To this day there are many questions that need to be answered as to what is
the next step that needs to be taken in order to better the scanners. Although
putting the scanners in airports have brought us closer to having a safer
nation, it has not done all it could to keep us safe. There have been many
incidences where the scanners have completely missed objects that could have
been a threat. Personally, the ethical issues and the risks they pose are
greater than the benefits. Me being a frequent traveler, I do not feel
comfortable when I am placed into the scanner and watch as my very detailed
image gets put on surveillance screen. I do believe it is an invasion of
privacy and unreasonable in some circumstances. There are many kinks that
need to be worked out because the scanners still cannot detect invisible
threats such as liquids and what could be inside a person's body. Going back
to Brenner, there are better ways of detecting something harmful without
passing radiation through a person's body as well. Also, in order for this
system to be really successful, these body scanners need to be placed in
more than just a few countries. So far, The U.S. is one of the only countries
that have scanners into place; Great Britain has scanners in some of their
main airports as well. Germany has rejected the idea of placing scanners
at their airports (Israel 2010). What if someone was traveling into the U.S with
something harmful? Not much can be done then. I believe that this is the
beginning of something that can be potentially helpful and beneficial, but many
years of research and perfecting the scanners is still needed. Hopefully one day
there will be an improved version of the scanner that everyone can agree on that
will keep us all safe without being so controversial in nature.
In Summary, here are the main advantages and disadvantages of implementing the use of a body scanner:
|
Benefits of Body Scanners-
- Gives travelers peace of mind and promotes public safety
- Detects harmful weapons or materials under clothes
- Fast and does not hold up any lines
- Major development in traveler's safety
- Encourages anyone traveling to think twice about concealing something potentially harmful to others
|
Disadvantages of Body Scanners-
- Cannot see within the body itself, therefor cannot detect hidden materials
- Cannot detect liquids such as liquid explosives
- Many argue that the images produced are very intrusive and too detailed
- Children under 18 cannot be scanned due to child pornography laws
- Some studies show that the ionizing radiation can increase a person's chances of getting cancer if they are a frequent traveler
- Other countries still refuse to put Body Scanners to use in their airports
|
|