John Tyner became an unlikely hero this week with his now-viral video of his refusal to be subjected to a full body scan, or the alternative pat-down, including a "groin check." Every hero needs a catch phrase, and John's was "If you touch my junk, I'll have you arrested." Unfortunately for John, refusing to be checked and leaving the screening area somehow is an admission of guilt, according to the Transportation Security Agency's creative interpretation of the Constitution, and Mr. Tyner now faces a lawsuit and a $10,000 fine.
How in the hell did we get to this point in the nine years since the September 11th attacks? I know- the attacks were devastating. I watched them again on youtube before writing this article, and realized they're even harder to watch now, thinking about how much we've lost. I felt the same sickening anger in my stomach as the towers fell that I felt that day. But, it's as if America took that anger, and started swinging wildly, lashing out at anyone. Since when did we start playing the victim- the abused spouse who lashes out at the kids? We're supposed to be the grown-ups, the only remaining superpower in the world (well, at least we were nine years ago). And what did we do? We attacked a country that had as much to do with 9-11 as Canada did. And pissed away the lives of thousands of brave young Americans, who-knows how many Iraqis, lost the respect of the world, and, oh yeah, about a trillion dollars. You think the housing bubble was the only thing that has put America on the brink of bankruptcy? Now were spending more money as fast as we can in Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, on the home front, to be able to fly to go see grandma this Thanksgiving, we have volunteered to sacrifice our rights to the point where one must either be subjected to an x-ray which exposes your nude body to a stranger employed by the government, or have another stranger run his or her hands over your body, including breasts and groin. Or your children's. We sacrificed these rights on the TSA assurances that we will be safer. But, the reality is that once you and your family go through this dehumanizing screening process, the plane you get on may be carrying cargo that was never screened. If you were a terrorist, which way would you try and get a bomb on a plane? No matter- we sold off our rights for the perceived illusion of being safer.
We weren't always such pussies. As Patrick Smith pointed out in his article at Salon.com, there were seven attacks on airliners between 1985 and 1989, including TWA Flight 847, Air India Flight 182 (in which 300 were killed when the 747 blew up over the North Atlantic), and of course Pan Am 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. Aside from Pan Am 103, do you even remember the other incidents without Googling them? Now, suppose there were seven successful attacks on major carriers between 2006 and today. Can you imagine how we would react? We already are to the point of nudity-before-flying. What else could we do?
Where is the outcry from the Right on this issue? Are they not the party against intrusive Big Government? How much more intrusive does it get than a body scan or groin pat down by a government agent? Where is Obama on this issue? (Once again missing a perfect opportunity to call out Republicans, mainly Senator Joe Lieberman, Chairman of the Senate Homeland Security Committee, on their hypocrisy.) Yet the Republicans and Democrats continue to wage this war on Religious Extremism in exactly the wrong way.
Case in point- the most recent attempt on America came in the form of bombs hidden in printers shipped via UPS and FedEx and intended to detonate as the planes were over the Eastern seaboard of the United States. We learned of this and were able to foil the plot not by waterboarding or otherwise torturing some terrorist, not by having thousands of troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, and not by launching another Drone attack somewhere. No, we found out from actionable intelligence from Saudi Arabia's Deputy Interior Minister in charge of Counter-terrorism, Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, who had learned of the plot from a double agent in al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.
If you still think the "Advanced Imaging Technology" somehow is making it safer to fly, consider who else is against it- the Allied Pilots Association. The scanners emit a low dose of x-rays, and flight crews (and frequent fliers) would be passing through them hundreds of times a year. Of course, the TSA argues that the dose is extremely low, and poses no significant health risks. The TSA also tried to allay fears that the body scans could be leaked to the public by insisting that the machines can't store the images.
They can. Want to see them? Here- http://gizmodo.com/5690749/these-are-the-first-100-leaked-body-scans And those were the low-resolution pics.
So what else is the TSA not telling us about the scanners? Who knows? However, we do know that that Rapiscan, a major supplier of the scanners, is a client of The Chertoff group. The Chertoff group is a consulting company founded by Michael Chertoff, the former head of Homeland Security after his departure. During his tenure as the leader of DHS, Chertoff ordered the first batch of scanners from Rapiscan, and later gave interviews using his credentials to promote Rapiscan.
Chertoff is just one of many making money off of promoting Fear in America. Turn on Fox News today and see how many stories actively encourage anxiety over health care, terrorism, crime, the economy, etc. To be fair, all of the 24 hour news cycle is to blame- I single out Fox only because they have raised fear mongering to an art form. But, let's take a step back, America, and pause for some rationality and reality. Yes, many, many people are hurting in this economy, and anxiety breeds more anxiety. But sacrificing your freedom and dignity isn't going to make things better anytime soon. You are more likely to be struck by lightning twice than be on a plane that falls victim to terrorists. And in regards to our current war against- well, I'm not exactly sure exactly what group this current war is against. But I do know this- there is no scenario in which Osama Bin Ladin, or Kim Jong-il, or Nasir al-Wahayshi, or any of the other current batch of enemies of America, will ever be leading a victory parade down the National Mall. Unless, of course, America is so consumed with irrational fear that we literally divide and rip ourselves apart and do the job for the terrorists. Freedom isn't free- it involves certain risks. In America, we used to believe that freedom was worth these risks. Today, I'm not so sure we do.
sources included-
http://www.salon.com/technology/ask_the_pilot/2010/11/10/airport_security
http://www.aolnews.com/nation/article/tsa-encounter-dont-touch-my-junk/19716789
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=130935022
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/31/world/31terror.html?_r=1
http://www.myfoxny.com/dpp/news/international/uk-plane-bombs-explosions-were-possible-over-u-s-ncx-20101110
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704462704575589802860920626.html
http://aviationblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/11/apa-president-advises-against.html
http://www.rapiscansystems.com/rapiscan-wavescan-200.html
http://www.alternet.org/story/148885/investigate_the_tsa,_not_the_guy_who_refused_to_go_through_its_%27porno_scanners%27
Within 3 paragraphs, I already had too much to say and almost started making notes. Having gone through TSA security only 24 hours ago (exactly), fears of impending invasive measures were somewhat fresh in my mind.
ReplyDeleteLet's point out that a TSA security officer recently posted about 20 of these pictures online (as they're disconcertingly graphic). This happened not long after another officer jokingly planted cocaine on a passenger in some batshit attempt at playing 'Candid Camera.' In other words... these people are working for about minimum wage, go through less of a screening process to actually get hired, have minimal training... and can PRACTICALLY see you naked. AWESOME? (I am, of course, being completely unapologetic here.)