Keep hoping. If there’s any QT profiling going on, it’s probably in reverse. Like checking lots of 16 – 19 year old midwestern farm girls while letting the Tsarnaev brothers slide right through–so no one can accuse them of subjecting the latter to extra scrutiny. Besides, who do you think they’d rather pat down?

You’ll never get off the bad-girl list, once swabbed.

My wife had a lot of fun with one of those checks a while back. I was working on board Navy ship and occasionally dealt with weapons and ammo. I kept a small suitcase in my stateroom to carry clothes home and back. She borrowed the bag for a trip, and told me later she set off all the bells, alarms, and whistles at the airport checkpoint with it. She told me all this, later, with a vaguely homicidal gleam in her eye. Like it was my fault.

I know what you mean. I’m allergic to a few things, especially perfumes, and get a skin rash from them. It occurred to me that the Q-tip might cause a reaction, but fortunately in my case it would only be a rash, so I just ignored it. I was fine; no reaction.

We are secure in the knowledge the government thinks us an enemy, worthy of skepticism and humiliation.

Right there, that’s a problem for me. I have allergies and would want to know what it was moistened with or in the very least be directed to a place, quickly (as in right now), where I could wash up.

And for those who think I am being too fussy, well, asthma and/or anaphylactic shock are laughing matters only in the movies or on TV sitcoms. Not laughing matters in real life.

And just how much “security” did this little exercise give us?