Security

We have just had a news story hit the wires about a man who tried to bring down an airliner with an underwear bomb. This had been headline news on the news/talk radio station I listen to, and it has had the lead position on the news web site I visit, so I will assume that it was the lead story on the nightly TV news, for those of you who still watch that.

And our director of Homeland Security was in front of cameras saying that 'the system worked.' She seemed to want to claim victory over this near-tragedy somehow, even though several bomb experts have agreed that the only thing which kept the thing from exploding and blowing a hole in the airliner was dumb luck. The guy didn't do it just right, and it ignited instead of exploding. That is the only thing which 'worked,' not the security system.

There are no security measures currently in place to detect high explosives in people's undies. There are no undie bomb detectors even in the planning stages. And I certainly hope I don't have to stop wearing undies or have them searched when I travel in the future. And I am going to travel in the future. I am not going to let this frighten me off of travel. Because I believe that the 'system' we need in the US is cooperation.

Do you remember when people first climbed back on board airplanes after 9/11? Pilots and flight attendants all over the world were encouraging people to get to know the folks sitting around them. And we ALL began to keep an eye on each other. We did two very important things: we looked out for each other, and we looked at each other.

That's right: we kept an eye on each other as friends for the first time, with the thought that we were all in the same situation and we needed each other. We needed to work together on this one, as a country and as a team. And it worked. As people came together, it became increasingly harder for a terrorist to do the work of terror. People were just watching too closely. And we got to know each other for the first time in a long long time.

But we also kept an eye on each other as enemies. The countries who support terror became the focus of intense watching, both at the government level and on the streets. I will freely admit that there are plenty of folks who did not deserve the extra scrutiny, and some of them sang sad sad songs of discrimination and mistreatment. Poor them. I have no pity for somebody who looks like a terrorist, as I get ready four hours early to allow time to get through security, and as I stand in line with my laptop computer out of the case and my shoes in my hand. I understand fully that Jesus died for all people, and that if I get a chance I will tell a Muslim about this savior named Jesus who came to set them free from sin the same way He set me free. But I also understand that we need to be wise about who we keep an eye on.

So - what's the next "system" our government needs to install to safeguard our travel and keep our borders secure? Well, let's see. If they put one paid Air Marshall on each flight it will cost us millions of dollars. That cost will be added to our travel costs, as all government programs are paid out of your pocket and mine. OR - we could just encourage people to watch. Watch out for friends all around you - people who are in the exact same situation you are in and who need a little help along the way. And watch out for our enemies.

If we could put two or three hundred Air Marshals on each flight, at no additional cost, wouldn't we turn the tide on terror in the air? It could extend to trains and buses, and even large buildings and the very highways and byways of America.

Let's do it. Let's come back together as a country the way we did post 9/11. The Bible teaches us that we ARE our brothers' keepers. Let's keep each other alive out there. And by the way - did you notice how polite and giving we all were on the highways and in the mall parking lots - even in the stores and hallways of our schools during that post-9/11 love fest? Let's not wait for another bombing to experience that.

Wave at somebody today. One person. I dare you! Start small. Introduce yourself to that neighbor down the street. Swap names, get phone numbers. Let's connect this country the way God wants the church connected. And we may, just possibly, become a better example of Godliness than the church. And heaven knows the church could use the competition.