Laser Tag: Editor’s Log 06/05

Remember a few months ago when you could open up a newspaper just about every day and read a new story about some airline crew or another being illuminated by a ground-based laser? There was rampant speculation in the media and among those who should know better that terrorists were practicing for their latest plan to bring down an airliner or three.

Then, the speculation and media frenzy—such as it was—all died out, even as cooler heads explained that new, low-powered, green-colored lasers had hit the market and were often being used by amateur astronomers to help with their star-gazing. That was then; this is now.

None other than our very own government has taken the idea of lasing a...