He Won't Be Home for Christmas

As I'm sure everyone knows by now, a man, Rigoberto Alpizar, was shot dead on Wednesday at Miami Airport after officials claimed he said he had a bomb and ran off of the airplane in a frantic state. This is the first case since September 11, 2001, in which air marshals have had to shoot a passenger because of a possible, and I repeat, possible threat on board an airplane. Despite numerous testimonies from passengers , officials say the air marshals were justified in shooting the man to death. I will admit, they were justified in restraining and detaining the man, even if it were shoot to maim, but certainly not shoot to kill.

Of course, I value our security as much as the next person. I would hate to be in a situation where someone threatened to have a bomb or a gun on a plane, train or subway. However, I value human life as well. Our current government is on such a terrorist witch hunt, that they are willing to take anyone down in the process, and they don't care who.

Reports claim that Alpizar's wife was running after him screaming, "My husband! My husband!" and that she said he did not have his mediation for his bipolar disorder. Did that stop the air marshals? No. People reported that he was anxious before even getting on the plane and that his wife was trying to ease him. Did the air marshals take that into consideration? No. Even worse, passengers are now testifying that he never said "bomb" at all, only that someone said "bomb".

That's right. According to John McAlhany, Alpizar just wanted to get off the plane. Never in the process of trying to leave did Alpizar say the word "bomb". It wasn't until the FBI interviewed McAlhany that he even heard the word mentioned. In fact, the FBI referred to it as the "B-word". Oh no, not the "B-word"! Once in 5th grade, I heard Timmy say the "F-word". Give me a break! Are you professionals or what? McAlhany actually had to ask the FBI agents what they were referring to in order to give them an answer.

And what really gets me is that the air marshals claim (maybe admit) to not be expert marksmen. John Amat, national operations vice president of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, was quoted as saying, "Hollywood has this perception that we are such marksmen we can shoot an arm or leg with accuracy. We can't. These guys were in a very tense situation. In their minds they had to believe this person was an imminent threat to themselves or the people on the plane." Are you kidding? Why allow someone to have a gun in such close quarters if they aren't expert qualified. Isn't it possible that you might hit someone else--by accident? My husband attended West Point and was expert qualified. He was able to shoot something with pinpoint accuracy at about 400 yards away. My grandfather competitively shoots American Civil War muskets and carbines. In a single shot, he can demolish a porcelain tile about 4 inches by 4 inches anywhere from 50 to 100 yards away. That's a little bit smaller than an arm or leg. Sorry, but just because you aren't expert qualified is no excuse to shoot someone to death (regardless of whether the person was on or off the plane).

So now a life is lost, a family is shattered and no bomb was found. David Stempler, president of the Air Travelers Association, said he thinks this incident may prove to be more "reassuring than disturbing" and that "this is a reminder [the air marshals] are there and are protecting the passengers and that it is a seriously deadly business." At least a "seriously deadly business" for those on the wrong end of the gun, in the wrong place at the wrong time. The Department of Homeland Security is being questioned on how well their agents are trained to deal with mental illness and people in severe emotional distress. Maybe not well enough after all. Alpizar apparently ignored numerous warnings to drop the bag with the supposed "B-word". The poor guy was already in a state of heightened mania, his judgment was distorted and he had men screaming at him and waving guns in his face. In his mind, it was better to run that to stick around. In the marshals' minds, it was better to kill than to maim.

In this day and age, with our current government running as poorly as it is, it seems that President Bush and his anti-terrorism cronies will stop at nothing to make their point (a.k.a. save their own asses). Of course, I wasn't on the plane and I can't say for sure whether or not Alpizar had a mental illness. I can't say whether or not the air marshals truly acted in an appropriate manner. However, I can offer my opinion and say that more training needs to be done to work in situations that aren't your typical terrorist/hijacker situations, as well as some more target practice to work on the maiming thing. Killing gets you no where. You'll never really know the truth now, will you? Oh, and a little something for all those involved in the shooting: who truly had the distorted judgment?

P.S. This story is quickly dying away from the headlines. Don't let the Feds make us forget what happened. A man was killed, and even though the air marshals are currently on paid leave (yes, paid) and the situation is being reviewed, there is no reason to forget what happened. We certainly don't want it to happen again, do we?

Pirate fact: Bilge rat--The bilge is the lowest level of the ship. It's loaded with ballast and slimy, reeking water. A bilge rat, then, is a rat that lives in the worst place on the ship. Example: Our nation's capitol is filled with lying, cheating bilge rats.