Most Americans favor the new scanning and pat-downs in airports, but people who are OK with it have little incentive to speak out. So we only hear from the whining minority.
On his radio show today, Dennis Prager said: “The image in the scanner is not you. You wouldn’t recognize you. If you saw the scan of you, you wouldn’t know it’s you, so how is it an invasion of your privacy?
“There’s over-reaction here… It seems commonsensical that if we can not find a non-metallic device on a person but now we will be able, it seems to me an outline is worth the price.”
Regarding Israel: “Do you support a police state vs. a free state in any other instance? Why do people change every one of their values when it comes to the Jewish state? I am certain it is because it’s the Jewish state. When people are consistent in every arena but one, you have to account for that one.
“I find it fascinating when gays support Palestinians when you can not come out of the closet in Palestine, but you can in Israel. The entire country [of Palestine] is not allowed to criticize religion.”
Second hour. Dennis talks to Scott Stewart, VP of Tactical Intelligence for STRATFOR, a global intelligence company about the effectiveness of the new scanners.
Scott: “There’s a cat and mouse game going on between airline security and the terrorists. In the 1970s and 1980s, the terrorists would try to hide explosive devices in electronic items. As x-ray machines got better, they had to adjust what they did.”
Scott says the new scans improve security “but they will cause the bad guys to shift tactics again.”
“We should not just find the bomb, but look for the bomber. One of the things these terrorist operatives have shown a weakness in is demeanor. It is often easier to spot them behaving strangely than trying to find disguised IED components.”
That’s the Israeli philosophy.
Why couldn’t terrorists just take a bunch of valium? Would their demeanor then be as likely to give them away?
Scott: “TSA hasn’t explained why we have to do this. The threat is certainly there.”
Much airline luggage is not scanned because it would be expensive and time consuming. PAN AM 103 was taken down by an explosive device hidden in luggage.
Scott says scanning of all luggage would be better for security than the current human scanning.
“When a terrorist goes about his dirty deeds, it’s an unnatural activity. When you listen back to some of the people who witness of Richard Reid (shoe bomber) and other attempted terrorists, people said they were behaving strangely. Once you get twinges there that there’s something odd, you can ratchet up the pressure by interviewing them.”
We do this today but Scott wants more.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010 Radio Show
H1: Scanners and Pat Downs
Prager H1: Do they work? Are they making us safer? Dennis talks to Nico Melendez, Public Affairs Director for the Western Region for TSA… California passes a $3B stem cell research proposition and has nothing to show for it three years later… The Palestinians can’t tolerate one free-spirited blogger.
New York Mag Writes Glowing Profile of Chris Christie
Dennis Talks to Scott Stewart of STRATFOR
No Evidence of Increase in Muslim Hate Crimes
Stephens: Palestinians Can’t Tolerate One Free Thinking Blogger
Remember the CA Stem Cell Proposition from a Few Years Back? No Results
A $1 billion down the drain and nothing to show for it. Let’s give them some more.
