Alex Wong: Danger on the ground

Throughout the English literary canon, one enduring image you'll find is that of the prescient fool. From the soothsayer in Shakespeare's Julius Caesar to Fitzgerald's owl-eyed man and even to that crazy trailer park pilot in Independence Day, there's always one man who recognizes impending doom -- who even warns others -- yet whose ravings go unheeded.

Last week, perhaps one of those tragic fools walked into Philadelphia International Airport. Dennis Knaus, a Malvern, Pa. resident, was taken away in handcuffs after he took a suitcase full of box cutters and sharpened paint scrapers onto a jetliner. But he didn't leave without sending a loud message.

In these times of heightened security, Knaus' story is almost unbelievable. In an attempt to discourage his wife from flying, Knaus wanted to prove that airport security could easily be breached. So the 59-year-old Styrofoam salesman walked past a baggage checkpoint unscathed and walked back out. Amazed at his feat, he strolled in again, boarded his plane and then called security to complain about their shoddy work before they arrested him.

Extreme as his actions were, Knaus drew attention to the dire state of airport checkpoint security, one of the weakest links in our country's war on terrorism. The truth is that the present system -- in which each individual airline hires out private security firms from a constantly-changing pool of 70 or so companies -- is flawed and dangerous.

Three problems afflict that pool of companies: high employee turnover rates, managerial incompetence and corrupt hiring practices.

According to a report by Congress' General Accounting Office, the average annual turnover rate for security screeners at major airports is 119 percent. That means that in less than a year, a terminal's entire security staff is replaced. Some airports, like Boston's Logan -- from which two of the hijacked planes took off -- had turnover rates that ran as high as 400 percent.

The crucial job of checkpoint guard demands experience, adequate training and better pay. In Europe this truth is recognized. According to the AFL-CIO Web site, European guards make $30,000 a year. In America, it's a minimum wage gig.

Looking at this dire employment situation, eyes turn to the management of the security firms. In the Knaus case, one looks to International Total Services, the Cleveland-based firm that handles security at the terminal checkpoint Knaus breached.

Securities and Exchange Commission filings indicate that ITS has filed for bankruptcy protection after taking heavy losses for years despite budget cutbacks. They are also in the midst of suing their former chairman for "gross mismanagement" and are experiencing a dramatic personnel turnover at the top.

The company did not return repeated phone calls, but their Web site states that the company will "continue serving" its customers. But how good is that service when your company is strapped for cash? How good is morale when the higher-ups have no idea what they're doing? How do you defend a service that lets an armed man walk through its gates not once, but twice?

ITS is not the only company that fails to inspire confidence in flyers.

Britain-based Argenbright Security, the firm that provided checkpoint guards for the hijacked airliners at Newark International and Washington Dulles International, has a history of FAA violations including hiring ex-cons as guards at Philadelphia International and unfair labor practices that have undoubtedly alienated workers.

Another leading firm, Command Security Corporation of New York, operates in major airports up and down the East Coast. According to SEC filings, they have been incurring losses for four straight years and fighting off a laundry list of labor lawsuits that includes allegations of sexual harassment, discrimination and retaliatory discharge.

These are the companies protecting our airplanes. Their employees -- afflicted with high turnover, low pay and ruthless management -- are the ones who are supposed to care enough to root out terrorists.

If you're worried, you have company.

Mark Pesce, a spokesman for Philadelphia International, stated that the airport sees the fragmented security system as a problem.

"We support a level of federalization of the system," Pesce said, stating that the airport felt some sort of government oversight was needed. He said that with each airline hiring different firms to defend each terminal, the overall security of the airport is compromised.

The guards have to constantly deal with employees from other companies who conduct business differently. That leads to miscommunication. And that leads to security breaches like the one Dennis Knaus pulled off last week.

I am not the biggest fan of government intervention in markets, but in this case, I believe it is needed. A system of contract bidding needs to be implemented as well as a mandate that security be centrally administrated at airports instead of broken up between terminals. Companies, furthermore, must be held accountable in regards to their hiring practices.

Last week, a fool made a clear proclamation. We'll all be fools if we don't act on the dangers he -- and the Sept. 11 tragedies -- exposed.

Alex Wong is a senior English major from Wyckoff, N.J.

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