Our FAA

It has not been hard to make fun of the FAA. Wherever bureaucracy meets a technology-aware public, amusement will abound.

These folks still insist that cabin attendants demonstrate how to work seat belts to a public that has been around them for over 40 years. This is not being cautious - this is stunningly hidebound procedure, for which all we taxpayers gleefully pay salaries to support.

So it was with some surprise that I read they just approved the use of phones and tablets in planes - gosh, THAT technology is a mere 15 years old. Even curmudgeons embrace technology faster - what could be a more damning indictment?

I am firmly convinced the FAA was simply embarrassed into making a move - and that isn't easy when we're talking about a government bureaucracy.