Friday, August 30, 2013

TSA and selective use of full body scanners

I've been traveling through a number of airports, both large and small over the past few months, and one thing that is omnipresent are the multitudes of TSA agents, even at the smallest airports.  TSA has become an acronym for Thousands Standing Around in many of the small town airports.

One thing I'm beginning to notice is that TSA has removed the full body scan (back scan) machines at some of the small town airports, and restoring the tried and true metal detectors that don't require you to take off everything except shirt, pants and socks.  The reason given to me by a TSA employee at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport (AVP) for removing them is that they are needed at larger airports.  So, if the back scanners are not needed at AVP, why are they needed anywhere?  There are direct flights to Philadelphia, Newark, Chicago-Ohare, Detroit, Atlanta and Charlotte daily from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and passengers are not required to be re-screened upon arrival at the major airport..

Does the Department of Homeland Security think that a potential terrorist would only consider using a major airport to initiate an airborne terrorist attack, and not pay any attention to more lacks security? (although, I tend to think these small town airports do look people over better than my hometown airport of Memphis International Airport)

So here is a suggestion to our friends at TSA, get rid of all the full body scan units, or use them everywhere there is scheduled commercial air service..  The back scan units are intrusive, leave x-ray radiation residue in the bones, that is accumulates and is a potential cancer threat, and now seems the use of these machines depends on your airport of origin.

With the removal of the back scan e-ray machines at secondary airports, the effectiveness of using them at all now approaches zero.  Use them everywhere or better yet, get rid of these intrusive monsters.

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