Scott Gardner
4 HN mentions · mentioned in 4 months, 2013–2022
3:13 · 497K views · Dec 6, 2012
A short Louis CK stand-up bit about complaining on airplanes, about how people take the miracle of flight for granted.
Posted as a joke reply to complaints about air travel and airport security.
4 comments from Hacker News
I mean, I think the point of all security is to reduce the total numbers of deaths from terrorist attacks overall, not just per means of transportation. That said, the fact of the matter is that the article doesn't back up its claim that airport security doesn't reduce terrorist casualties overall. Instead it states some bizarre equivalence between the decline in the number of hijackings (-6.9) and the increase in the number of instances of other kinds of terrorism (+6.8). But clearly other forms of terrorism do not cause nearly as much death as plane hijackings do, which for each one numbers in the hundreds, so we could be talking about an integer factor decrease in the number of deaths from terrorist attacks - 4x, 5x, 6x - by merely replacing them with other, less destructive terrorism. After all, the relative destructiveness of a plane hijacking is WHY terrorists do it at all. Suddenly airport security seems to look a lot more effective and a lot more worth it. So obviously they didn't mention casualties at all, since it would undermine the point they are trying to make. Everytime someone complains about security at the airport - this video People are enjoying an incredible privilege being able to fly in the air.
Well-said. Airplanes are relatively straightforward machines. Computers just do trivial math and logic very fast. Listening to Bach in a cathedral is just hearing metal tubes vibrating air in an artificial cave. But if you've never stopped and wondered that you're "partaking in the miracle of human flight"[1] or that the block of metal and sand in your desk lets you see loved ones across time and space, or that countless people worked for ages so you could experience the music and art in that building, well you're missing out. Humans are lucky that we experience both understanding and awe. [1] this video (CW:LCK)
> I still feel the same childish joy every time I feel the plane leave the ground -- we're actually flying! I aways remember this bit by Louis CK about flying. It is just so true. this video
How does 24 hours and no cost compare to the time and cost without this utility? this video (nsfw-language: Louis CK bit)