Government Fraud, Waste, and Abuse

Imagine, if you will... You muddle through 3 security checkpoints at Dubai International Airport before finally reaching the aircraft. You're clean, along with all your fellow passengers. You embark upon a 15+ hour journey. You arrive in Atlanta. Before reaching the terminal, you must first clear passport control and customs. There are signs everywhere that indicate you are in a controlled area and cell phone use is prohibited. You retrieve your luggage from the carousel and transport it to another because you have a connecting flight. Passengers who have reached their final destination are ushered through a separate exit. You are still in a controlled area. There is no Cinnabon. No Starbucks. No Duty Free shopping. You have delivered your luggage and are ready to head to the gate to catch your next flight. Oh, but wait - what's this? A security checkpoint? You mean you have to remove your shoes again? Your coat? Remove your laptop from the carrying case? Show that your lipgloss and travel hand lotion are secured inside a zip-loc bag? How is it remotely possible that anything has changed since the last security checkpoint in Dubai? You have been in a secure area the whole time! Did you pick up items that resemble weapons during your secure 15+ hour flight? Or between the luggage carousel and the connecting luggage drop point? Did you buy a pack of cigarettes and a few lighters between passport control and the luggage carousel? No, of course not! You haven't even turned on your cell phone to call family because the sign says you're in a controlled area! How does any of this make sense? I have thought and thought and thought about this. And no, it doesn't make any sense. So here's my summary explanation in five words: Government Fraud, Waste, and Abuse. Yes, please, Uncle Sam, use more of my tax dollars to hire more TSA agents so that I can watch them drink coffee and chit-chat while I stand in line for 25 minutes for absolutely no good reason. I'm in the wrong line of work...