How to Stop Hijackings

This will never happen, of course, but it occurs to me that there is a very simple way to stop aircraft hijackings, almost overnight.

As passengers embark, offer each person a gun. I'd suggest a 22 or 25 caliber weapon, as it is unlikely to cause explosive decompression in case it is fired inside the aircraft. If a person were shot several times with one, however, they would definitely not be in the mood to continue their hijacking.

My premise is that most people are normal, law-abiding, good people. If a hijacker or two got on the plane and took a gun, there would be a large majority of good people with guns, too, and the hijackers would be vastly outnumbered. This would act as a very big deterrent to would-be future hijackers. I believe it would stop hijackings, altogether.

It offers the added benefit of a huge cost saving and job creation. The entire security check-in procedure, with the accompanying delays and costs, could be eliminated. To purchase enough guns to equip every domestic flight in the US would cost some money, but not nearly as much as all that security screening stuff and staff. Firearm manufacturers would probably gear up and hire more people to meet the increased demand for guns, so that would create a few thousand jobs and help our economy.

And finally, can you imagine how nice and polite people would be to each other if they knew their seatmate was probably armed?