Originally Posted by cottonmather0

Thinking back to opt-out day last Thanksgiving, did it fizzle out because people didn't participate or because people just didn't know about it?

I ask this question because most people I know who go through the scanners - and it's kinda sorta verified by just watching people in the security line for a few minutes - go through them because they either A.) don't know they can opt out or B.) don't know about the dangers. Most travelers are infrequent travelers and TSA is counting on the masses to just roll over for this whole system to work.

My question is, what if people stood outside checkpoints handing out literature and encouraging people to opt-out just before they got in line? Has this been tried? Was this part of Opt-out Day? I think all of us on this board have had experiences where we influenced someone else in line to opt-out when we did. Why can't we try that on a larger and more deliberate scale?

Certainly neither the airports nor TSA would like it, for different reasons, but it seems to me that it would be a very effective way to educate people about the whole process, when the scanners are imminent and just a few minutes away and not in some theoretical place "tomorrow at the airport." And if it's the non-sterile area of a publicly owned airport, what would be the consequences? You'd think that's an easy First Amendment question to answer if the airport or TSA tried to stop you from doing it and you didn't pitch a tent in the airport or litter or give them some other attempt to stop you not related to exercising your free speech.

Am I missing something from this idea? I travel a lot and have never seen this attempted, but I didn't travel last Thanksgiving, so maybe someone did try it and I missed this part of opt-out day.

Comments?