Today in my Science & Modern Technology class we had a big discussion about Homeland Security and how 9-11 has led to increased power for authorities to "invade our privacy" at airports. Recently, in Utah, a 4-year-old boy was patted down, shirtless, before boarding a plane. This has caused a great deal of controversy.
I hope I don't offend anyone...but I'm going to disagree with most moms across Utah. I understand you are protective of your children, and if I had children, I probably would be too. But on the other hand, if a few pat downs, wands and body scans are going to keep our nation safe, then I'm all for it. And as a side note, the TSA did not require the boy take his shirt off. He set off the metal detector and his dad was frustrated and took the boys shirt off out of his own irritation.
No, a 4-year-old boy probably doesn't have a bomb attached to his shoe. I get it. But he DID set off the metal detector, and to be honest, there are a lot of sick, twisted, psychologically messed up adults in the world. I wouldn't put it past someone to use a child as a "sacrifice to God" when attempting to launch an attack. And anyways, what if the boy set off the detector and they made an exception for him and let him through without searching him properly? What if he did have a bomb attached to his belt? What if the plane exploded and killed hundreds of people? Then people would once again blame the TSA. The government sets rules and regulations for a reason and no one, not even a 4-year-old child, should be an exception.
If patting down my future children, or using technology to scan my body is going to help keep America safe, can I really be upset about it? No way. If these strict procedures would have been in place before 9-11, could it have been prevented? No one can say for sure. But I'm gladly willing to give up a small percentage of my "privacy" if it will help guard our nation against acts of terror.
I trust that the United States government wants the greatest amount of good, for the highest number of people. I don't think they would create regulations just for the heck of it. I don't think they sit around and say, "How can we add more procedures to make the security process longer and more invasive of privacy?" They have the responsibility to protect the people, and I'm glad they don't take that lightly.
TSA security guards don't get pleasure out of frisking people, just like I don't get weirded out when my gynecologist teaches me how to do a self breast exam. There are necessary parts of life, and protecting America from terrorists is one of them.
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