body scan images

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/tech/2010/08/05/am.meserve.body.scans.cnn?iref=allsearch

Is this a big deal? Personally I don't care all that much. The images are not particularly revealing. They serve their intended purpose [ie they detect items being smuggled though security] but they are not exposing as a traditional nude photo would be.I think this is much ado about nothing. Even if they were....speaking only for myself I don't have any body parts that people watching the machines have not seen before.

First thought: I don't think most men feel as violated as women do when it comes to being objectified in this manner. It just isn't usually in a man's experience-base to the amount it is in a woman's.

Think about this, too: If the images are used for prurient purposes, would you think they'd likely be more of the men's or more of the women's?

I understand how you feel--largely because as a gay woman with no significant negative heterosexual experiences, I don't really feel that pain, either--but I do think that the male opinion on this should not be taken as the general baseline.

tapu wrote:First thought: I don't think most men feel as violated as women do when it comes to being objectified in this manner. It just isn't usually in a man's experience-base to the amount it is in a woman's.

Think about this, too: If the images are used for prurient purposes, would you think they'd likely be more of the men's or more of the women's?

I understand how you feel--largely because as a gay woman with no significant negative heterosexual experiences, I don't really feel that pain, either--but I do think that the male opinion on this should not be taken as the general baseline.

Probably a valid point about my male perspective. We all view things through our own filter.
This will be more and more of a discussion as technology improves, these types of machines are more common, and the images are more detailed. I imagine that will be a reality in the not to distant future. In some ways it is a less invasive way to search. Someone can look without touching and you can move along. In other ways it is more of an invasion. Someone can really look. Law enforcement has to find that hard balance between maintaining security and protecting privacy.

I spoke with a friend about this over the weekend and he raised a point that I had not fully considered. We are in the dawn of this technology. How much different is a computer now as compared to how it was 10 years ago? How many more computers are there?
Right now these machines are relatively rare and the image is not all that intimate. It is safe to assume that in the not too distant future 1] the image quality these machines is able to produce will be significantly better and 2] there will be a lot more of these machines in use and they will be used in a wider variety of settings. It is better that we as a society begin the conversation now as to where the boundaries for their use will be.

I dunno...remember there was an assault and battery case bcuz the security personnel were teasing one guy about his teeny weeny visible due to the body scan and he snapped and opened the whoop ass can. Men may be more at risk for embarrassing moments and perceived snickers.