How to Beat Airport Security

Long security lines at the airport are supposed to be for safety. But in the new Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg says they “are almost entirely for show—security theater is the term of art.” In a hilarious piece, Goldberg exposes our airports’ terrifying security gap. Goldberg’s inventory of smuggled items includes pocketknives, matches, cigarette lighters, rope, nail clippers, toothpaste, bottled water, box cutters, and a Beerbelly. In an attempt to get caught, Goldberg enters security with a fake boarding pass, no ID, and an Osama Bin Laden T-Shirt. “All right, you can go,” the TSA guard tells him. “But let this be a lesson for you.”