Free AI web copilot to create summaries, insights and extended knowledge, download it at here

Abstract

   </div>
          <div>
            <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*nkTkiSKt7TadYyr6)"></div>
          </div>
        </div>
      </a>
    </div><p id="0c5c">This time next year, thermal scanners, <a href="https://www.axios.com/airlines-coronavirus-face-mask-bcb06436-d5f8-44ad-b1a8-fb264ecfc69b.html">mandatory masks</a>, hand sanitizers, and increased health questionnaires will be just as normal as metal detectors—especially for international travel.</p><p id="2cda">And that’s on top of other stuff like the new <a href="https://www.cnn.com/videos/travel/2020/02/22/real-id-requirements-deadline-tsa-security-travel-orig.cnn/video/playlists/cnn-travel-transportation/">REAL-ID travel requirement</a> that was supposed to go into effect in October 2020. (It’s been pushed back to October 2021).</p><p id="6435">But that’s not news.</p><p id="fef7">Airports already suck, so we’re all prepared to trade a little more privacy and convenience for a different kind of security. I mean, how much worse can it get, right?</p><p id="0c86">No, the real change will come when this airport-level biosecurity becomes part of your daily life. Because that’s the difference between a pandemic and a terror attack.</p><p id="739b">9/11 forever changed our airports. But the coronavirus is poised to transform everywhere else.</p><h1 id="fc4b">When Everywhere Is the Airport</h1><p id="4e28">You expect to wait in a sprawling security line at the airport. You might even wear a special “travel day outfit” to help get through security as quickly as possible.</p><p id="2007">Slip-on shoes, elastic waist pants (aka “no belt”)—everyone has their go-to travel gear so they can breeze through the metal detectors and get on their way. Big deal, right? That’s just the way airports are.</p><p id="35f9">But what happens when you have to go through cumbersome biosecurity every day just to get into your office or shop at the grocery store? Singapore introduced mandatory thermal scans just to get into many office buildings, and no one batted an eye.</p><p id="b228">In fact, AI and thermal scanning startups are scrambling to keep up with the <a href="https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/business/high-demand-for-thermal-scanners-as-singapore-confirms-wuhan-12327374">growing global demand for biosecurity systems</a>.</p><p id="bfdf">Public health doesn’t have a convenient focal point like an airport, so we’re all going to have to interact with a lot more local security measures to prevent future outbreaks.</p><p id="1c3c">We’ve all heard (way too many times) that viruses don’t respect borders. But are we really prepared for what that means?</p><h1 id="a499">Life in the New Normal</h1><p id="44cf">Gyms, stadiums, sporting events, schools, grocery stores, bars, nail salons, and restaurants—all of these places are going to change. And just like the airport, they’re not going to go back to the way they were.</p><p id="9068">Hand sanitizer at every doorway. Chairs and tables at least six feet apart. Tape on the floor telling you where to stand in line. Glass partitions protecting cashiers. No more buffets. Half-empty movie theaters. Contactless payment and delivery service for practically everything.</p><p id="7981">I can’t think of all the minuscule and momentous ways this pandemic will reshape society, but systemic change is coming. However, these new restrictions aren’t going to be the strangest part of all this as we move forward.</p><p id="9e51">No, the weirdest part will be how quickly we get <i>used</i> to the new normal. In fact, within a few years, we’ll probably wonder how we ever lived without all this stuff in the first place.</p><p id="1d13">And before you know it, a lot more than just my favorite rom-coms will seem hopelessly out of date.</p><h1 id="b9a3">How the TSA Changed Travel</h1><p id="f110">To be clear, I’m not saying any of these new security measures are a bad thing. We need to meet this health threat with the appropriate safety precautions. I shouldn’t have to say this, but protecting people from a deadly pandemic is a good thing.</p><p id="bb8d">I won’t protest stay-at-home orders for the same reason that I don’t protest metal detectors at the airport. They both help keep people safe.</p><p id="6eb0">I love that air travel is a lot safer than it used to be, and I hope life we’ll be safer after this pandemic. I’m an optimist.</p><p id="37b6"><b>Fun fact: </b>Did you know that airport security used to be so woefully inadequate that over 130 planes were hijacked during the <a href="https://www.vox.com/2016/3/29/11326472/hijacking-airplanes-egyptair">plane “skyjacking” craze between 1968–1972</a>. Yup. Security was so

Options

non-existent that the hijacker catchphrase, “<a href="https://www.aerotime.aero/oleg.volkov/15042-take-me-to-cuba-the-skyjacking-craze-of-the-1960s">Take me to Cuba</a>” became a punchline in the 70s.I don’t want to go backward. But that doesn’t mean I can just ignore the added financial and social cost of the new normal. And the important difference between COVID-19 and 9/11 has to do with the scale of that cost.<h1 id="c581">Life After COVID-19</h1>This global pandemic is a life-changing event. Hundreds of thousands of people have already died, with thousands more likely to join that gruesome tally before this is all over. It’s a catastrophe.On top of that, millions of people (like myself) have lost their jobs, businesses, or livelihoods. Nothing is going to be the same after this.Seriously. Let that sink in. Things will be different from what came before. You will have literally have to explain certain things to your kids because they won’t understand how life could have ever been that way.Just like how I can’t believe Marisa Tomei got on that flight…For the past…well, century, we’ve increased mechanized farming practices to obscene levels, destroyed delicate ecosystems all over the world, and pushed billions of people into such abject poverty that they have to <a href="https://readmedium.com/what-coronavirus-teaches-us-about-the-kind-of-world-we-have-to-build-bc5822d5779e">eat bats to survive</a>.At the same time, we’ve stitched the global economy together with a fragile “just-in-time” supply chain to maximize profits and a sprawling network of thousands of daily bargain-basement commercial flights with no thought to the consequences of our actions.Life is grand. Nothing to see here. Things will go on this way forever.But in a matter of weeks, COVID-19 has shown this for the lie it always was.You might comfort yourself with cliches like, “We’ll get through this,” or “We’ve survived worse.” And you’re right. We have survived worse. This isn’t the worst pandemic in history. Far from it.But just like the events that came before, the coronavirus will have long-lasting consequences. Because of course it will. Everything does.I’m not being overly pessimistic or sensationalist when I say that many of these measures and restrictions aren’t just temporary stopgaps until we can re-opening the economy with enough “cleared” workers. They’re here to stay.How do I know?Simple. I’ve been to the airport recently. And it wasn’t awesome.<h1 id="2c55">Our New Normal</h1>I know it’s unfair to compare 9/11 with COVID-19. They’re different, and I’m not trying to say one is worse than the other. They’re both terrible. But that’s kind of the point.Despite what you think about the “War on Terror,” we’ve never declared victory. And we never will. You will never go through an airport without going through a metal detector because that’s the world we live in now.There’s no ticker-tape parade in Times Square at the end of this. There’s no enemy to vanquish. Surgical masks, hand sanitizer stations, thermometers, and health screenings are just the latest weapons to combat the growing list of threats.But so are terms like “social distancing,” “infection rate,” and “flattening the curve.”I watched my little nieces learn not to hug people because it's dangerous. I’ve attended Zoom birthday parties. And I’ve discovered that it’s almost impossible to smile at someone through a mask.And that’s what really sticks with me right now.Because the world I grew up in—the world I expected to grow old in—is already aging more rapidly and poorly than my favorite <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=217&v=_p5i7lu2pGQ&feature=emb_logo">Friends reruns</a>. And I’m afraid of what life will be like when I don’t recognize it anymore.Shawn Forno is a freelance copywriter, content manager, travel writer, and blogger with over twelve years of experience. He loves to talk about himself in the third-person. You can check out his <a href="https://shawnforno.contently.com/">writing portfolio</a> or his super-duper helpful <a href="https://www.aroundist.com/">travel articles</a> for more helpful tips and tricks for writers and travelers.<figure id="b822"><img src="https://cdn-images-1.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:800/1*N6tjD7N0sSqRujsTVNs5dg.jpeg"><figcaption></figcaption></figure></article></body>

Why COVID-19 Will Change Life More Than 9/11

The coronavirus is about a lot more than airport security

It’s easy to forget just how much airports changed after September 11, 2001.

Twenty years ago, we didn’t pack travel-size toothpaste. No one asked you to take off your shoes. And people still said goodbye to each other at the gate.

Remember that? People used to have emotional displays—even romantic reunions—at the airport. The mind reels.

And while airport rendezvous feel hilariously outdated today, it’s important to remember that before 9/11 security measures, airports were just another boring way to get from A to B.

In fact, I remember when airports were the go-to setting for characters to confess their undying love. Heck, some of my favorite film and television moments happened at an airport.

Airports Used to be Romantic

Remember Rachel, bouncing on her tiptoes, waiting for Ross to step off the plane so she can profess her love (and give him flowers?) in “The One With Ross’s New Girlfriend”?

I sure do. #JuliewastoogoodforRoss

The plot of Only You—a grossly underrated Marisa Tomei, Robert Downey rom-com from the 90s—largely hinges on multiple romantic encounters at the airport. My favorite scene actually features a group of over-the-top romantic Italian airline employees who change Marisa Tomei’s ticket so she can board a plane to reunite with true love.

1994 was a simpler time.

FYI: If you’re scraping the bottom of the Netflix quarantine barrel, go watch Only You. It’s dope.

And what about Tom Hanks spotting Meg Ryan for the first time as she strides off the plane while Jonah spins around that handrail at the SEA-TAC airport? Without that almost meet-cute at the airport, Meg is just another rando in the street instead of Sam Baldwin’s destiny.

“And all could say was, ‘Hello.’” Goosebumps, anyone? No? Just me?

But I digress.

Sure, there are some post 9/11 airport scenes that turn the new normal on its head, like basically all of The Terminal (another Tom Hanks classic). But that movie is the exception that proves the rule. You have to agree with the basic premise—that airports are terrible—in order to appreciate the subversion of the movie.

In just a few short years, we became so numb, so accepting of AR-15 toting soldiers and invasive security screening methods — like full-body scanners that capture nude images of passengers — that’s we’ve forgotten how quickly airports changed from romantic setting to paramilitary nightmare.

More importantly, we forget how much we’ve changed right alongside them.

So as I approach my second “once-in-a-lifetime” sea change in travel (third if you count the 2008 recession), it’s worth taking a closer look at how we got to our current “normal” so we can prepare for what comes next.

Because things are about to get a lot more restrictive than a long line at TSA.

Preparing for the New Normal

Biosecurity measures are coming to airports. That’s a given.

I’ve already been through several thermal scans and health questionnaires in Singapore, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, and Australia, not to mention actually flying home from Tasmania during the coronavirus, and I can say with confidence that they’re not going anywhere soon.

What I’ve Learned as a Tourist During the Coronavirus Outbreak

The pros and cons of traveling during a pandemic

medium.com

This time next year, thermal scanners, mandatory masks, hand sanitizers, and increased health questionnaires will be just as normal as metal detectors—especially for international travel.

And that’s on top of other stuff like the new REAL-ID travel requirement that was supposed to go into effect in October 2020. (It’s been pushed back to October 2021).

But that’s not news.

Airports already suck, so we’re all prepared to trade a little more privacy and convenience for a different kind of security. I mean, how much worse can it get, right?

No, the real change will come when this airport-level biosecurity becomes part of your daily life. Because that’s the difference between a pandemic and a terror attack.

9/11 forever changed our airports. But the coronavirus is poised to transform everywhere else.

When Everywhere Is the Airport

You expect to wait in a sprawling security line at the airport. You might even wear a special “travel day outfit” to help get through security as quickly as possible.

Slip-on shoes, elastic waist pants (aka “no belt”)—everyone has their go-to travel gear so they can breeze through the metal detectors and get on their way. Big deal, right? That’s just the way airports are.

But what happens when you have to go through cumbersome biosecurity every day just to get into your office or shop at the grocery store? Singapore introduced mandatory thermal scans just to get into many office buildings, and no one batted an eye.

In fact, AI and thermal scanning startups are scrambling to keep up with the growing global demand for biosecurity systems.

Public health doesn’t have a convenient focal point like an airport, so we’re all going to have to interact with a lot more local security measures to prevent future outbreaks.

We’ve all heard (way too many times) that viruses don’t respect borders. But are we really prepared for what that means?

Life in the New Normal

Gyms, stadiums, sporting events, schools, grocery stores, bars, nail salons, and restaurants—all of these places are going to change. And just like the airport, they’re not going to go back to the way they were.

Hand sanitizer at every doorway. Chairs and tables at least six feet apart. Tape on the floor telling you where to stand in line. Glass partitions protecting cashiers. No more buffets. Half-empty movie theaters. Contactless payment and delivery service for practically everything.

I can’t think of all the minuscule and momentous ways this pandemic will reshape society, but systemic change is coming. However, these new restrictions aren’t going to be the strangest part of all this as we move forward.

No, the weirdest part will be how quickly we get used to the new normal. In fact, within a few years, we’ll probably wonder how we ever lived without all this stuff in the first place.

And before you know it, a lot more than just my favorite rom-coms will seem hopelessly out of date.

How the TSA Changed Travel

To be clear, I’m not saying any of these new security measures are a bad thing. We need to meet this health threat with the appropriate safety precautions. I shouldn’t have to say this, but protecting people from a deadly pandemic is a good thing.

I won’t protest stay-at-home orders for the same reason that I don’t protest metal detectors at the airport. They both help keep people safe.

I love that air travel is a lot safer than it used to be, and I hope life we’ll be safer after this pandemic. I’m an optimist.

Fun fact: Did you know that airport security used to be so woefully inadequate that over 130 planes were hijacked during the plane “skyjacking” craze between 1968–1972. Yup. Security was so non-existent that the hijacker catchphrase, “Take me to Cuba” became a punchline in the 70s.

I don’t want to go backward. But that doesn’t mean I can just ignore the added financial and social cost of the new normal. And the important difference between COVID-19 and 9/11 has to do with the scale of that cost.

Life After COVID-19

This global pandemic is a life-changing event. Hundreds of thousands of people have already died, with thousands more likely to join that gruesome tally before this is all over. It’s a catastrophe.

On top of that, millions of people (like myself) have lost their jobs, businesses, or livelihoods. Nothing is going to be the same after this.

Seriously. Let that sink in. Things will be different from what came before. You will have literally have to explain certain things to your kids because they won’t understand how life could have ever been that way.

Just like how I can’t believe Marisa Tomei got on that flight…

For the past…well, century, we’ve increased mechanized farming practices to obscene levels, destroyed delicate ecosystems all over the world, and pushed billions of people into such abject poverty that they have to eat bats to survive.

At the same time, we’ve stitched the global economy together with a fragile “just-in-time” supply chain to maximize profits and a sprawling network of thousands of daily bargain-basement commercial flights with no thought to the consequences of our actions.

Life is grand. Nothing to see here. Things will go on this way forever.

But in a matter of weeks, COVID-19 has shown this for the lie it always was.

You might comfort yourself with cliches like, “We’ll get through this,” or “We’ve survived worse.” And you’re right. We have survived worse. This isn’t the worst pandemic in history. Far from it.

But just like the events that came before, the coronavirus will have long-lasting consequences. Because of course it will. Everything does.

I’m not being overly pessimistic or sensationalist when I say that many of these measures and restrictions aren’t just temporary stopgaps until we can re-opening the economy with enough “cleared” workers. They’re here to stay.

How do I know?

Simple. I’ve been to the airport recently. And it wasn’t awesome.

Our New Normal

I know it’s unfair to compare 9/11 with COVID-19. They’re different, and I’m not trying to say one is worse than the other. They’re both terrible. But that’s kind of the point.

Despite what you think about the “War on Terror,” we’ve never declared victory. And we never will. You will never go through an airport without going through a metal detector because that’s the world we live in now.

There’s no ticker-tape parade in Times Square at the end of this. There’s no enemy to vanquish. Surgical masks, hand sanitizer stations, thermometers, and health screenings are just the latest weapons to combat the growing list of threats.

But so are terms like “social distancing,” “infection rate,” and “flattening the curve.”

I watched my little nieces learn not to hug people because it's dangerous. I’ve attended Zoom birthday parties. And I’ve discovered that it’s almost impossible to smile at someone through a mask.

And that’s what really sticks with me right now.

Because the world I grew up in—the world I expected to grow old in—is already aging more rapidly and poorly than my favorite Friends reruns. And I’m afraid of what life will be like when I don’t recognize it anymore.

Shawn Forno is a freelance copywriter, content manager, travel writer, and blogger with over twelve years of experience. He loves to talk about himself in the third-person. You can check out his writing portfolio or his super-duper helpful travel articles for more helpful tips and tricks for writers and travelers.