Episode Details

A sixteen-year-old accidentally carries a pocket flamethrower through airport security. DHS undercover tests show screeners miss weapons 95% of the time. So why do we still queue up for body scanners and liquid baggies? This episode unpacks the uncomfortable truth about security theater — a system optimized not for catching threats, but for making passengers feel safe. We trace the incentives that keep failing measures in place, from the TSA's dual mandate to the political calculus that makes it easier to add new rules than remove old ones. If everyone knows the performance is a performance, what's the point?