Polk County Libertarian Party

OFFICERS

County Chair
Kris Overstreet
Rt. 14 Box 5560 Livingston, TX 77351
(936) 685-4992
email redneck@livingston.net

County Vice Chair
Frank Bridge
Rt. 5 Box 3136
Livingston, TX 77351
email fdbridge@livingston.net

County Secretary
John Saporito
PO Box 96
Goodrich, TX 77335
email cag1@livingston.net

County Treasurer
Tina Carter
220 E. Denham St.
Livingston, TX 77351
email tcsmpsi@livingston.net

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First the National Transportation Safety Board announced that no '911' system would be set up for individual passengers on airlines, stating that it is the responsibility of the pilot to report incidents on airplanes to the ground.

In making this decision, the NTSB ignored two vital facts about September 11. The pilots on all four hijacked planes failed to notify the ground of any trouble before losing control of the aircraft. Only the use of privately-owned cellular phones allowed the passengers of one plane to discover what was planned and to thwart the terrorists' efforts.

Despite these facts, the NTSB feels that authority is more important than personal responsibility for defense. Therefore, the various restrictions on cell phone use on airplanes will remain in place, with nothing changed since before the 9-11 attacks.

A few days later, both George Bush and his Department of Transportation secretary announced their opposition to allowing airline pilots to carry guns on the plane. This stance must astound supporters of the National Rifle Association, who worked so hard to put Bush in the White House; it certainly astounds the airline pilot's unions, who have polled over 70% in favor of being allowed to carry guns.

Instead of allowing pilots, much less passengers, to defend themselves, the federal government will rely on air marshals for airline defense. Leaving aside that, at present, there are over 15,000 airline flights daily nationwide and only about 2,000 air marshals, all the same arguments against allowing pilots to bear arms apply to the marshals. There is the same risk that the hijacker will sieze the gun; there is the same likelihood of an innocent being wounded; and there is the same probability that the pilot or pilots will be outnumbered by the hijackers.

With all of these facts available, why does George Bush turn his back on the gun-rights lobby that elected him? The answer, in one word, is -control-. Despite any election-year crowing, both the Democrats and Republicans are in favor of gun control- and in eliminating self-defense in favor of public safety officers. By eliminating the ability of the individual to defend themselves, the politicians gain power and political support from the new officers 'required' to keep the peace.

The peace-officer, no-weapons approach to airline security has failed. Despite forty years of weapons checks and Draconian restrictions on any item that might be used as a weapon, airlines have become no safer. In fact, when a plane can be hijacked by as few as three men with boxcutter knives, it could be said that airlines are at greater risk than ever for hijackings.

The time has come for the people to tell the government that their safety comes ahead of any politician's Washington power base. Until and unless the government allows the airlines, the pilots, and the passengers to defend themselves from attack, we are vulnerable. If we want security, we must demand the right to secure ourselves... and neither the Democrats nor the Republicans will lift a finger to make that possible. Change, if it comes, must come from somewhere else.

(Kris Overstreet is Polk County chairman for the Libertarian Party of Texas. The Libertarian Party is the largest non-establishment political party in Texas, challenging over 150 offices on local, state and federal levels in Texas. For more information on the Libertarian Party of Texas, check www.tx.lp.org .)