A couple of years later after 9/11 all everyone saw how the TSA at airports were replacing metal detectors with backscatter scanners and millimeter  wave scanners; and how they will be in 60  or so airports throughout the United States . Eventually getting rid of metal detectors all together and being replaced with those two other scanners, backscatter and millimeter wave scanners. There are many questions that we ordinary people have after watching the news or by reading the news paper about these new scanners; the scientists and senators of States are also worried about the amount of radiation the scanners given off to the passengers as well as answering as much of the questions that we all have about this new equipment. Many people have heard about the changes at the airports that are based to protect the U.S. but does anyone know anything about why the TSA came about? What Backscatters and millimeter wave scanners do and if they are safe to use? If there will be any risks now or in the long run do to all the radiation that gives off.
            Some of us may not know how the TSA came about or what their name even means. So here is some information about the TSA so that there isn’t any more confusion. It is said that the TSA, which means Transportation Security Administration, are here to protect us from terrorists from outside the U.S. including those that are in the U.S. that doesn’t like the government.  Which is true, but many people believe that they are taking away our rights, as free independent U.S. Citizens, and what we are allowed to bring. What they don’t understand is that they are doing everything in their possible ability to prevent what had happened on 9/11 to never happen again. That was why the TSA was created to help strengthen our nation through transportation so that those, citizens, can feel safer and not have to worry about terrorist’s attacks again. All of the TSA members, all and possibly more than 50,000 are putting themselves at risk to help keep us safe from harm.  Since 9/11 the TSA has moved from not only protecting us at airports but at transits, train stations, highways, and many other places. If you see them give them the respect that they need as much as a military person because they weren’t told that they had to help keep America safe it is that they wanted to at least keep in their conscious that they have an importance in society to reduce less stress in America.  Don’t think that they are after you to make life more stressful; that isn’t their job, their job is to help keep anything that may harm us away from the U.S.A. and to make our lives a little easier because many of you don’t want to either be killed or put into slavery. In the end just give them the respect that they deserve because remember they don’t have to be there, they chose to protect us.

Normally at airports you would go through the easy metal detectors and go straight to your gate to catch your flight but now they came up with 2 machines that do the exact same thing but have a different name, look completely different and lastly view the images differently. Both Backscatter and Millimeter wave scanners project tiny amounts of radiation into your body to view any items that aren’t made of metal. The downside of this machine is that the only way to view the image is by seeing the person in the scanner nude. Not to worry you don’t have to take off your clothes to go through the scanner; it is just like a medical scanner but with less radiation going through. All you have to do is walk between both scanners on either side of you and depending on the security people they may ask you to raise your arms up. Down below are two different images showing what a Backscatter scanner image looks like and what a millimeter wave scanner image looks like:
    Backscatter image       Millimeter image

            As what was mentioned before when going through either the Backscatter scanner or the Millimeter scanner the image will be graphic. So many are worried that it is an invasion of privacy. Which is true it is an invasion of privacy because many people aren’t comfortable with another person, their significant other, to look at them while they’re naked so what makes them think that they will be comfortable having a stranger look at their  full body image and see their genital areas.  What many don’t understand that the TSA agent you see at the scanner machine isn’t the person viewing the full body image. The TSA agent viewing the image is about 50 to 100 feet away from the scanner.  So the TSA agent assisting you while in the scanner isn’t trying to have a little sneak peak with what you look like under your clothes. On the Transportation Security Administration website it says the TSA agent “who views the image is remotely located in a secure resolution room and never sees the passenger.” Also while the other TSA agent, who is about 100 feet away from all the passengers, cannot see the faces of the passengers on the image. Written in the TSA agent handbook about privacy it says:

"For additional privacy, the officer viewing the image is in a separate room and will never see the passenger and the officer attending to the passenger will never see the image. The officers have 2-way radios to communicate with other in case a threat object is identified."

Their faces are blurred out so that no one has to worry that the TSA agent may walk up to them and say something like, “I totally just saw your naked body”, “You look hot when you’re naked”, and  etc. Another thing that many of us are worried about is that our full body image could be saved or printed out to show other people as well as to keep it for pleasure. That isn’t the case there are no devices at the airports that they can print or even save says the TSA agents. Yes there are images on Google, Bing, and other search drives but those are all the same images. They are up there is because the TSA officers were showing the public what the images to the new scanner would look like and what to expect. That they can prevent as much problems as they can if they show what everything will look like. The main purpose of these machines and the full body image is so that they can take away all things that may harm the person and everyone around them. In this generation many terrorists can now make weapons that don’t have any metal anymore. With the old metal detectors they served their purpose to find anything that is metal but once again now a day’s many object aren’t made of metal anymore.  This was why the new scanners were invented so that they can not only view things that are metal, but also plastic and other materials that could be thought of as explosives. That is why when viewing the images everyone is naked. Here is an image of what the TSA agents are looking for:

            Back in February of 2009 the agency has allowed those that didn’t want to go through the new body machines they will have to get pat down no matter what if they want to get pass security.   The TSA agents personally don’t like that because the purpose of the pat down is to figure out why the alarms were going off at the machines. Many of us personally don’t like going through the scanners so we ask “I opt out” and they will thoroughly search you and they will glide against every part of your body; before they do that they will tell you what they will do next.  They not only pat down adults, but also children. Here is a YouTube video on who they pat down:
   http://youtu.be/U9bszpoyyGk

As passengers we have the rights when getting a pat down if we would like to be in a private room or out in the open. Also as a passenger you may also ask to have someone by your side to watch what is happening and not to worry the person that will pat you down will be the same gender. If you have a medical condition it would be best to tell the TSA officers before they start patting down because they do occasionally go a little rough when they pat down. Even if you tell them about your condition some won’t listen as to what had happened to Tom Sawyer a bladder cancer survivor; YouTube link below:

http://youtu.be/4ckTi3FqfOo

            Lastly the affects of what could happen when going through the full body machines. Many passengers are worried about the amount of radiation is being put into our bodies every time we go through the scanners. The people are worried that we will all get skin cancer since the rate of skin cancer has gone up a lot. According to Peter Kant, “You would have to go through the scanner 1,000 times to equate to one medical X-ray…[and] you get twice as much radiation when eating a banana than when going through the scanner”.

This chart shows how much radiation we all get in a day, which is really high, and it is crazy to see that we get more radiation from a banana than the full body scanners. Also you get the same amount of radiation from the scanners if you were up in the air for only two minutes. This is also why you mothers may have told you to put sunscreen on before going outside because the atmosphere has been getting thinner and thinner over the years but when you up in the air like 30,000 feet the atmosphere is so thin that the sun’s rays are so strong that you are exposed to getting a large dose of radiation. What about in the long run, can we get skin cancer from this? Yes we can because it says that we need to go through the scanners about 1,000 times before getting the same amount of radiation as a medical scanner.  So those that are frequent flyers may possibly get cancer and eventually occasional flyers, but they don’t see that ever happening for a long time.  

            Now we know what the TSA agents do, what backscatter and millimeter scanners do and what they look like and also if they are safe for you or not. So next time keep in minds that if you are going one state over just take a bus if you’re worried about the radiation and don’t forget you save on money by doing that.  For those that are flyers just keep in mind of what can happen, the risks, and don’t forget to put sunscreen on. Last but not least enjoy your travels and I am glad to inform you of what happens at airports now a days.

Another YouTube video

http://youtu.be/2XhnZlmLGK8

http://youtu.be/xH-dpkJZiOM

http://youtu.be/-6F9bjZ6iF8

Different airports with the scanners

http://studenttravel.about.com/od/planes/f/Which-Airports-Have-Full-Body-Scanners.htm

Scanners

http://news.medill.northwestern.edu/uploadedImages/News/Chicago/Images/Urban/Backscatter_524.jpg

http://pstuph.files.wordpress.com/2011/04/pro-vision.jpg

http://image.made-in-china.com/4f0j00eBVEoTaRvrqs/Anti-Terrorist-Gun-Knif-Metal-Detectors.jpg