Fly the Invasive Skies

[rowyn]

The TSA has not only rolled out full body X-Ray machines, but they've changed the procedure on pat-downs to make them more invasive. So if you want to fly out of many airports, you have to consent to either a virtual strip-search or having your privates groped.

...

"We are absolutely committed to getting the scanners and the groping rolled back," said George Donnelly, one of the organizers of national Opt Out Day, which urges airline passengers to protest the scanners by choosing the invasive—and time-consuming—pat-downs.

I really hope they succeed.

Edit: I didn't bother to mention this, but the fact is that I don't think that all of this invasive, time- and money-wasting "screening" is going to have any significant impact on flight safety, and even if it did it would just mean that the same terrorists would do just as much damage via some different method of attack. It's all a giant waste of energy and pointless humiliation of passengers for no gain. :(

Comments

[terrycloth.livejournal.com]

The sad part is that this is a million times more sensible than all the other crap (that I'd consider more annoying -- 'no liquids', 'turn on your laptop and show us all your files', 'take off your shoes') that they've thrown into the security theater, but it's the one people are going to get up in arms about.

Although, yeah -- whee, it's an airplane. What's so damn special about airplanes?

[rowyn]

I think all of the other crap is bad, too. 'No liquida' isn't humiliating and dehumanizing, though.

[terrycloth.livejournal.com]

'Dehumanizing?' Really?

[rowyn]

A person is looking at naked pictures of passengers with their faces blurred. Yes, I'd call that dehumanizing. I mean, it's not ZOMG WORST THING EVAR, but it's not a good way to treat people with decency and respect.

[terrycloth.livejournal.com]

I'm sorry, but I can't understand or approve of your reaction. I'll leave it at that.

also...

[tahkhleet.livejournal.com]

...knowing that _some_ of the guards are enjoying the nakedness and the groping...and that you have to put up with it because they are Authority...I think a lot of people would be disturbed. That's dehumanizing too, having your legitimate and moral input quashed and overridden by the whim of a callous Other

Re: also...

[rowyn]

Blargh.

[elusivetiger.livejournal.com]

It's anything but pointless - it's helping to condition us to acceptance of ever-increasing levels of authoritarian excess.

[rowyn]

I'm not cynical enough to think that's the central motive. :P

[tetsujinnooni.livejournal.com]

'sok, I'll carry the rest of the cynical for ya.

[rowyn]

Thank you. I appreciate that.

[the-vulture.livejournal.com]

Yet another reason for me to avoid air travel through US airspace whenever possible...

[rowyn]

... *technically* I have that option, but in practice I'm not going to stop visiting my friends or spend 40 hours in a car going to see them. :(

[pyat.livejournal.com]

They need to justify their existence!

Up here, a whole slew of agencies cropped up to do police checks for people when they privatized the service. And amazingly, the price went up. And even more amazingly, we are now constantly being presented with dire news articles about how SEXUAL PREDATORS COULD BE WORKING WITH OUR CHILDREN! OMG! TEACHERS AND DOCTORS NEED ANNUAL CRIMINAL RECORD CHECKS!!!!

And don't you want to protect YOUR SUNDAY SCHOOL???

[rowyn]

Apparently, no, I do not.

[tetsujinnooni.livejournal.com]

Sure. Be glad to keep the Sunday school safe. That means having enough volunteers acting in a responsible oversight manner that the background checks could be failed and the kids would still be safe.

Oh. Wait. You mean I expect people to actually work on their own to provide safety in their voluntary organizations? That I expect that disappointed kid can and shall be disappointed if the minimum-simultaneous-responsible-parties rule can't be followed?

Oh, right. Sounds like I'm saying we already knew what to do and zero-defect is proving to be a defective thought process yet again.