wrote:
: For most of the 20th Century the conventional wisdom for people who
: drove convertible automobiles (cars with soft tops) was to never lock
: the vehicle. Thieves would simply cut the top to get what they wanted.
: Then you still lost the item(s) and you had to repair the top.
:
: Despite the latest advice to use TSA locks on softsided luggage,
: doesn't the old wisdom still apply? There are still many current
: incidences of TSA damaging zippers and softsides to remove even TSA
: locks. And even when the bag is not damaged, the locks are frequently
: missing after TSA checking. Thieves can easily access bag contents
: with a knife or razor, thus also damaging the bag. How would one then
: continue the trip with a large hole in the side of a bag with the
: contents spilling out? And won't the baggage damage problems even get
: worse with the extra luggage being checked these days?
:
: The question then is, should I really put locks on my softside (in this
: case a duffel)? Wouldn't those little plastic locking tabs make more
: sense. Even the TSA would find them easier to cut than the zipper or
: sides of your luggage.
Thieves and TSA are slightly different. :)
Let's take thieves first. It is like why lock a house when thieves can
break windows? Indeed, there would be no point if your house was the
only house. However, why would a thief bother with windows if he can
find doors open? He would go after the most vulnerable houses and your
task is to make yours less attractive. The same applies to luggage. Why
would a thief bother with knife etc if he can just open bags?
Now TSA: At US airports I indeed don't lock my bags. If traveling
abroad, I have locks available and at foreign airports I do lock them. |