Date: Fri, 20 Aug 2004 00:22:50 -0400
To: WSFA members <WSFAlist at WSFA.org>
From: Elspeth Kovar <ekovar at worldnet.att.net>
Subject: [WSFA] Re: More TSA idiocy!
Reply-To: WSFA members <WSFAlist at WSFA.org>

At 05:24 PM 8/19/04, Michael Walsh wrote:
> > ecfield at comcast.net 8/11/04 5:56:19 PM >>>
> >This is starting to get scary!
> >
> >http://www.livejournal.com/users/mephron/349969.html
> >
>
>Sorry, but when it comes to idiotcy, I'm afraid the US of A doesn't
>have first place.
>
>I bring your attention to:
>
>"Cat pounces on pilot mid-flight "
>
>"An escaped pet cat created a scare on a Belgian airliner, forcing the
>crew to turn back to Brussels 20 minutes into its journey.  "
>
>http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3551672.stm

Or, as my brother passed along:

A New Breed Of Terrorist
By Pete  Combs
Editor, Aero-News Net
Cockpit Kitty Forces Emergency Landing --  Really
(With apologies to Dr. Seuss --  ed.)

This is the story of a very bad cat
Though the very bad cat did not wear a hat
The very bad cat decided to play
In a Belgian jetliner that was going away.
The cat came on board in a portable cage
(Traveling with pets is now all the big rage)
The plane was headed to Vienna Tuesday
It was just after mealtime the cat got away.
As the cabin crew unlocked the thick cockpit door
No one was looking right down at the floor.
The cat waltzed right in like it owned the place
And proceeded to get in the copilot's face.
The copilot himself was surprised when he saw
A feline terrorist armed with a claw.
There was no way to reason, there was no way to plea
This kitty meant business, it was quite plain to see.
There was a commotion in the cockpit right then,
The crew finally subdued that cat they called "Gin."
The pilot decided in the wake of the tussle
It might be real smart to head back to Brussels.
The cat was detained and some questions were asked
Did the cat have a gun? Did the cat have a mask?
Was the cat in cahoots with the terrorist scourge?
Did the cat feel some hatred it just had to purge?
Though Gin the cat didn't do all that much harm,
It did put a gash in the copilots arm.
Now the folks who run SN Brussels Airline
Are evaluating their policy toward flying felines.
"The passengers were never in danger," they say,
"But an airplane's no place for a kitty to play."
So you can thank Gin when next you want to try
To see if young kitty cats ar able to fly.

As said brother put it, "Those Brussels pilots are wimps."