An Editorial

My students asked me to write an editorial for this month's Clarion. It probably won't go to print, but will be judged blindly with the other editorials written by the newspaper staff. I'm not sure if they will be able to tell it's mine. :)

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Airports have been in the national spotlight lately. An increase in security has required travelers to make a choice:  undergo a full-body scan, or be subjected instead to pat downs that some say are too invasive.

In the blogosphere people have been joking about traveling naked to solve the issue once and for all. At the Salt Lake International Airport, an “exasperated” father removed his young son’s shirt as airport screeners demanded a pat down before the boy could process through security. A video of the whole scene was recorded by a UVU student and has now gone viral on YouTube. 

The airport screening process won't change much as long as the terrorism threat to airlines remains unchanged. The truth is, as a nation we are terrified about underwear bombers and a repeat of the 9/11 attacks. Because of this, there are some stringent (and strange) policies being implemented.

I’ve heard people refer to school as a prison, making reference to how strict it seems to be. The truth is, those in power are making choices for our safety, which makes me wonder: what if schools adopted airport policies?

If schools were like airports:

a)     We would all have to arrive to school three hours early, just in case.

b)    Class could be delayed at any time without warning.

c)     Students would have to stand in lines outside of each class to check in.

d)    All people would turn off their cell phones at the door.

e)     We would all be required to have the right documentation (completed assignments, etc). If not, we would be sent to the back of the line and not allowed in the room.

f)     We would be served “mid-class” snacks, for a small fee.

g)    If one of us looked suspicious, we could be searched on the spot. Any safety violation would be reported to Homeland Security.

We sometimes think that school policy is a little harsh, but really, we have it pretty nice. Just ask the northern Michigan man who was humiliated recently by a Detroit Metro Airport security pat down that ended up spilling urine onto his shirt and pants from a urostomy bag under his clothing. We have it pretty easy.