From the excellent Daily Kos:
More airports are also rolling out the backscatter scanners, or what I have taken to calling “The Naked Machine”, which takes images of a traveler’s body underneath their clothes so as to determine if someone is smuggling any dangerous devices or exploding underpants, etc. Travelers can “opt-out” of using the scanner in favor of the pat-down (though there doesn’t seem to be any signage or information for travelers indicating this at the airports), an alternative which TSA officials apparently instructed their people to make the most unplesant and embarassing experience possible….ostensibly to discourage other travelers from making that uncomfortable choice as well.
However, keep in mind that even those who do go through the machine can still get pulled out for special screening and an official TSA-sanctioned security molestation if the image captured doesn’t turn out clearly for some reason….
So even those of you risk the scan to avoid the traumatic grope may still get groped anyway!
The latest assault by our government on sovereign rights, the “Porn-Scanners” and/or state sanctioned molestation, is but one more step in the training (conditioning) of the “good natured” and thorougly naive public towards the goal of compliance with the new world order enforced by stupid people pathologically on the edge dressed in costumes. Each step has been met with minimal public resistance that has been overcome by repetition that, over time, builds expectations and the disgruntled cooperation of the traveling public. Hopefully, this website will be successful in organizing the groundswell of discontent, and end this thorougly obnoxious and intolerable disregard for human dignity and rights.
I know that pat downs are invasive, but having a terrorist hijack your airplane and slit your throat is more invasive.
Isn’t that what happened aboard those airplanes on 9/11?
Obviously, you fail the test of comprehending the most basic idea of freedom. Even if I lacked the powers of critical thinking enough to believe the nonsensical mythologies and government invented stories about 911, hiring an army people who are psychologically, socially and economically challenged will be virtually ineffective, except to raise the tolerance of the traveling public to the tortures of humiliation.
The terrorists could have taken over Flight 93 with their bare hands – just grab the flight attendant, put her in a headlock, and threaten to break her neck unless she opens the cockpit door. No ‘enhanced’ security procedures could have prevented that.
Besides, even if you scan every single person and check every single item in every single bag, remember that the cleaners and the guys who load luggage onto the plane don’t get scanned when they come to work.
There is no way to PREVENT terrorism 100% of the time.
Let’s look at the rationale for the TSA from the government’s point of view. In order to find employment for an army of otherwise unemployable people, they would be obliged to craft a procedure guaranting the long term employment of a vast cornucopia from the ranks of the prehensile intellectual lilliputians dredged from the bottom of the phylogenetic scale. A rationale system of security based on evaluating individual profiles and behavioral history toward the aim of establishing pre-clearance standards for the majority of people who fly would preclude the state’s efforts to cause reason for retaining this army of mindlessly loyal, misanthropic thugs dressed in military costumes who senselessly and vigorously harrass and abuse the public travelers at large. However, buiding a rationale system of security based on efficiency, respect for natural rights and compassion for the traveling public’s integrity is a concept virtually inconsistent with both the mindset and the true objectives of the TSA. The whole government system is designed to accomplish three objectives: (1) cause sustained humiliation to the class of traveling public until they become desensitized to the whole experience of abuse; (2) soften the public up for another round of enhanced government controls and acceptance of further loss of freedoms, and (3) confirm the establishment and widespread public acceptance of an ever expanding permanent police state that is now firmly in place.
The coverage on NPR, AP, CNN, etc. made me, an infrequent flyer, very anxious so I did some digging and read this short and information article on jaunted.com
Basically, it’s saying that since each airport only has one body scanner, choose your line carefully so you’re in the metal detector line.
Please read the last two lines for a practical solution:
https://www.jaunted.com/story/2010/10/24/214543/85/travel/Next+Stop+For+Full-Body+Scanners%3A+New+York+City