HuffPo article: Why I Hate the TSA (Flying while butch)
Mar 3, 2013, 8:14 am
#31
Join Date: Dec 2008
Posts: 1,444
I originally wrote: "The point here is that full body scans are inappropriate methodologically for the task at hand."
To which you replied (rather impolitely, in my opinion): "That is entirely besides the point being discussed."
I replied to that:
This was also excellently pointed out by RadioGirl, above.
You now claim I am repeating what you said:
Why can´t you just admit you crossed the line before (or maybe did not understand what I was saying) and apologize, instead of now claiming I am somehow stealing your opinion?
To which you replied (rather impolitely, in my opinion): "That is entirely besides the point being discussed."
I replied to that:
I disagree. Choice of methodology should take into account not only the ability to locate what you want but also the lack of extensive false positives, or "alarms" unrelated to security. A method appropriate for the task at hand will not be gender-sensitive, therefore gender differences will never be an issue. WTMD and ETD are unaltered by gender, while full body scans will hassle persons who are different in ways completely unrelated to airport security.
You now claim I am repeating what you said:
Why can´t you just admit you crossed the line before (or maybe did not understand what I was saying) and apologize, instead of now claiming I am somehow stealing your opinion?
Mar 3, 2013, 1:03 pm
#32
Join Date: Oct 2007
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I am not doing anything of the of sort. Just because you want to pontificate and make a bigger point about gender mores in US society does not make the machine any more human. The debate about the feckless nature of NoS (or other inance TSA policies) is one thing, but under current TSA policies the question is valid, just as the age questions are, and those that ask for certain status like military or airline employee which allow certain classes to skip parts of the screening.
We have plenty of debates on how to fix the very broken TSA. This is not one of them no matter how much you want it to be.
Mar 3, 2013, 10:56 pm
#34
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Mar 3, 2013, 11:05 pm
#35
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Oh, go on then, stun us all with a display of your knowledge about how the physics behind a mm wavelength or low energy radiation sources really need a botton marked boy or girl. And at the same time, tell me all about the programming needs in that regard. I'm comfortable with a discussion about programming decision heuristics and am perfectly comfortable with my statement that any programmer requiring boy or girl buttons for an automated alarm system is a lazy programmer.
Mar 8, 2013, 10:10 pm
#36
Join Date: Dec 2007
Posts: 629
I am filing a complaint with the TSA. They need to know what this feels like. They need to make some changes. There should be another way to do this, another way to handle those of us who don't conform to gender stereotypes, so that we don't feel less than human. I'll let you know what the TSA says. How awesome would it be if something came of this?
He does not seem to actually be on our side, despite this experience. He 'hates' the TSA, but is not advocating their dissolution. Yet another person who would be perfectly happy to see everyone else in the world suffering and being humiliated as long as it doesn't affect them personally.
He doesn't want to get rid of the body scanners. He just wants them to somehow magically enable the L3 mmw machines to do their thing without knowing gender. Presumably if L3 could have done that with similar levels of false positives they would have.
As far as hating people for perceiving him exactly how he wants to be perceived that is completely irrational. The TSOs certainly don't bear any blame for this situation. (S)He seems to be indistinguishable from a male and wants to be treated as a male...except when he doesn't.