This doesn't exactly involve survival, so I posted here.

My wife was going to see Oprah Winfrey in person at the Convention Center, so I went along as well. Good thing someone mentioned a security check. I prepared ahead of time, de-blading down to my Vic MiniChamp. It's a tiny little thing that looks more like a toy.

I was wanded, practically spreadeagled, and that thing found EVERY piece of metal on my body, including that in my glasses and my watch, both of which are mostly plastic, and the metal liners in the eyelets in my shoes.

Holy cow.

Those detectors easily beat the ones at our county courthouse in sensitivity, and those laughable ones at the airport by a good country mile. Tons more security people than either of the those places. If the airport offered that kind of security, I'd be less scared to fly.

My family really does not get the whole preparedness thing. When I mentioned the check, they said, then don't take any knives with you. I almost screamed, but what can you do. They're family. My family's idea of preparedness involves remembering to take your car keys with you. Argh!

I damn near lost the Vic. I had to empty my pockets and let strangers paw over my possessions and make judgement calls. This is one sorry state of society to which we have fallen. Someone grabbed the MiniChamp, proclaiming it a deadly weapon. Yeah, right.

I would have taken issue with that idiotic pronouncement and gotten myself shot, but the other members of my party, not being prepared for anything whatsoever, easily cleared security and were waiting for me.

It appeared as though my Vic was simply going to be tossed, but I spoke up, asking how to get it back, and the biggest man I have ever seen in my life came over to inspect the "deadly weapon." This guy was so big, and I don't mean fat, I mean BIG, I could have made a tent from his clothing. His fist was about the size of my head. My little knife disappeared into his palm, and was about the size of the nail on his pinky finger. He finally said something like, "This ain't nothing," and handed it back to me. I'm not saying anything against the guards. They were doing their jobs. The big guy was well-spoken and polite.

However, I simply don't have anything good to say about the current state of paranoia that exists here in this country. It's not a healthy paranoia, it's a "scared of lawsuits" paranoia.

By the way, does anyone else have problems trying to communicate the idea of being prepared to your family?