[ RadSafe ] Re: Terror in the US & world at large

[Steven Dapra]

March 4

         Since the inception of Homeland Security/TSA I have read many 
stories in the popular press about their heavy-handed and tyrannical 
behavior, their bullying of passengers, pawing the heads of six-year-old 
girls (feeling for shoe bombs I suppose), and so forth. The aged and 
wheel-chair-bound mother-in-law of a personal friend of mine has been 
forced to partially undress by HS/TSA "inspectors" (or whatever sanitized 
label someone wants to use) before she is allowed on an airplane. I read a 
report of a passenger with metal in his body from surgical repairs who took 
x-rays with him to the airport and tried to show the "inspectors" the 
x-rays. The "inspectors" REFUSED to look at them. It's a long list of bad 
behavior.

Shawn Hughes (SH) (see his complete message below) wrote:
"Those of you that think 'leaving them alone abroad' or similar pap are 
very, very ignorant of the past 100 years of terrorism."

         This is false. I am not thinking "pap" and I am not "very, very 
ignorant" of 100 years of terrorism.

(SH:)
"Remaining silent and impartial about events in SouthWest Asia makes as 
much sense as the US staying out of WWII."

         You appear to be "very, very ignorant" of events leading up to US 
entry into WWII.  Even establishment historians agree that the Roosevelt 
administration diligently tried to induce the Third Reich to attack the 
United States.  They also acknowledge that FDR hounded and badgered Japan, 
behavior that led to the attack on Pearl Harbor.  Roosevelt's foreign 
policy got the US into World War II.  SW Asia is well outside of our sphere 
of interest, plus our meddling is the cause of many of the "events" there.

         Since you are so hot to meddle, did you remain "silent and 
impartial" when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in 1979?

         The reason this "slowly coalescing group of people" wants to kill 
us is because we keep sticking our national nose in their business.  If we 
go around sticking our nose in their business long enough we are going to 
get punched it that nose, and that is what happened on September 11.  (Try 
reading Pape's book like I suggested.)  Ireland and Botswana (and all other 
nations) are best qualified to solve their internal problems.  We can't 
even stop drunk drivers, child molesters, and drug dealers in the US of 
A.  What business do we have telling anyone else what to do?

         I don't think there is any "lack of interest in security on this 
forum" (i.e. RADSAFE).  There are some differences about how to provide 
security, as well as some differences about the underlying reasons for our 
current predicament with airplane hijackers, explosive-laden human bombers, 
and suicide truck bombers.  I reiterate emphatically that minding 
everyone's business but our own is guaranteed to get us more of the 
same.  I'll go further and say people who believe in night stick, Taser, 
and gun barrel security are getting, (or already have) a case of tunnel 
vision that says security consists of bully-ragging people, ignoring their 
x-rays, threatening them, or dragging them off in handcuffs.

         A lot of this so-called security consists of shoving people 
around, and of treating the symptoms instead of the disease.

Steven Dapra
sjd at swcp.com



Shawn Hughes wrote:
As a person peripherially in the Homeland Security Field, I have tried to
stay clear of this discussion. I find it interesting that many of the
professionals on this board grow quickly incensed when others outside of
their profession start offering opinons on their field. Yet, many of you are
doing the exact same thing right now to security professionals. In fact, to
some of you we are no more than 'goons'. Are we goons when we find things
capable of taking YOUR flight out of the sky?
Are we goons when we develop new technology, maybe not THE answer, but at
least showing we are making an effort to do something?
Those of you that think "leaving them alone abroad" or similar pap are very,
very ignorant of the past 100 years of terrorism. So that you can't say
noone knowledgeable told you, there is a slowly coalescing group of people
who want to kill you (yes, *you* ) based on no more than where your passport
was issued.
Remaining silent and impartial about events in SouthWest Asia makes as much
sense as the US staying out of WWII.
I realize this is a worldwide list. I assume by the responses there are few
radiation professionals in Ireland and Botswana, because those people would
tell you volumes about sticking your head in the sand as long as terrorism
isn't affecting you on a personal level.
I am disappointed by the lack of interest in security on this forum. All of
you should understand, painfully, what happens when you have weak security
and someone takes advantage of it.
I'll return to lurking, because occasionally there is data here important to
what I do.
I remain,
-Shawn
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Shawn R. Hughes
Special Projects Consultant
near Oak Ridge, Tennessee
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<mailto:srh at esper.com> srh at esper.com primary email
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