Washington's obsession with security has tossed common sense, constitutional principles, dignity and basic medical principles out the window.  Lead pipes delivering Washington DC's drinking water has clouded[11] thinking, which perhaps explains some of the mal behavior due to heavy-metal poisoning?

DHS-TSA mission conflicts with Constitution

Constitutional conflicts created by department homeland security (DHS), and its child agency Transportation Security Agencies (TSA) are still being sorted out in the courts. The  more important court of public opinion, many people have voted NO turning to driving or not flying. 

Selecting between an "administrative" pre-arrest pat down search or radiation based electronic search both conflict with the 4th amendment to the Bill of Rights and are repugnant to American principles and human dignity.

Late last year an architecture student Aaron Tobey flew home to attend a funeral for his grandmother.  Knowing he would be subjected to a forced search s a condition of exercising this Liberty to travel unmolested he wrote Fourth Amendment written on his chest. For this he was arrested for 90 minutes at Richmond International Airport, the Rutherford Institute has filed a civil rights lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. [1]

Body scanners conflicts with FDA guidelines

According to the FDA imaging exams using ionizing radiation should be conducted ONLY when medically justified. When such exams are conducted, patients should be exposed to an optimal radiation dose – no more or less than what is necessary to produce a high-quality image. [3]  As the security scanner has NO medical benefit, one size fits all exposure, is not operated by a radiologist nor is the procedure ordered by a physician.

Historically, the states and or FDA had regulated ALL radiological devices x-ray systems are a subset of this.  DHS/TSA cleverly had the scanner classified as a NON-medical device, putting outside the per view of FDA.  Statements that the FDA has determined the systems are "safe" are very misleading.   Being a "non-medical" device FDA never formally evaluated the device just accepted the manufacture's data from a mocked up system.

To this author's knowledge, the scanner manufactures to have not submitted required 510K application or undergone rigorous clinical testing or received FDA device approval.  The 510K and related documents are public records for all medical devices.[15]

Even FDA approved medical systems being inspected by state radiation departments occasionally fail. With professionals at the controls, accidents happen from improper settings or equipment malfunction. Unfortunately, over 300 reports of scanner overdoses have been reported like the burn shown.[13]  Airport scanners are not operated by a radiologist nor are inspections required.

Before the mass deployment of mobile x-ray vans[10] to streets and hundreds of scanners to airport's and other venues US total exposure to ionizing radiation had nearly doubled over the past two decades according to a March 2009 report by the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements (NCRP). [4]  Wonder why skin, ovarian, breast, testicular and other cancer are on the rise?

Ionizing radiation can cause damage to DNA, exposure can increase a person’s lifetime risk of developing cancer. Although the risk to an individual from a single exam may not itself be large, millions of exams are performed each year, making radiation exposure from medical imaging an important public health issue. [5] 

The scanners can not see into the body

We are told by TSA Blogger BOB, the radiation can't image inside the body.  Do you believe BOB or your eyes?

Backscatter systems clearly show lungs, leg bones as shadows from fewer x-rays being reflected off internal anatomy. 

High power forward scatter in use in jails and airports x-ray will see kidney stones.  This like all x-rays is dangerous to expecting mothers and fathers starting a family. 

Medical Experimentation without consent

Quoting Radiologist Dr. Paul Dorio "Contrary to every policy enacted since the effects of radiation were understood, we are engaging in a mass experiment of irradiation of not just adults but also pregnant women, fetuses, children, women of childbearing age, men who may conceive after exposure, and everyone unfortunate enough to have to be in an airport. The results will not be known for 20 years." [2]

No consent, No Knowledge: Secret x-ray vans on US streets

The same technology, capable of seeing through clothes and walls, has also been rolling out on U.S. streets with mobile high energy x-ray vans. This looks through walls, car doors with HIGH energy x-rays. [10]  Don't worry it's declared 'safe' and a non-medical device no inspections are required.  

It is informed consent you have a choice.

Unfortunately, TSA and others has deliberately misinformed the public with statements like "no-radiation" is used, "it harmlessly bounces of the skin," "it does not penetrate."  When, in fact, system directs penetrating radiation to the body.  The statements fly in the face of well known physics insults the public conscience.  

People are forced to select between radiation or germ covered gloves in places typically reserved for the persons doctor.  Additionally, the person is forced to wave 4th amendment rights to exercise his or her right to travel.  Additional Issues of child pornography and inappropriate touching are created with people under 18 years of age.

Scanner manufactures, TSA hiding behind 'national security' continues to withhold test results and refuses independent verification.  TSA is opaque while our clothing and bodies are transparent?

While it deliberately releases misleading and some patently false statements to the public.   We have all heard and read "we can't save images," the images are fuzzy," same sex operator is looking" etc....  The old media knowing nothing of basic physics or +115 years of medical radiological history simply parrots the "official" press releases.  The new main-stream media has done a good job teaching and informing the public.

Flying is a privilege?

Many people are required to fly for jobs, international travel, or are unable to drive. 

Some put forward the argument that air travel is a "privilege" this fails as.  The very essence of Liberty is your ability to move from a point A to B unmolested. The like sidewalks, roads the airspace is a public easement [3] no license or permission is required for its use.

With unmarked X-ray vans roaming streets worldwide,  including the US it cannot  be avoided.[10]  Alternatively, powerful scanners in use at internal check points are becoming more common. [9]  

Did we learn anything?

Sadly yes in Germany human testing was against the law so much was done 'unofficially'.  US Solution hire German scientists under operation paper clip[14], and clever attorneys to write Draconian laws permitting chemical, biological and radiological experimentation on US.  Congress lets new concept of "national security" trump public health passes it into law under title 50.  Sadly, what was done to Americans and continues to this day makes the Germans look like amateurs?  

Has Agencies of the US government done radiation experiments on US before?

As early 1931 Dr. Cornelius Rhoads, under the auspices of the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Investigations, infects human subjects with cancer cells. He later goes on to establish the U.S. Army Biological Warfare facilities in Maryland, Utah, and Panama, and is named to the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission. While working for the Army, Rhoads begins a series of radiation exposure experiments on American soldiers and civilian hospital patients.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IEAE) a spin-off of the Atomic Energy Commission worked with TSA and the scanner manufacturers to set "safe" levels. Unfortunately, the scanner manufacturers and the purchasing agencies set and approve the standards?

Sadly various agencies have done thousands of tests, for example, the Atomic Energy Commission between the years 1944 and 1974. Over 16,000, people were radiated, some of whom did not know the health risks or did not give consent. [16]

For over twenty years the 'law' allowed the US Department of Defense (DOD) to use Americans as “Guinea pigs.” This law (the US code annotated Title 50, Chapter 32, Section 1520, dated 30 July, 1977) remained on the books until it was repealed under public pressure in 1998. The new and revised bill prohibits the DoD from conducting tests and experiments on humans, but allows “exceptions.” One of the exceptions is that a test or experiment can be carried out for “any peaceful purpose that is related to a medical, therapeutic, pharmaceutical, agricultural, industrial, or research activity.” Thus, the 1998 law has obvious loopholes, which allow secret testing to continue. [8]AsDHS-TSA ispart of DOD the various security scanners would fall under “exceptions.”

With federalization of our police, the use of x-ray VIPER check points and mobile x-ray vans in the US would fall under “exceptions.”Total recall style X-ray tunnels are being in airports and may secretly be under test or deployed in public building, malls or sports venues. People are often told that no radiation is used or areas are not clearly marked making the exposure secret and without informed consent.

Do we know better?

With the close of WW-II we learned at Nuremberg that horrific experiments were performed by the Nazis and Japanese.  Sadly, at the same time, radiological experiments were done in the US with uranium miners, troops and others.

We have learned a great deal about radiation and protection 116 years after Wilhelm Roentgen discovered x-rays. Sadly, money, fear, policy makers lacking basic science or medical knowledge and forgetting our history of radiation experiments is putting the public at risk to make them 'safe'. The influence of the atomic weapons programs to set early standards friendly to industry and defense contractors to reduce legal and clean-up costs. For example, Washington's state home of the Hanford facility permits annual exposure five times that of most states. Statistically, your chances of being struck by lightning is greater than being killed by a 'terrorist'.

The judges also cited the “bedrock norms” referred to in the Stanley decision.
From the case:

How did we get here?

We are told 9-11 changed everything. Rearming pilots like they had been in the past and installing locking door would have stopped the 19 hijackers. A locking door would cost less than $400 per plane. To date 48 Billions have been spent on TSA with not a single 'terrorist' caught in 10+ years.

Political incentives inherent in the police state render it extremely difficult to dismantle the security bureaucracy once it has been implemented. Vested interests obstruct administrative change: as the number of individuals employed by the DHS/TSA expands, by definition, so does the political constituency opposed to reducing the size of the security bureaucracy. Like many constituencies that comprise the corporate state, TSA employees have a compelling interest in ensuring the continuation and program expansion or 'mission creep'. From which they benefit directly, regardless of whether these programs effectively serve overriding national interests.

Similarly, corporate lobbying exerts enormous pressure on the security bureaucracy to expand its activities and procure additional equipment and technology to aid in the so-called "war on terror." The availability of vast sums of relatively unmonitored stimulus money encourages government expenditures on products backed by powerful lobbying groups but with little value from a national-security perspective. For example, $40 million was spent on explosive detection equipment sitting unused in warehouses. Scanners testing by the GAO and German security specialist ' found questionable effectiveness. Not coincidentally, A revolting door between the corporate-governmental partnership in Washington centered on the growth of the national-security state thrives on a revolving door of governmental officials/lobbyists who barter contracts and favors without regard to their actions' effect on national security. Our health, liberty, dignity and budget have been sold to the highest bidder.

Where is is going?

The goal of DHS is to have an omnipresent anti-terrorist force deployed at every moderate or high-density site: public buildings, train, bus station, malls, stadiums, malls, grocery stores and so on.  Expanding intrusive searches beyond the confines of airports, justify offensive behavior by government officials.  Slowly acclimating the average citizen to larger police presents arbitrary searches and loss of liberties.

Solutions

We need to act like Americans take responsibility for our safety.  The growth of the security state will only rob US of our Liberty and wallets and must be rolled back.  Homeland security begins at home learn self-defenses. We must be vigilant to keep from being terrorized by the good intentioned pretending to make us "safe."

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