TSA Accepting Public Comments On Whole Body Airport Screening 223
New submitter trims writes "The TSA is now in the public comment stage of its project to roll out Advanced Imaging Technology (i.e. full-body X-ray) scanners. The TSA wants your feedback as to whether or not this project should be continued or cancelled. Now is your chance to tell the TSA that this is a huge porkbarrel project and nothing more than Security Theater. You can comment at http:///www.regulations.gov and reference the docket ID TSA-2013-0004." Note: the backscatter X-ray machines are being phased out, in favor of millimeter-wave systems; the linked documents give the government's side of the story when it comes to efficacy, safety, privacy, and worth. The comment period runs until June 24.
Yes but... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Yes but... (Score:5, Funny)
Will it detect a pressure cooker?
If you swallow it, no.
Re:Yes but... (Score:4, Insightful)
backscatter, or millimeter?
"Unnecessary" is the word you're looking for.
Re:Yes but... (Score:4, Insightful)
ALWAYS opt-out.
If they ask you why - which has happened to me in a very challenging fashion - say: "Because I want to."
Plan an extra 20-30 minutes on your arrival. It never takes that long. Have everything empty from your pockets and take off a belt, if any.
It's not as intrusive as the panicky say. Make sure you are clear that you want the screening in place, not in a private area.
"And friends, somewhere in Washington, enshrined in some little folder, is a study in black and white of my fingerprints. And the only reason I'm singing you this song now is cause you may know somebody in a similar situation, or you may be in a similar situation, and if your in a situation like that there's only one thing you can do and that's walk into the shrink wherever you are, just walk in say 'Shrink, You can get anything you want, at Alice's restaurant.' And walk out. You know, if one person, just one person does it they may think he's really sick and they won't take him. And if two people, two people do it, in harmony, they may think they're both faggots and they won't take either of them. And three people do it, three, can you imagine, three people walking in singin' a bar of Alice's Restaurant and walking out. They may think it's an organization. And can you, can you imagine fifty people a day, I said fifty people a day walking in singin a bar of Alice's Restaurant and walking out. And friends they may thinks it's a movement.
And that's what it is, the Alice's Restaurant Anti-Massacree Movement, and all you got to do to join is sing it the next time it come's around on the guitar."
Re:Yes but... (Score:5, Interesting)
Frankly, my largest problem (aside from the constitutionality of said pat-down) is the fact that the TSA agents seem to ask a lot of questions that they haven't thought about and don't really seem to want honest answers to. For instance, after opting out, I was once asked if I was I understood what would happen to me and if I was "comfortable with this process". When I answered "No, I think it's a waste of time and a violation of my Constitutional rights," that started a bit of a scene.
Another favorite is when they ask if I have any medical devices or implants on my body and I answer "Yes" and then they stand there looking at me in silence. Oh, you want me to describe them, well in that case, you shouldn't asked it as a yes/no question then!
Then we get to "Do you have any areas on your body that are sensitive to the touch?" "Yeah, mate, my whole body."
I realize I'm being difficult and something of a jerk, but I have no reason why I have to make it EASY to take my rights away. Sigh, now I'm probably on some list.
Re:Yes but... (Score:5, Insightful)
I take a bit of the opposite tact, as I prefer to be treated like a criminal in private rather than in full display of the public. That and it forces them to use additional resources, as now two people have to be monitoring the pat-down.
There are two reasons I choose to do it in public. The first is that in private it's your word against a bunch of TSA screeners. There are no other possible witnesses and I don't trust them not to side with each other given that you've already irritated them by singling yourself out. I'm not saying they are going to be out to do anything wrong, but if there is an issue then you are on the wrong side.
The second is that it is shocking how many people still don't understand they have an option (or have believed the FUD that it is some horribly demeaning and invasive process). By staying in the public space you help educate those that don't know.
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The only time I've ever had a TSA person give me a hard time about opting out was in the International terminal in San Francisco, and the hard time he gave me was "oh come on, it's perfectly safe"—once he got that I wasn't going to give in, he stopped hassling me. Just be polite, act like you're sympathetic rather than annoyed, and it's very unlikely that you will have a bad time of it.
I don't think that it actually makes us any safer to have these searches, but that's an argument to have at a polic
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The second is that it is shocking how many people still don't understand they have an option (or have believed the FUD that it is some horribly demeaning and invasive process). By staying in the public space you help educate those that don't know.
You don't get it, do you? It is a horribly demeaning and invasive process. I've had the patdown before (only once so far, I've been able to avoid it and the scanners since). Even though the agent who did the patdown was extremely courteous and detailed exactly what each step was before he did it, I still felt invaded and demeaned. I have nothing against the man, he was very professional about it. I felt weird and violated for the rest of the day. As Sonic says, "That's no good!"
If you're gonna opt for the p
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Well, that's certainly their right. Nobody's forcing TSA screeners to be TSA screeners.
Personally, if my job involved touching other men's scrota all day long, I'd find another line of work, ASAP.
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Someone should tell the Republicans that a millimeter is something French. That will thwart the TSA!
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Someone should tell the Republicans that a millimeter is something French. That will thwart the TSA!
In case you haven't noticed, the Democrats are currently in power. If you have complaints, you should take them to the governing party, no?
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In case you haven't noticed, the Democrats are currently in power. If you have complaints, you should take them to the governing party, no?
If that's the case, then how come everything is stalled in Congress, the sequester is now in it's second month, and Obama's attempts to regulate guns have all failed? Having the majority in this country in only the executive branch and one of the houses of Congress doesn't make them "in power".
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The sequester was President Obama's idea, and he had no trouble ramming an extremely unpopular Affordable Care Act through Congress. If he cared about gun control he'd ram that through, too.
Gun control is a bit of a special case, however, because what the President really wants would require a Constitutional amendment.
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Is that a pressure cooker or are you just looking forward to participating in our voluntary pat-down?
Ah, now the delays make sense (Score:5, Insightful)
Years of delays, violating a court other many wondered what the heck was up with the TSA delaying this public comment.
Now it's clear: They were waiting for a terrorist attack.
Re:Ah, now the delays make sense (Score:5, Informative)
But I will still not give up my liberty for my security. I will die for my Freedom and rights, including being a victim of an attack.
Unfortunately, I am not the only one in this country... so I must yield to societies decision.
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But I will still not give up my liberty for my security. I will die for my Freedom and rights, including being a victim of an attack.
Unfortunately, I am not the only one in this country... so I must yield to societies decision.
Now you're jumping to conclusions, and ignoring the obvious solution.
Do you think it a futile endeavor to convince society to make the right decisions by sharing your mind with others?
Have you no drive to become everyone in the society? This is why you will be assimilated: As predicted, your resistance is futile.
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"Have you no drive to become everyone in the society?"
Hell, NO! Do you realize how many out there don't brush their teeth, change their underwear daily and do pick their nose and eat it?
Recant that silly statement NOW!
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Liberty has NEVER been something you "give up." You can't give it up while the next person keeps his. It is something everyone has or no one has. So to correct your statement, your liberty is being TAKEN with apologies and excuses given. So what you're saying is you're not accepting of their apologies or excuses. What follows is what you plan to DO about your liberties being taken.
It's probably already too late for me to secure firearms -- I don't have any now but I might be attending the next gun show
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Unfortunately, I am not the only one in this country... so I must yield to societies decision.
What's the reason? Society can and does make bad decisions all the time which aren't respected by the members of that society. There's plenty of law is that is more honored in the breach (and sometimes more honorable to do so - such as US abolitionists refusing to turn in runaway slaves in the mid 19th century).
I think it's a poor excuse myself.
Re:Ah, now the delays make sense (Score:5, Insightful)
Letting your children grow up with their liberties pre-sacrificed for the appearance of security is just downright irresponsible. If you think terrorism is a major threat to them please take statistics classes or start crusades against the long list of more dangerous things first.
Re:Ah, now the delays make sense (Score:4, Insightful)
But I will still not give up my liberty for my security. I will die for my Freedom and rights, including being a victim of an attack.
So, you don't have a wife and children who depend on you?
Does that mean people that went to fight Hitler didn't have children and wives? They did. They went to fight the Nazis to preserve security in the US and the western world for their kids and wives.
Just like the GP, he's ready to die to liberty maybe so his/her children can enjoy some of it too. It is not just whether you survive, but whether the bits of the laws that survive you are worth it.
PS. If you are so worried about getting blown up, perhaps you should be worried about getting killed by some moron texting on their phone while driving, or drunk/drugged driver, or some moron speeding and T-boning your car. Or if you have a gun, perhaps you should be worried that you will die because of that gun (98%+ of all domestic deaths are caused by a gun in the house, not by external gun).
But perhaps you think you are special and statistics do not apply to you. That's what most people think too.
Re:Ah, now the delays make sense (Score:5, Funny)
98%+ of all domestic deaths are caused by a gun in the house
Citation Needed
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98% of all domestic deaths are caused by citation-less assertions.
Be sure to read all cautions and observe instructions on back of container.
You'll shoot your eye out kid!
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Re:Ah, now the delays make sense (Score:4, Interesting)
98%+ of all domestic deaths are caused by a gun in the house, not by external gun
To give some context for how dumb this remark is, in 2000 in the US, accidental firearms discharge killed 776 people. Falls killed over 13k people. Drowning in a bathtub killed 341.
It's also worth noting that the presence of so many guns in homes discourages the kind of activities that would result in external gun deaths. After all, the usual goal for breaking into homes isn't to get shot. I guess an analogy would be accidental deaths in the military. It's not a good thing for your military to be suffering more deaths from enemy action than from accidents and friendly fire because it means you're in a serious fight.
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Makes you wonder how many people die of natural causes in their home. I'm betting it's the largest number.
Sudden death is 98% of the cause of domestic death in the home. Film @ 11...
Did you know, dying is the leading cause of death in the U.S.? Here at the Federal Research Center, where experts wear lab coats all day long, we have found, by use of your tax dollars, that at least one in three are susceptible to death. ONE IN THREE. Write your congressperson and demand that we are funded for research to end
Re:Ah, now the delays make sense (Score:5, Insightful)
Or if you have a gun, perhaps you should be worried that you will die because of that gun (98%+ of all domestic deaths are caused by a gun in the house, not by external gun).
I'm in favor of gun control laws, but Jesus Christ that's a stupid claim to make.
Here are the real statistics for cause of death [cdc.gov] and suicide is the most common cause of firearm related death. [bostonglobe.com], but suicide is only the tenth most common cause of death and makes up only 2% of the most common deaths and firearm related sucides are only about half of that [cdc.gov], so that would put them around 1%
Perhaps you meant that 98% of firearm related deaths are due to the homeowner's firearm? Once again, no. Out of the 11,078 homicides in 2010, you're claiming that 10,855 were committed with the homeowner's gun and only 223 involved a gun owned by someone else.
That is an insane claim to make and there is absolutely no evidence to back it up.
Re:Ah, now the delays make sense (Score:5, Insightful)
Having a family is not an excuse for being a coward. If anything, it's a reason not to be a coward, so you can set an example for others and the future.
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+ + + + + wisdom
Telling your children that they should be brave, while acting like a wimpy douche is nothing short of hypocricy.
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hypocricidity.
Re:Ah, now the delays make sense (Score:5, Insightful)
Would you like your kids to grow up in a world without freedom?
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So, you don't have a wife and children who depend on you?
Did the Founding Fathers?
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I have a beautiful wife and two beautiful daughters. My wife and I understood one another when we married, meaning she understood the fact that I am willing to give my life for for both my family and my principles. There's a certain relationship between those factors when you have children, and if you already have one or more but still don't understand what I'm talking about, I probably can't help you. I also served in the US Navy. Have you served in either a military or civil capacity? I may work as a syst
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Two immigrants have had excessive contact with the FBI. It is well documented. Either (a) those immigrants were believed to be "okay" and passed into society after the FBI's scrutiny making them members of society here or (b) they are patsies sponsored by the FBI.
We have more pictorial evidence of the "Craft" contractors being invovled than we have of these two immigrants. Think on what information is available instead of what you are told you should believe. The information available doesn't look like
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You're not addressing what I said at all. I stated that these are immigrants, and that they are not "home grown". I might be from Zimbabwe, or Canada, or Mars, - if I wasn't born and raised in Moscow, then I can't claim to be a "home grown" Muscovite, now can I? It wouldn't matter how many times the successors of the KGB interviewed me - I still wouldn't be a native Muscovite.
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although it seems pretty plain his crazy brother was the one who set everything up.
The "home grown" brother who entered the US at 16? And I'm sure it's all due to the US not the strife and tyranny (or for that matter, training) in Chechnya. This argument just doesn't work.
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You're not addressing what I said at all. I stated that these are immigrants, and that they are not "home grown". I might be from Zimbabwe, or Canada, or Mars, - if I wasn't born and raised in Moscow, then I can't claim to be a "home grown" Muscovite, now can I? It wouldn't matter how many times the successors of the KGB interviewed me - I still wouldn't be a native Muscovite.
So. Is John McCain "home grown"?
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Having lived most of their lives here and developed their Boston accent to perfection, they grew it in Boston, their home, ergo, homegrown.
Maybe you should familiarize yourself with the mechanics of an enema bag before you strap on the cajones of The Pedantic Police.
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Cojones, dude. Cojones.
Re:Ah, now the delays make sense (Score:5, Insightful)
Years of delays, violating a court other many wondered what the heck was up with the TSA delaying this public comment.
Now it's clear: They were waiting for a terrorist attack.
Give them some credit.
They may also be looking for reasons to phase out millimeter-wave systems for super-duper-wave systems. These machines cost $250K/pop and don't do shit to detect anything. The contractors who made the first batch and then the replacement batch must be salivating already.
Where do I sign up to deliver machines without any quality control? I can do it much cheaper.
Re:Ah, now the delays make sense (Score:5, Funny)
I can deliver witching sticks for less than ten dollars each. THEN, I can train agents to use those sticks for less than a hundred dollars each!
Or, if you prefer, I can supply magic wands, with or without pixie dust, for less than fifty dollars each. I don't offer training for magic wands though - it will be the government's responsibility to locate and/or train qualified wizards.
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These machines at least can give terrorists cancer, witching sticks are not even good at beating someone. You don't want terrorists to have cancer?
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Re:Ah, now the delays make sense (Score:4, Informative)
Where do I sign up to deliver machines without any quality control? I can do it much cheaper.
US Department of Homeland Security
ATTN: Office of Security Technology System Planning and Evaluation Group
Transportation Security Administration
601 South 12th Street
Arlington, VA 22202-4220
Make sure you ask for their blanket immunity from prosecution plan, which also has options to avoid house oversight committees and contractual exemptions that all other federal agencies must comply with, like, for example, a requirement to choose the lowest-cost contract that meets requirements.
Re:Ah, now the delays make sense (Score:5, Insightful)
Now it's clear: They were waiting for a terrorist attack.
And yet I couldn't find a single comment in support, even right after a terrorist attack, on the webpage, until about 10 pages in. And you know what? It'd still be a bad idea even if there was a boston bomber situation every month from now until doomsday. But you know what they say about our most inept public agency... "You can't cure stupid."
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I'd like to see a new program put into place:
Forget "air marshalls" Start handing pistols to people with willingness and a profile that works when you board a plane. Screw searching people for weapons and dangerous items. Make sure a deterrent is available. So far, the only REAL terrorist threats have been defeated by civilians beating the crap out of assholes. The people believe the threats are real and so far, people have demonstrated a willingness to take action against those threats. Proof that th
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Christians beat the crap out of assholes?
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FYI, the public comment period began nearly a month ago (26 March)
Timing? (Score:3)
Isn't it a little late for a public comment period?
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Isn't it a little late for a public comment period?
Welcome to America. We shoot first then ask question later.
If you're far enough north we'll do it half in French, then apologize.
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Nope. America can refer to either, but only one has a French speaking nation in the north.
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You must mean Saint Pierre and Miquelon though strictly speaking they're part of France so of course they speak French.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Pierre_and_Miquelon [wikipedia.org]
Or perhaps rereading your comment you're thinking of French Guinea which is in the north of South America? Seems there are parts of France scattered all around the Americas as well as places like Haiti which also speak French.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Guiana [wikipedia.org]
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Ever heard of Quebec?
A+++++ Loss of rights! (Score:5, Funny)
Body scan was of the most high-standard quality! Great holding pen. Quality of the internment was superior. TSA is exceptional.
Why Can't We All Just Get Along? (Score:2)
I'd like to comment first, by saying " We should re-purpose the units and the TSA to the Mexican border immediately" . At best they'll deter a few from crossing. At worst they'll make them submit to an intrusive search and check their junk out with the units and do a body search before permitting them to cross,due to anti-profiling regulations.
What are comments going to do? (Score:5, Insightful)
Are the TSA just going to say "We have listened to your comments, and are continuing to pursue security theater^W practices as they best "serve" our country", or is there some sort of accountability set up for what the comments are saying?
It's nice to see that even right after the Boston bombing, the comments appear to still be 100% against AIT scanners.
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I was pondering pretty much the same. But I guess in Soviet USA it's a step ahead when the government starts to actually listen to its people. Nobody said anything about acting upon what is heard, though.
The lack of support for those scanners is, I hope, no surprise. If they actually DID anything to increase security, you might see some support for them after an attack, but since they're as useful for detecting something capable of blowing ship up as Lisa's rock is for defending against tigers, even a bomb
More Security Theatre (Score:5, Insightful)
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Can't we dig up Ike and put him in charge again? Even as a corpse he's more competent than any other choice we have right now.
Prediction... (Score:4, Informative)
Wow, I jokingly made comments a long while back that it wouldn't surprise me if the TSA opened up these comments the moment a bomb went off somewhere, considering how long they've just been sitting on it.
But now that it's happened, I am surprised. If there really is a connection to the timing, that's downright shameful. However that's not entirely anything new for the TSA.
Israel airport security (Score:5, Insightful)
Also they do a ton of screening on cars. In some US airports, the parking lot is right near the terminal. Drive in a car full of explosive material and you could do a lot of damage. Or even pull right up to the terminal unchecked for dropping bags. In some terminals you could even crash the car right through the glass doors and then go do something..... That's not security.
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You are aware that for such interviews you need highly skilled, highly trained people. How the heck does this double as the job creation scheme for the unemployable the TSA is now?
Re:Israel airport security (Score:5, Insightful)
That is definitely an issue. Israel only has two international airports, and spends quite a bit of money on security in general, with every citizen serving in the military.
That makes the entire society far more security conscious, and military training means that people know how to follow procedures and generally stay alert. The fact that everybody serves in the military also means that the guards are diverse and not just those who couldn't find a job or get a scholarship.
The result is that a security program that works in Israel will not necessarily work in the US, and certainly not with bottom-dollar security guards.
Also, Israel has a lot of defense in depth. Maybe the airport security isn't as tight, but they have far more border security at drive-in points, and even checkpoints at places like malls. All of this makes it a lot harder to get weapons to the airport in the first place. There is also a much higher state of vigilance - when bombs have been planted on buses in the past they've generally been noticed resulting in immediate evacuation before they go off.
Oh, and the last I heard El Al depressurizes every bag before putting it on a plane to set off altimeter-triggered bombs. So, some of the security is behind the scenes.
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I did my masters thesis on this subject and the TSA is doing the same thing the Israelis are. In fact, they spend a lot more than you would think on doing it. The problem seems to be that because people A) don't recognize this effort, B) because it's just as expensive as the machines, and C) it's just as ineffective because it ignores the fact that terrorists could walk into the building strapped with explosives in front of the screening area and kill hundreds+ of people.
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My bad, I meant to include the source: http://www.dhs.gov/xlibrary/assets/budget_bib_fy2011.pdf [dhs.gov]
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And every time someone posts that, someone else has to post a reply saying that just does not scale. I guess it's my turn. Even Bruce Schneier says so. [schneier.com] Bruce, quoting someone else with whom he agrees: "...no matter how safe or how wonderful the flying experience on El Al, it is TINY airline by U.S. standards, with only 38 aircraft, 46 destinations, and fewer than two million passengers in 2008. As near as I can tell, Cairo is their only destination in a majority Muslim country. Delta, before the Northwest m
They can look all they want. (Score:2)
Must be replaced by better options. (Score:2)
We know why these damn things sell so well. They're every teenager's dream come true: X-Ray Glasses!
The problem is they were build by morons, and have no adequate safety testing.
We must replace the scanners with better options, while considering the actual target market.
It's clear we need non-ionizing under the clothes imagining systems that replace people's bodies with those of a supermodel's.
Put out a call for engineers married for at least seven years, or with children. They have the required ex
Meet you on the No Fly list! (Score:5, Insightful)
"I travel about twice a month and have been a regular traveler most of my life, and because of this, the deployment of this technology has had a major impact on my life.
This technology is not wanted by air travelers, and was put in place with less testing than the shampoo I am no longer allowed to carry through security. Experts have found that shadowing can cause items to slip through this screening, and these devices cannot detect anything inside the body. They have also created long, bunched up lines of people at airports, outside of the "secure" cordon, which would allow a terrorist to kill many more people than would be on a single airplane... and these deaths could ironically be attributed directly to the delays caused by these devices, which regularly slow the lines and require pat-downs when they don't read properly (my experience when waiting).
Security at airports has become a reactive reflex which always fights the last threat. I am confident I am not the only tax payer who feels their money was completely wasted on these devices, whose only value, I feel, was to make some contractor rich, and get some person re-elected by convincing the under-informed that they were "safe."
It depends on weather they work (Score:2)
Have these machines ever stopped an actual terrorist? What were the results when undercover security testers tried to smuggle simulated explosives? I am not sacrificing my liberty for security, but I can sacrifice my modesty for security, if that security is any good.
Filibuster it (Score:5, Insightful)
Back scatter X-ray is NOT being phased out (Score:2, Informative)
Only the machines from Rapiscan are being phased out. It's not because of safety, rather it's because Rapiscan can't deliver software to remove human-in-the-loop (eg removing the need for a human to look at you naked).
They've awarded additional contracts to both Smiths (makers of the garbage "puffer" machines) and AESi (in addition to the current millimeter wave machines from Level3). I believe that AESi's devices are back scatter x-ray.
stupid idea for dealing with a stupid idea (Score:2)
Disclaimer: I am, and always have been, completely opposed to the existence of the TSA and their Security Theatre.
However, I'm equally opposed to the concept that public input to what should be a scientific decision (assuming you include demographic studies and threat assessment as potentially scientific) is a good idea at all. You can't vote on reality, and the overwhelming majority of people are nto qualified to make an educated assessment of nearly any issue. It's like asking your neurosurgeon to att
Perception is everything (Score:2)
They don't want your comments, they want you to think they want your comments. To which they'll respond that the public demanded more awesome scanners.
Only slashdot would post such an incredibly naive headline. Must be timothy ... yep, scroll back to the top and see its slashdots' #1 moron.
I'm confused (Score:2)
The TSA is now in the public comment stage of its project to roll out Advanced Imaging Technology scanners. The TSA wants your feedback as to whether or not this project should be continued or cancelled.
If we convince the TSA to cancel the project, does that mean that the TSA will keep the x-ray machines, and not replace them with millimeter-wave systems? That's actually a bad thing. Given a choice, I would prefer the millimeter-wave scanners over an x-ray scanner.
A Simple Solution Here (Score:2)
Movie idea, "Women walks up to the TSA offical, dressed in a TSA uniform. H
Re:like it or not... (Score:5, Insightful)
"That all said, I find it mildly absurd that any security we don't like we just classify as security theater.. How on earth can we on one hand argue that Bush et al had ample warning and did nothing and then on the other bitch when they do something? "
Here's the thing. They had all the information they needed to stop it - the problem was not too little information, it was too much. They had far more information than they had the capacity to analyze.
So the response? Not to upgrade ability to analyze the information already collectable, no. Instead, let's collect a few thousand times MORE information. Let's throw a dragnet over anyone and everyone and store every email on the net forever, in case we need to search back through it later.
This is security theatre. We all get used to being less free, to being herded around more like cattle, on the assurance it will make us more safe. It will not. The same agencies that HAD the information to stop the crime, but not the analytical facilities to recognise the fact in time, now have EVEN MORE info to sift through. The vast majority of it completely irrelevant to stopping terrorists - but a wonderful treasure trove for anyone looking for something to use against their political enemies.
In the meantime the terrorists are even less likely to be detected, since we are throwing roughly the same analytic capabilities at a ridiculously expanded data set.
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Re:like it or not... (Score:4, Insightful)
The purpose of these machines is to prevent those with malicious intent from getting dangerous materials onto a plane which they could use to hijack it and repeat the 9/11 approach. But since these machines have been shown to be remarkably bad at actually achieving this goal, going forward with the ludicrously expensive purchase and the continued privacy-invading operation of said machines is clearly not ACTUALLY making air travel more secure. However, it looks shiny, and to the average person who doesn't work with security and isn't used to thinking in "black hat" mode it can seem effective. Which is basically the definition of security theater.
4th amendment (Score:4, Insightful)
The law disallows certain behaviors, regardless of technology empowering them. These scanners are unreasonable search of my person and effects. Traveling is not suspicious behavior.
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They're literally light years ahead of your conventional metal detector
Wow, that's pretty far away. This controversy seems silly, considering how long it'll take them to get here.
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How on earth can we on one hand argue that Bush et al had ample warning and did nothing and then on the other bitch when they do something?
Even if someone was angry that Bush did nothing and then later became angry about what the government chose to do, that doesn't mean that the actions the government took was what they wanted. Cockpit doors have been secured and citizens are willing to fight back; that's all we need.
And this is security theater, but even if it weren't, it violates our rights and therefore I believe the TSA should be destroyed. How so many people can be afraid of a nearly nonexistent threat is beyond me, but I think it's sad
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Erh... careful, the blame might well be not on the retard but on the retard training him. If he was told that this scanner is safe for all medical equipment, he cannot but act on this information.
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So your theory is that people should be allowed to bypass security as long as they claim to have a reason to do so? Or that the minimum wage people working these devices should have a complete understanding of their interaction with every other piece of technology on earth?
Clearly a near-tragic mistake was made, but your over-the-top rage is ridiculous.
How about this - if you depend upon a piece of technology to keep you alive, YOU should never subject it to anything that YOU don't know is safe. That's a
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It did nothing to the pump, it overloaded the sensor.
You're right, they shouldn't have scanned it, but their purpose is to find odd devices that might be bombs and when in doubt they are protecting everyone in the airport/air system, not one girl. They did the right thing as far as protocol was concerned, it would only be wrong if they were working under the impression that x-ray scanners are a waste of time ... which presumably TSA employees themselves are not evil people in general, so probably just mis
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Bah, fail. If you wanted to be accurate, you'd have to hold the Führer sacrosanct and blame everything just on his overbearing subordinates. That's what it was like in Germany. A common saying was "Oh if the Führer only knew...".
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You do realize that with your support of a security state to try to prevent bombings, you also give support to major investigation of these types of threats of mass murder:
I used to be a nice person, but then I got turned onto slashdot. Now I wan't to kill you all.
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It is pretty much 100% certain at this point that THz radiation can selectively activate genes ... it interacts with DNA. Whether there are carcinogenic effects is a bit contested, but the gene activation in and of itself is scary enough to wait a little fucking longer before we make all the airline passengers (except VIPs I'm sure) guinea pigs.
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When another bomb goes off, you will all be asking why didn't the TSA do something about it.
I didn't do any such thing on 9/11, and I certainly wouldn't now. Just because many people seem to be cowards who are afraid of the terrorist bogeyman and don't mind sacrificing everyone's rights just so they can feel safe doesn't mean I'm the same way.
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My position is that the TSA should be destroyed outright.
Another thing you guys keep complaining about is the TSA allowing short knives
No, I don't. When you speak like this, I'm not even sure who you're arguing with.
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Seriously listening to you guys talk about the TSA is like watching the episode of the simpsons where they institute the anti-bear patroll.
You realize the TSA *is* the bear patrol?
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"When another bomb goes off, you will all be asking why didn't the TSA do something about it."
The next time there is a bomb killing air travelers, I expect I will be asking why the TSA forced the victims to form up in a tight group outside the security cordon and thus gave the bomber such an easy way target.
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And while I hear what you're saying, if you disagree with the groupthink at this point, it does make you a moron. This is one of the rare places where the standard slashdot ignorance that normally gets it so incredibly wrong is actually right.
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And we care less about you and your ignorant vote than some random nut job living in a cabin in the middle of the woods.
If you're too stupid to use a website, your thoughts and votes are not wanted in this situation. You clearly can't cope with the world around you in general if posting on slashdot is a proper response to a website not working in lynx. It shows you're too stupid to recognize the difference a tool designed to be used as a backup in a pinch and one thats actually meant to be used everyday.
Y
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