Europe Bans X-Ray Body Scanners Used at U.S. Airports

Photo by Michael Nagle/Getty Images file photo

by Michael Grabell
ProPublica, Nov. 15, 2011, 3:45 p.m

The European Union on Monday prohibited the use of X-ray body scanners in European airports, parting ways with the U.S. Transportation Security Administration, which has deployed hundreds of the scanners as a way to screen millions of airline passengers for explosives hidden under clothing.
The European Commission, which enforces common policies of the EU's 27 member countries, adopted the rule “in order not to risk jeopardizing citizens’ health and safety.”

As a ProPublica/PBS NewsHour investigation detailed earlier this month, X-ray body scanners use ionizing radiation, a form of energy that has been shown to damage DNA and cause cancer. Although the amount of radiation is extremely low, equivalent to the radiation a person would receive in a few minutes of flying, several research studies have concluded that a small number of cancer cases would result from scanning hundreds of millions of passengers a year.
European countries will be allowed to use an alternative body scanner, on that relies on radio frequency waves, which have not been linked to cancer. The TSA has also deployed hundreds of those machines – known as millimeter-wave scanners – in U.S. airports. But unlike Europe, it has decided to deploy both types of scanners.
The TSA would not comment specifically on the EU’s decision. But in a statement, TSA spokesman Mike McCarthy said, “As one of our many layers of security, TSA deploys the most advanced technology available to provide the best opportunity to detect dangerous items, such as explosives.
http://www.propublica.org/article/europe-bans-x-ray-body-scanners-u...

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Permalink Reply by windy windlan on November 19, 2011 at 9:08pm

It seems like anything that is harmful to us is okay. Thinks like x-ray scanners, aspartame, GM food, MSG, fluoride, pesticides, toxin loaded vaccines, chemotherapy, BPA, prescription drugs, etc., are all blessed by the government. But raw milk, organic food, vitamins, alternative therapies (especially for cancer), are all under constant attack. The TSA is there to make us get used to submitting to the government, as it wants to control all aspects of our lives from our first inhale to our last exhale. We are considered to be potential enemy combatants, not care-free citizens just going about our daily lives. In government's eyes we are guilty until we can prove our innocence. We must be closely scrutinized and monitored. Fascism has arrived in the Land of the Free and Home of the Brave. Who said "it can't happen here."