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I know and anyway--doesn't everything cause cancer? At least eventually?
I think we should definitely approach radiation with caution. I don't see the point in the misleading articles. They just scare people and I find it unethical. The whole using radiation as a treatment for cancer to argue a risk for cancer had my eyes rolling.
Yea, enough of anything could probably cause cancer. One of my profs in college said that if we all live long enough we'll eventually develop a cancer.
The amount of radiation from the machines is approximately the same as someone living in the US gets from environmental sources in about ten minutes. It is also about the same as what you would get in less than five minutes during a commercial airline flight. So if you are worried about cancer from the scanner, you should also be worried about cancer from the flight itself.
The radiation exposure is trivial compared to what we get just from our activities of daily living.
I am willing to accept the embarrassment of having my less than perfect body scanned in exchange for increasing the safety of the flight I plan to take.
Even the scanners are not foolproof, but perhaps knowing they are there will deter some people from attempting to hijack a plane, which is the whole point of the security measures we go through when we fly these days.
Put on your tin foil hats when you leave the safety of your homes - the sun is your most *constant* source of radiation outside. Inside, best ditch the microwave oven, toss your cell phone in (someone else's) trash, and totally burn your wifi internet access. Those are ALL sources of radiation.
Anyone who does not see the distinction between these body scanners and other sources of radiation (e.g. the sun, flying, etc) is a fool. This is an unnecessary risk. This nonsense is not required anywhere else but the US and UK. I will not expose myself to more radiation so some well connected business man can make more profit building these machines, while appeasing the more cowardly of our citizenry.
Are they in use at all airports? I was under the impression that not all airports use full body imaging scanners. If that is the case, you could choose to depart and arrive in airports that do not use them.
I was just reading about this today here. According to that article, many of the scanners are just metal detectors, which should not pose a problem. You could ask at the airport. But some are apparently "backscatter" machines that use low-level X-ray. I would mostly worry about this during pregnancy and certainly opt for the pat down if pregnant.
I have two knee replacements, two hip replacments, a shoulder replacment, and a wrist full of screws and bolts. Various doctor's offices have told me they no longer issues cards attesting to your status as almost bionic. Anyone know what happens to someone like me?
I don't understand the problem. The scan takes less than 10 seconds! A patdown can take nearly an hour if they don't have someone readily available.
No, it doesn't.
I have routinely refused the cancer machine and it takes less than a minute to do a pat down.
And if you are cutting it that close to your flight that an extra 5 or 10 minutes will make you miss your plane, you need to leave earlier.
I have been 2 hours early for my flight routinely and security lines can still be so out of control that you cut it close.
Be prepared.
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