i felt woefully uninformed when i learned that senator larry craig (r-idaho) was picked up for lewd public restroom behavior at my airport. what’s all this about foot-tapping? and blocking the door with one’s luggage? this appears to be a well-choreographed old-school tearoom rather than an ill-timed individual act. there was apparently enough activity in this restroom to motivate the rather extensive sting operation that netted the distinguished senator.

highway rest stops i can understand, since locals can drive there with little cost. but isn’t the high-surveillance post-9/11 airport a strange place for anonymous hookups? i mean, the only folks who can regularly hang out in such restrooms are airport employees (who do not appear to be a particularly randy bunch) and those with overpriced tickets and planes to catch. are there message boards where one posts invitations such as, “hey boys, i’ve got two hours between flights at MSP and i’m looking for a good time in a busy restroom. no liberals.” the social organization of the activity just doesn’t make sense to me, unless there is waaaaay more pent-up demand among weary business travelers than i’d imagined. maybe so, maybe so…