Not so secure

Ah, airport security – it takes so much of the worlds time… and yet so often achieves so very little.

In India security in all it’s forms is pretty much going through the motions in one form or another. And security here takes, many, many forms… from top notch airport security to the chap on the gate at work with the little mirror on a stick looking for bomb threats. And lets face it he has no idea what a bomb might actually look like – so is presumably looking for some kind of Wylie Coyotte dynamite and clock arrangement.

This lack of any actual secure aspect to security is rather brought home by this delightful sign at Trivandrum domestic departures. There is the security gate, all solid and official… and yet the yellow sign reads, ‘kindly collect your own mobile phone’. As though it so regularly happens that people steal mobiles at security (SECURITY mind you, lets not forget that) that they needed to make a sign. A nice permanent sign too.

And I love the slightly tired and worn out sounding air of it – you often get this on official things, an air of we know you’re going to do it anyway, but we’re at least making a token effort to dissuade you.

Mind you, I suppose it is at least possible that what the sign is trying to convey is that there will not be a valet service for your mobile. If you don’t pick it up, don’t expect the security people to ferry it over to you. But even so – that hints at a rather marvelous world of privelege and lack lustre movement; ‘Excuse me officer, I don’t carry my own mobile – you scanned it, just you march over here with it now you’re done. And do get on with it’

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