I’m frequent SLF and it never ceases to amaze me how people behave at passport control, security, boarding and disembarking. Here’s one from last Thursday going through security at BRU. They have a roller conveyor to the x-ray machine with a stack of trays at the beginning. Simple process:
wait your turn, take one or two trays as needed, move on down the conveyor and start unloading your pockets etc.
There I am waiting for space on the conveyor before taking a tray when the thick SLF (henceforth TSLF) behind me is in such a hurry that he starts unloading his pockets into the tray on the top of the stack. Space opens up on the conveyor so I grab the top tray, put it on the conveyor and throw my jacket in it. Cue much gesticulating from TSLF that his stuff is under my jacket. I lift my jacket and TSLF grabs his stuff. I then go to grab another tray for my laptop but, yes you’ve guess it, TSLF has put all his stuff in that one. I ask him, in a rather harassed tone; to
wait until the people in front all have a tray before he starts unloading his pockets. So, finally we all get our trays and get our stuff unloaded.
Now there are about four of us by the conveyor with our stuff in trays, waiting for the x-ray machine to catch up. Personally I like to stay with my stuff until I see it go into the x-ray machine, or at least the security guard is manhandling it in. Evidently the two people in front of me feel the same and wait but, not TSLF, he’s abandoned his stuff at the beginning of the conveyor and is through the metal detector like a rat up a drainpipe. No problem, that’s his choice, apparently he’s not bothered about pick pockets or opportunist thieves. So now he’s waiting expectantly at the other side right by the exit door of the x-ray machine. As the trays and bags each of the people in front of me move through the x-ray machine, they walk through the metal detector, try to get their stuff (which they can’t easily do because TSLF is blocking the exit of the x-ray machine) and politely ask TSLF to move out of the way so they can get their stuff.
By the time I arrived, and had to ask TSLF to move out of the way so I could get my stuff, he is getting really quite agitated as to where his stuff is. I think he genuinely couldn’t work out that his stuff would come out of the x-ray machine after the people in front of him in the queue, even though he went through the metal detector first. Presumably he thought there was a little man inside the machine that sorts all the trays in to the order which people walked through the metal detector. You do have to wonder.
A very wise man once said “remember, 49% of people are below average intelligence”.
