Those of you who don't mind nude scans -- where DO you draw the line?
#91
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Florida
Posts: 3,006
Bizarre. He should know that young Muslim men come in every shade of skin tone, and every race. And they can easily change their last name to Johnson or O'Hara, or buy a high quality fake passport for $200. So, how will "profiling" find them.
As to the nude-o-scope, purely in the eyes of the law, what is the difference between a child pornographer viewing images on their home computer and a TSO looking at 12 year old girls being scanned by that machine? (I'm not talking about how much they enjoy what they're doing; only about the dispassionate view under the laws of our nation of what they are actually doing).
As to the nude-o-scope, purely in the eyes of the law, what is the difference between a child pornographer viewing images on their home computer and a TSO looking at 12 year old girls being scanned by that machine? (I'm not talking about how much they enjoy what they're doing; only about the dispassionate view under the laws of our nation of what they are actually doing).
Now if a TSO captured an image of a child and then gave the image away or kept it for himself, that same image could now be child porn as the purpose has changed.
#92
Join Date: Dec 2009
Posts: 34
I may be veering badly off-topic with this question, but would it be possible to blow up a plane with swallowed explosives? One problem, I think, would be that stomach acid would immediately start working on the containers; but while you could not obtain a precise time for the explosion, if the flight were a long one and the container material and thickness were properly chosen you could be fairly sure that the explosive would be released during the flight. But are there substances that would become explosive in the presence of stomach acids? And would it be possible to swallow a container large enough to contain a sufficient quantity? or, if numerous smaller containers were swallowed, would the content of each be released after a sufficiently uniform time so as to permit the critical mass of explosive material to be reached to permit a detonation adequate to the purpose?
#93
Join Date: Nov 2009
Posts: 464
I may be veering badly off-topic with this question, but would it be possible to blow up a plane with swallowed explosives? One problem, I think, would be that stomach acid would immediately start working on the containers; but while you could not obtain a precise time for the explosion, if the flight were a long one and the container material and thickness were properly chosen you could be fairly sure that the explosive would be released during the flight. But are there substances that would become explosive in the presence of stomach acids? And would it be possible to swallow a container large enough to contain a sufficient quantity? or, if numerous smaller containers were swallowed, would the content of each be released after a sufficiently uniform time so as to permit the critical mass of explosive material to be reached to permit a detonation adequate to the purpose?
#94
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Florida
Posts: 3,006
#95
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Florida
Posts: 3,006
I may be veering badly off-topic with this question, but would it be possible to blow up a plane with swallowed explosives? One problem, I think, would be that stomach acid would immediately start working on the containers; but while you could not obtain a precise time for the explosion, if the flight were a long one and the container material and thickness were properly chosen you could be fairly sure that the explosive would be released during the flight. But are there substances that would become explosive in the presence of stomach acids? And would it be possible to swallow a container large enough to contain a sufficient quantity? or, if numerous smaller containers were swallowed, would the content of each be released after a sufficiently uniform time so as to permit the critical mass of explosive material to be reached to permit a detonation adequate to the purpose?
I would be less worried about someone that kept the bomb inside them than I would be about someone that expelled the bomb before touching it off.
#96
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: ANC
Programs: AS MVP
Posts: 148
Many of us are not concerned with exposure of the genitals, but rather (or in addition) with the unknown risk of long-term, repeated exposure to radiation, known to be carcinogenic, or radio waves, of uncertain health risk. This is particularly of concern regarding children, pregnant women, and those who have undergone cancer therapy, as they may be more susceptible.
Maybe it's perfectly safe. If so, there ought to be some research documenting this. Can anyone point me to some objective (by which I mean non-TSA and non-manufacturer sponsored), peer-reviewed, published scientific research exploring the risks of repeated WBI exposure to pregnant women (and the fetuses they carry)? To babies and young children? To persons with suppressed immune systems?
I'm not being facetious -- honestly, I'd be quite interested in reviewing the scientific literature, if it's out there. And it SHOULD be out there. If it's not out there, if there is no such research at all or if it's all secret, how do we know the technology is safe for everyone to use?
#97
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#98
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I may be veering badly off-topic with this question, but would it be possible to blow up a plane with swallowed explosives? One problem, I think, would be that stomach acid would immediately start working on the containers; but while you could not obtain a precise time for the explosion, if the flight were a long one and the container material and thickness were properly chosen you could be fairly sure that the explosive would be released during the flight. But are there substances that would become explosive in the presence of stomach acids? And would it be possible to swallow a container large enough to contain a sufficient quantity? or, if numerous smaller containers were swallowed, would the content of each be released after a sufficiently uniform time so as to permit the critical mass of explosive material to be reached to permit a detonation adequate to the purpose?
Back to contraband that goes into the mouth and/or stomach and acid concerns, those are not necessarily going to spare us from such a means of terrorist attack because there is material that can be used and will hold up well enough against stomach acids and other bodily actions upon consumed items.
Enough contraband can be smuggled on board this way to down a plane. It becomes far less likely to succeed when using explosives-detection means rather than wasting resources on strip searches that don't detect explosives.
Terrorism is an awful nuisance, and more people will have to learn to live with that reality just like they've managed to live with road accidents. The best bomb-makers can already and will usually be able to circumvent whatever security measures are in place or will be put in place using currently available technology. That just reinforces that terrorism is an awful nuisance and people will have to live with it because there is no such thing as 100% security for the living.
Last edited by GUWonder; Jan 3, 2010 at 5:34 am
#99
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#100
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Florida
Posts: 3,006
Think of the MMW devices as video cameras. Where video cameras capture visible light and some infrared, the MMW captures "light" (radio waves) outside the visible spectrum.
To use the camera analogy, the SPO-7 uses available "light" where the Whole Body Imagers use a lamp (emitter) to generate the "light".
The SPO-7 does not create an image of the subject like the WBI device does. The SPO-7 takes a "light" reading and from that light reading a computer generates a generic image with the possible trouble areas highlighted. This allows the operator to target the "alarm" area with other screening methods like a pat-down.
They key to the SPO-7 is the software, the rest of the system is very similar to the WBI. To take the SPO-7 from a passive system to an active system you basically need to control the "light". Or port the software over to the WBI. Either way, the technology is there so the TSA does not need to see anyone's privates.
#101
Join Date: Dec 2009
Posts: 34
But would it be necessary to expel the explosive to make it work? Could a suicide bomber literally be a walking (or seated) bomb?
But they wouldn't have to go even that far. Vaginal or anal suppository concealing explosives can be removed with greater ease and are either not going to be detected by strip search machines and/or are going to result in more and bigger and uglier haystacks in which to loose a needle as the "tampon paradox" would come into play.
content this way. Therefore, if in principle a person can turn himself into a bomb by swallowing explosive, would it, again in principle, require a higher-powered xray of the stomach and digestive tract to find this out?
you can't absolutely prevent it, at least without making it impossible for a President to do his job. The question, then, for the Secret Service as well as for airline security becomes, as you point out, a trade-off.
#102
Join Date: May 2005
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#103
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#104
Join Date: Dec 2009
Posts: 34
If you look at the recent attempt on the Saudi Prince, the would be assassin had secreted the explosive in his body. When he touched off the explosive, his body took the force and greatly diminished its destructive power.
Or maybe I don't.