In last week's editorial, I probably did an injustice to border officials the world over.
I wrote that passport control was the wrong place to crack a joke. I stand by that, but it's worth remembering that the staff aren't automated humourless drones.
Reader Dave Pitches recalls landing at Brisbane.
"Several rows of inbound passengers; several desks of officials," writes Dave.
"Suddenly realise that the official at the head of the adjacent row was beckoning me, and I was slow to register. 'Sorry,' says I. 'I'm easily confused.'
"'Don't say that,' says he. 'Or they will make you work here.'"
So, give the officials a smile, but maybe let them make the first wisecrack.
A pretty safe MH370 prediction
Expect a lot of "lessons-to-learn" tips from the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines flight MH370.
Here's my first offering: Expect to see calls for a massive overhaul of the black box system.
Why can't they send all the information immediately via satellite to storage facilities that allow the information to be held for a long time?