PhoneBoy Says

I have an incident to share that occurred late Friday afternoon, November 12, 2010, around 5:15 in the Dayton International Airport.

I realize the publishing this publically on the internet puts me into a delicate situation, given that I am a high profile blogger and author. This is a difficult incident to share, but it needs to be said…Because I will not be a silent victim. I will share the facts of the incident in as a matter of fact manner as I can.

via ourlittlechatterboxes.com

You simply must read this woman's account of her pat-down experience. She was touched in her private parts--without warning, no less! If this isn't a clear indication that TSA's "enhanced patdown" procedures are misguided and wrong, I don't know what is.

We are writing to call your attention to serious concerns about the potential health risk of the recently adopted whole body backscatter X-ray airport security scanners. This is an urgent situation as these X-ray scanners are rapidly being implemented as a primary screening step for all air travel passengers.

Our overriding concern is the extent to which the safety of this scanning device has been adequately demonstrated. This can only be determined by a meeting of an impartial panel of experts that would include medical physicists and radiation biologists at which all of the available relevant data is reviewed.

An important consideration is that a large fraction of the population will be subject to the new X-ray scanners and be at potential risk, as discussed below. This raises a number of ‘red flags'. Can we have an urgent second independent evaluation?

via scribd.com

The most alarming sentence? "It appears that real independent safety data do(es) not exist." And yet these things are being installed in every major US airport and every passenger is being asked to go through these machines. In the name of safety.

Privacy issues aside, does anyone else see the irony of walking through a potentially unsafe device in the name of safety? Given the number of domestic flights that have had "terrorist" issues since September 11, 2001 (zero) versus the number of domestic flights since then (millions), I fail to see how a potentially unsafe and definitely privacy invasive scanner is substantially preventing terrorists from having their way with an airplane.

Please rise and sing along!

A plain white van moving through traffic on a busy thoroughfare looks like a delivery vehicle, making a run to a local business.

It could be any plain white van in any American city.

But there are two men sitting in the back of the van operating X-ray machines. As their panel van moves in and out of traffic, the men use the X-ray machines to scan passing vehicles, peering behind the walls of the adjoining trucks to discover if the targets are carrying weapons, drugs or illegal immigrants.

This scenario isn't from a spy movie, it's happening every day in the United States.

via wnd.com

As if the naked body scanners in the airports weren't bad enough. One cannot even opt-out of these X-ray devices.

The [American Pilots Association] and UCSF scientists join a growing chorus of critics of backscatter devices. Last week, the Electronic Privacy Information Center filed a federal lawsuit accusing the Department of Homeland Security's TSA of unilaterally mandating the use of the machines as the primary security screening technique. By requiring government contractors to capture images of travelers' naked bodies, the policy violates a raft of federal laws, as well as Constitutional protections prohibiting unreasonable search and seizure, EPIC argued.

via theregister.co.uk

You know what I realized the other day: where is the ACLU on this? How come in all these stories I've come across decrying the use of these naked body scanners, not a single one of them mentions the ACLU? The ACLU is clearly against this invasive technology but not a single story I've seen mentions that.

Maybe the ACLU isn't being active enough on this. Or maybe they are and the media is just ignoring them because the press is trying to marginalize the ACLU.

Meanwhile, I will continue to opt-out.The TSA can feel my resistance.

Here's a clip from an old Drive In that suggests we should eliminate Daylight Saving Time:

Of course, Drive Ins are against Daylight Saving Time for one reason: it forces them to start their movies that much later in the summer.

That said, I am for the abolition of Daylight Saving Time. In a modern society, it serves no function.

This is perhaps my new favorite clip on YouTube.

This afternoon I flew from the Greater Rochester International Airport. This is one of the smallest airports I've flown out of in ages. However, it did have the Millimeter Wave (i.e. Naked) Body Scanners. Instead of walking through the scanner, I decided to opt out. I told the agent of my decision he said "male opt-out" into his walkie talkie, and I was escorted to an area just beyond the body scanner.

The agent explained everything he was doing. He informed me of my right to be screened in private (I politely declined). This included reaching in my collar, feeling just inside my waistband, using the back of his hand around "sensitive areas" (what some have referred to as "crotchal"), and a wipedown of my entire body. It was the most thorough patdown I have ever received.

The process was certainly not as quick as if I had simply walked through the body scanner, but I do not feel it took an unnecessarily long time. The TSA agents were polite and reasonably efficient, given the protocol they were following.

Why did I opt-out? Partially because I wanted to experience it at least once. This particular time was good as I has plenty of time and the airport was not particularly busy. I also believe I will be doing it where I have to because I feel uncomfortable with the thought that TSA agents can look at my naked body. It also remains to be seen how safe these machines are. Considering how often I travel, I'd rather not take chances exposing myself to unnecessary radiation.

It is troubling to me that so many people are walking through the machine like it's normal. This isn't normal. It's not necessary. There are better, less invasive methods for screening passengers.