with the change.
Another element of security theater—restrictions on liquids—will mostly remain in effect, save for a liberalization of the rules regarding breast milk. I don’t mind the limiting folks to small bottles, since it reduces carryon clutter…and I was doing it already…but being obliged to remove your ziploc baggie and run it through the X-ray separately, as is done with shoes and laptops, seems to be a needless hassle.
Oh well. At least I’m reminded that I need to make sure I bring a lighter with me when I go to the airport to pick up my wife in a few hours. 