Oh man…sigh…here we go again.
You know, maybe it’s just me, but in the last few years since wading out of the Bush administration daze, things seemed like they were a little less overtly paranoid. Most likely I was just being foolish, but I clearly remember a time period back around 2002 and onwards where you could hardly even call the weather “balmy” without some paranoiac overhearing and speed-dialling the authorities.
Yes, lately I’ve been feeling that those days were comfortably behind us all. Unfortunately, I don’t think they are. Perhaps Los Angeles, California resident Adam Pearson might also feel the same after a recent incident on a Delta Airways flight from LA to Memphis. Pearson, a “noted LA food stylist“, had just taken his seat and was readying himself for take off when a flight attendant approached him and asked that he come to the front of the plane. After complying with this request, he was then asked to step off the plane, where he was questioned by the flight attendant and the captain about the words “Atom Bomb” that are tattooed across his knuckles. Apparently, another passenger’s complaint about Pearson was based solely on his tattoos.
Can I get a nice, loud, resounding chorus of WTF???
“I was just shocked,” Pearson said. “All eyes were on me, I felt everyone staring at me and I was like, ‘I didn’t do anything.’ ”
‘A Delta representative told Pearson the airline would look into the incident. “A public apology would be nice,” Pearson said. “I’m not out for blood,” he added, “but why didn’t they offer to book that other person on another flight if they didn’t like my tattoos? Why was that other person more important than me?”
Later in the day, Delta spokesman Anthony Black said he did not have any knowledge of the incident but said that the pilot and flight attendant must use their judgment to handle such matters.’
I would like to say that hopefully the person who dimed out Pearson on that flight feels like a right idiot at this point for judging someone by such superficial means, but I’m going to remain doubtful that that is the case. Furthermore, what kind of terrorist would get the words “atom bomb” tattooed on their knuckles? It’s not like terrorists are such fans of bombs that they actually feel the need to have different bomb types tattooed on their bodies. They just use bombs because they explode and cause damage. They don’t have some deep fucking affinity towards them.
Sheesh…People need to relax.