Slashdot Mirror
The Ineffectiveness of TSA Body Scanners - Now With Surveillance Camera Footage
McGruber writes "Jonathan Corbett, the subject of the earlier Slashdot Story: 'The Ineffectiveness of TSA Body Scanners,' has an update for us. His video showing him wandering through a nude body scanner with undetected objects is now complete with the feeds from TSA's security cameras at the checkpoint."
I mean America was always kind of overrated but Sept. 11th really finished it off. Now the constitution is just an annoying old scroll that congress has to work around rather than an important document to be valued and upheld.
Yeah how about we just accept the fact that there will always be risk and say fuck you to the TSA? What a bunch of fucking perverts. I'm sorry, I don't care what your "job" is, just because your boss tells you it's okay to molest the child doesn't mean it's right. Call me old school, but there are moral absolutes: molesting people is absolutely wrong. If we weren't so brainwashed as a society, people might actually think for themselves and stop participating in this nonsense.
Imagine the embarrassment if you were transgender.
Did anyone find the video a little hard to watch? I understand the effort and it's a valiant one, but with trying to watch the videos to see whats going on and the creator going on at quite a brisk pace to his speech, I found it a little more then disjointed. Explain the video so I can REALLY tell what is going on in each step (the graphics are not really that explanatory) , then go on your rant of what the TSA refuses to fix about itself. Both together are a little confusing.
Never mind the "there will always be risk", the risk is very low compared to other stuff that we take for granted and do nothing about. Poor allocation of health care resources apparently kills thousands of infants each year (if we had Canada's infant mortality rate, 8000 fewer deaths per year, and Canada's only middle of the pack among developed nations). Lack of exercise shortens expected lifespans by 2-5 years, depending on how you define "exercise". Careless driving is good for tens of thousands of deaths each year, including over 3000 pedestrians (i.e., people not in cars). It is likely, though not proven, that inadequate food regulation (the fact that trans-fats from partially hydrogenated oils are still considered "food" instead of "poison") and poorly chosen agricultural subsidies (does HFCS need to be so cheap? No, it does not.) cause tens of thousands of early deaths each year.
Terahertz wave scanners, while perhaps dry it's the correct technical term and due to a number of reasons humans absolutely love formality, even more so if they are in any station associated with power.
What planet are you from? Most humans HATE formality, it's only scientists, autistics, and a couple of other weirdos that like it.
How many times have you heard your dad ask your mom to move her "2.0L 2005 Honda Accord ES sedan" out of the driveway so he can pressure-wash the concrete?
How many times did you ask your parents if you could play your "Nintendo Entertainment System" for half an hour after your nightly bath?
Do you send a text to your girlfriend to tell her you will be late because "Interstate 675" is backed up, or because "675" or "the beltway" or "the highway" is backed up?
How many times have you heard President Obama announced as "President Barack Hussein Obama II," or Dubya as "President George Herbert Walker Bush?"
No, people hate formality - it takes too goddamn long. Hence, "body scanners" or "nude scanners" over "full-body terahertz wave scanners." And "nude scanners" just helps to differentiate from a walk-through metal detector, since that is also a "body scanner."
My sister opened a computer store in Hawaii. She sells C shells by the seashore.
Am I the only one who's noticed that neither of his videos present any evidence that he actually walked through the scanner with the metal object? I am sure the system is not foolproof, but this guy has no evidence that he fooled it. Come on slashdotters, pay attention.
I hate the TSA as much as the next guy, but I watched the video twice and it doesn't show the guy defeating the scanners. It just shows him going through the x-ray.. It doesn't prove that he sneaked anything through...
The best part of the untold truth is that any intelligent adult can pull off acts of terror that could kill hundreds if not thousands of people...... without going near an airport.
Please don't make me brainstorm for all you mindless people wondering what I mean. Big groups of people can be found all over the place.... you can imagine how right I am, or not.
The truth is, the sheer benevolence of our humanity is why most of us are alive. Most people wouldn't kill others if not in defense, and so we are alive. It doesn't take a genius to see what *could* happen, but *doesn't* happen. We are lucky to be so well protected by our nature. The police, TSA, your dad, or your God will have little impact on your safety.
And this is why the TSA needs to cease to exist. No security lines. No private security lines. Just show your ticket and get on the plane.
I dislike the scanners as much as most other normal people, and it seems the evidence suggests they are ineffective. But the constant complaining about being seen naked puts me off and I don't care to be associated people who are obviously either overacting the part or have legit mental issues related to their body.
You realize that nearly the same argument could be made about a cavity search. Just like we all have genitals which look similar, we all have intestines which look similar. No need to be shy about it when national security is at stake. So bend over and allow yourself to be fully searched. Anyone who objects to that clearly has serious mental issues and can be safely ignored.
Emotionally I object to being seen naked by anyone I am not about to have sex with. Intellectually/philosophically I greatly object to any society where a government agent is allowed to strip search innocent people who just want to exercise the basic human right to move about freely. Notice how I didn't use the term "constitutional" right. The constitution may or may not protect a citizen's freedom to move about freely, but basic human rights most certainly do. Personally I would rather die than allow a TSA agent to see me naked.
Quite an experience to live in fear, isn't it? That's what it is to be a slave.
You go first, AC. Full disclosure. Do you in fact work for the DHS or TSA?
Quite an experience to live in fear, isn't it? That's what it is to be a slave.
Protests are far more effective for getting changes enacted. Revolts, like we saw in the middle east last year, can produce change but they also result in many undesirable consequences. They are simply too destructive.
Interesting claim. I drew the opposite conclusion: Libya had a revolt, and was very effective at removing the oppressive government. Egypt had protests, and as of today, it seems that the Egyptian military (the real power all along) is going to be able to effectively stymie the whole "peaceful revolution" and retain power undemocratically. Bahrain had peaceful protests, and nothing's changed except their government just recently convicted & imprisoned some docs who were "guilty" of treating injured protestors.
It's unreasonable to expect that the entrenched interests will be willing to voluntarily cede power and the wealth they have accumulated. Libya may or may not emerge from their revolution as a healthy democracy, but one thing that can be said for certain is that Gaddafi and his supporters won't be hijacking their revolution.
Because they're dead.
It really is the only way to be sure.
So you don't have body issues? Good for you.
Lots of people do have issues. Telling them to "get over it" isn't good enough in a civilized society.
No sig today...
Seriously, can you imagine the massive amounts of cocks n titties the TSA people see? After about two weeks they've seen it all, just like the Mexican guy who mops the floor in the locker room. I guarantee that guy does not give a fuck about your dick.
Yeah, the TSA would never send a hot chick through the scanner multiple times ("just to be sure") or call their buddies over to take a look at her cans.
Oh, wait, yes they do.
I guess it's like porn. Nobody can make any money from porn because once people have seen a couple of porn videos they lose all interest in seeing more, right? Oh, wait...
No sig today...
ie. C4 can fit in body cavities. Anybody who thinks terrorists don't know this is stupid beyond belief.
Conclusion: The machines are little more than magic rocks and there's far less terrorists out there than Government wants you to believe.
Investing in strong cockpit doors, sky marshals and skilled behavioral profilers at the boarding gates would keep us safe. Old fashioned metal detectors would make sure the rednecks don't "forget" to check their firearms before boarding.
No sig today...
The best part of the untold truth is that any intelligent adult can pull off acts of terror that could kill hundreds if not thousands of people...... without going near an airport.
Yes, but that isn't what they are trying to do. I agree that the TSA is ridiculous, but you can't deny that people keep trying to bomb aircraft in the air while ignoring softer targets. So the basic idea is correct - make aircraft more secure - it is just the implementation that is faulty.
We actually have enough security against suicide bombers and hijackers without the nude scanners. The only explosives you can sneak on board are hard to detonate and people will notice you trying and restrain you. The only weapons you can sneak on board are not enough to subdue an entire aircraft of people who know you probably intend to ram them into a building, and besides which the cockpit door is locked.
Metal detectors and x-ray scans of luggage are more than adequate. The ban on liquids is pointless.
const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
As a parent, I'm against both the naked body scans and intrusive pat downs. The former would add unneeded radiation exposure to my child and produce a photo of him naked. I could get in trouble for taking a picture of my kid in the bath and having it printed out at the local CVS (yes, parents have been accused of child porn for this and had their kids taken away), but the TSA could produce a naked photo of my kid "for National Security."
On the pat down front, I - as a parent - have instilled in my kids that there is a very limited group of people who can touch them "there." Mommy and Daddy (mostly for tub time) and their doctor. That's it. Now we need to add Random TSA Dude to the list? This is completely unacceptable to me.
I've been lucky so far in that my family hasn't been subjected to the Rapiscan (seriously, could they have chosen a worse name) or the intrusive pat downs. However, there have been plenty of stories of TSA agents who subject kids to horrific pat down experiences for minor "offenses" (like running to hug Grandma before her pat down was complete).
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Exactly. Try telling someone who was a victim of sexual assault to "just get over it" and subject themselves to an intrusive TSA pat down. I guarantee they won't be able to "just get over it" even if they tried.
Or try telling a kid (who has been told not to let strangers touch them inappropriately) that they should just let Random TSA Agent take them to the side, away from mommy and daddy, and run their (TSA Agent's) hands up and down their (kid's) body.
"Just get over it" isn't an appropriate response by any measure.
My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
Exactly. If I were given the power to reshape the TSA, I wouldn't get rid of it entirely. I'd X-Ray all luggage, pulling aside anything suspicious looking for a more thorough check. (This would include checked bags, not just carry on bags.) I'd have the metal detectors in place. I'd also station plain-clothes agents throughout the airport looking for people who were acting suspiciously. If someone was spotted acting suspiciously, they could be followed by the agents and/or surveillance cameras.
Once you were on the airplane, I'd have the cockpit door locked and reinforced to prevent entry. The pilots would be under orders to perform an emergency landing if something happened in the passenger area no matter how many passengers the hijackers threatened to kill. The pilots would be absolved of any liability for passenger injury/death in those cases as their job would be to get the plane on the ground ASAP.
Add in some passenger education ("don't take bags from strangers, report any suspicious activity") and terrorists will find attacking airports/airplanes a difficult proposition. It won't be 100% protection, but then again no security ever will be. However, pouring billions of dollars in an attempt to go from 99.99% security to 99.991% security seems wasteful (especially when the new security measures are so invasive). (NOTE: I said "in an attempt" because I don't think they actually do increase security.)
My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.