• Average American tried to demonstrate absurdity of porno scans
By Brooks M. Conner
When most people picture a hero, they usually envision someone in a uniform with special powers to rid the world of evil. But not all champions for good come with a cape and a mask. Take John Brennan, the somewhat portly web designer by day who single-handedly faced down the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), an out-of-control monster that has been menacing and intimidating Americans for years. Who would have known, beneath the mild-mannered surface, Brennan would end up fighting for justice and the American way?
AMERICAN FREE PRESS recently caught up with Brennan to discuss in an exclusive interview what happened to him.
On April 17, 2012, Brennan arrived at the international airport in Portland, Oregon to catch a flight for a business trip to San Jose, California. Brennan said he, like so many other regular Americans, had quietly lined up at the security gate in order to be screened before boarding his flight when something strange happened to him.
Brennan told AFP that he had refused to go through the body scanner, or the porno scanner as it is so often called, due to the fact that it projects images of travelers without their clothes on to a computer screen that is monitored by an anonymous security official. Instead, Brennan opted for the enhanced pat-down, an invasive body search that has a TSA official placing his gloved hands in the most private parts of your body. The TSA security then swabbed the gloves he used on Brennan and claimed to have found traces of nitrates on him, which are used in explosives.
“There are naturally occurring nitrates everywhere around us,” Brennan told AFP. “They’re in our foods; we get them from the air—many unsuspected places.”
Brennan said the accusation was the last straw for him. He said he had had it and decided to disrobe entirely in order to demonstrate that he was not hiding anything.
Brennan was immediately arrested for indecent exposure. Brennan eventually beat those charges, but the TSA, deciding it was a law unto itself, decided to arbitrarily fine him $1,000 for “interference with screening.” On May 14, Brennan was in court for five hours fighting the fine. The judge’s “decision is at least a month away.”
“Our rights are being eroded daily due to an imbalance of authority,” said Brennan. “Rights of the individual are important.”
When asked if he had advice to share with other travelers, Brennan replied: “TSA has the upper hand, so know what you’re going to do before you arrive at the checkpoints.”
There are all kinds of new technologies out there for managing security, he added, “So in order to avoid some of the more unpleasant ones, opt out of the scanner and take the pat-down.”
To keep up with the latest information on John Brennan, follow him on Facebook.
Brooks M. Conner is a deacon, lay pastor and journalist who lives in South Carolina.
