Hey Tloewald, please don't pretend to speak for everyone when you say "being searched" isn't a problem in the first place.
It's not a problem for you, fine. I'd ask you to let me search you but that'd only be to prove a point, so by all means keep accepting it. But when you say it's not a problem, you do not speak for me.
It's pointless, degrading, and above all it's sad that you and many others accept it without questioning it.
The principle here is people can agree to surrender some of their privacy for safety. The problem isn’t that searching my bits is a greater violation than searching my atoms, but that it’s not useful. Right now there’s no pattern of bits I can carry with me to blow up a plane and in any event I could easily bypass the search.
I’m not thrilled by the social contract, but it’s a good deal more convenient than driving across country.
I'll sometimes surrender some privacy for some form of safety or convenience, but that safety/convenience has to exist, not be theoretical.
Positive example: I use Google Drive. I know full well Google could read and analyze all my shit if they wanted to. I surrender to that possibility in exchange for the very cheap and convenient online storage I get.
Negative example: Fuck the TSA and all its theatrics. Those aren't useful. Please do convince me they are; I don't see anyone even trying to pretend they are.
It's not a problem for you, fine. I'd ask you to let me search you but that'd only be to prove a point, so by all means keep accepting it. But when you say it's not a problem, you do not speak for me.
It's pointless, degrading, and above all it's sad that you and many others accept it without questioning it.