Michael Chertoff, Conflict of Interest, Canines, and Body Scans
Written by Teresa Knudsen. Published on Suite 101 April 07, 2010.
Republished January 11, 2012 on Sweet Suite Writings

Michael Chertoff, Conflict of Interest, Canines, and Body Scans

While two US government agencies disagree about whether the devices known as "full-body airport scan" would have detected or not detected the "Christmas Bomber" Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, other questions remain about Former Homeland Security head Michael Chertoff's conflict of interest, and the cheaper alternative of using canine units to detect security breaches.

TSA and GAO Disagree on Reliability of Body Scans

The Transportation Safety Administration (TSA) and the Government Accounting Office (GAO) cannot agree on the reliability or validity of government body scans.
In a March 5, 2010 CNN story, TSA Acting Administrator Gale Rossides testified before a congressional sub-committee to state that the body scans were able to detect materials similar to the one allegedly used on Christmas Day 2009. However, when U.S. Representative Harold Rogers (R-Kentucky) asked about the scans reliability, if the scans worked every time, Rossides did not have an answer.

On March 17, 2010, the GAO issued its report on the scanners, saying that the body scanners, or advanced imaging technology, might not be able to detect the type of explosive that Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab allegedly had sewn in his underpants.

The GAO joins the growing list of concerned organizations, people, and countries questioning the reliability and validity of the devices commonly called "full-body scanners," airport body scanners," or "government body scanners.

FlyersRights President Kate Hanni Cites Michael Chertoff's Conflict of Interest

FlyersRights.org President Kate Hanni spoke of her concerns that not only are the scanners unable to do their job, but also that Michael Chertoff, former Department of Homeland Security Secretary, has a conflict of interest by promoting the technology of a company that is his client.

According to Kate Hanni, "Michael Chertoff has marginalized himself in the worst way possible by 'selling' the flying public on claims that these Rapiscan full body scanners are a panacea...they will NOT detect anything in a body cavity that is deeper than 1/10th of an inch, which experts warn will likely be a part of future attacks."

In March 23, 2010 email about the body scanners, in reply to an inquiry from Suite 101 writer Teresa Knudsen, Hanni wrote the following:

"We hope that technology that will not invade our privacy and which will actually detect bombs and explosives is developed and implemented soon. These scanners currently being implemented will do neither."

Research Shows Reliability of Canine Detection of Explosives

The news release from FlyersRights.org brings up the results of research studies of canine security in detecting explosives. Dr. Kenneth G. Furton is Professor of Chemistry at the International Forensic Research Institute, at Florida International University. Dr. Furton has worked with canines for about twenty years.

Dr. Furton states "There is extensive research reinforcing the proven ability of detector dogs to detect explosives without the intrusive privacy issues involved in full body scanning. It is not certain that even with a high resolution image of a traveler's groin region that a half cup of explosive powder would be detectable."

The TSA website published a 2007 article that supports Dr. Furton's research. On May 22, 2007, in an article titled "Call for Action: Airport Security-The Nose Knows," In the article, the TSA wrote that using bomb-sniffing dogs appears to be more effective than any technology the TSA is using:

"Much goes on behind the scenes to keep you safe...at the x-ray screenings and metal detectors. This is hi-tech stuff. But sometimes being hi-tech isn't always enough. Sometimes a highly trained dog is better than all the security gadgets we can dream up."

With the TSA itself publishing that K-9 units might be better than x-ray screenings and metal detectors, it begs the question of why tax-payer funds are being used for technology that doesn't work as well as dogs do.

References

"Call for Action: Airport Security-The Nose Knows." Transportation Security Administration. May 22, 2007. http://www.tsa.gov/press/happenings/call_for_action_dogs.shtm
Furton, Kenneth G., Dr. Dr. Kenneth G. Furton, Professor of Chemistry, International Forensic Research Institute, Florida International University, via Hanni, Kate. "FlyersRights.org: Michael Chertoff Pitch Man for Full Body Scanners! Former Homeland Security Chief Admits Lucrative Business Relationship With Manufacturer During Talk Show Rounds." PR Newswire. United Business Media. January 03, 2010.
Hanni, Kate. "FlyersRights.org: Michael Chertoff Pitch Man for Full Body Scanners! Former Homeland Security Chief Admits Lucrative Business Relationship With Manufacturer During Talk Show Rounds." PR Newswire. United Business Media. January 03, 2010.http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/flyersrightsorg-michael-chertoff-pitch-man-for-full-body-scanners-80537152.html
Kate Hanni, President of FlyersRights.org. E-mail to Teresa Knudsen, Tuesday, March 23, 2010 4:16 PM.
Lord, Steve. Director Homeland Security and Justice Issues. Government Accountability Office (GAO). "Aviation Security - TSA Is IncreasingProcurement and Deployment of the Advanced Imaging Technology, but Challenges to This Effort and Other Areas of Aviation Security Remain." http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d10484t.pdf
Neefus, Christopher. "Full-Body Airport Scanners May Not Have Thwarted Alleged Christmas Day Bomber, GAO Says." Monday, April 05, 2010 CNSNEWS.COM http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/63747

Middle Earth in Tehran, Tolkien for Protesters

Middle Earth in Tehran, Tolkien for Protesters
Written by Teresa Knudsen. Published on Suite 101.
Republished January 11, 2012 on Sweet Suite Writings

In Progress

Patrick Dennis Lightens Holidays with Humor
Written by Teresa Knudsen. Published on Suite 101 November 27, 2009.
Republished January 11, 2012 on Sweet Suite Writings

Patrick Dennis Lightens Holidays With Humor

Patrick Dennis (1921-1976) is the pen name of Edward Everett Tanner III. This man, with a giant-sized sense of humor, kept America laughing, even through adversity, with his depictions of the end of the Jazz Age, the Depression, World War II, and the arrival of the baby boomers.
Though his popularity, wealth, and health declined in the 1970s, his work is once again read and valued. Here are three of his funniest books, with his vignette-style writing just perfect for reading during busy holidays.

Auntie Mame: An Irreverant Escapade (1955)

In this book, Patrick Dennis appears to merge fiction and fact, with his pen name also being the name of the lead character, Patrick Dennis, the young orphan who comes from Chicago to New York City to live with his Auntie Mame, a rich and beautiful flapper who is holding onto her youth and the Jazz Age for as long as possible.

In a series of mishaps mingled with hilarious prose, Auntie Mame battles many difficulties: the conservative banker in charge of Patrick's forturne, the loss of her fortune during the Stock Market Crash of 1929, her impoversihed situation, her marriage to a rich Southerner, her widow-hood, her fling with a phony poet, her serving as midwife to the poet's pregnant girlfriend, her efforts to serve as mother to British orphans, her meddling as matchmaker to her nephew, and her beginning the cycle again with Patrick's son Michael.

The Christmas scenes during the Depression are bittersweet, as Auntie Mame struggles with her low-paying job: selling skates at Macy's. Many modern readers, facing financial difficulties, will relate to Mame's despair. Yet, even in poverty, the quirky family of Mame and Patrick, along with the servants working for free, Ito and Nora, manage to keep the true sprit of the season. This is a great holiday book.

Around the World with Auntie Mame (1958)

Because of the success of Auntie Mame, readers wanted more of Mame and Patrick. In Around the World with Auntie Mame, the madcap adventures continue as Mame takes Patrick on a tour of Europe just before the outbreak of World War II.

Mame and Patrick travel from country to county, getting into trouble every step of the way, in scenes that some fans consider even funnier than the first book. Every pretentious institution, from royalty to high society, is skewered and brought down to reality, showing the clay feet of every honored tradition.

An example is the highly-esteemed royal garden party in London. Despite the exclusive and difficult process of getting an invitation to meet British royalty, the actual garden party doesn't impress Mame's nephew. Patrick observes, "...the only difference I could see between the Royal Garden Party and a giant rally at Yankee Stadium is that Yankee Stadium has rest rooms and it's easier to get refreshments."

The Joyous Season (1965)

This book is perhaps one of the most skilled of any book by any author, at blending absolutely hilarious writing with bittersweet depictions of a family on the rocks during Christmas. The narrator is an eleven-year-old boy, Kerry, and he begins telling about the Christmas events with these words:
"Daddy always said that Christmas is a joyous season when suicides and hold-ups and shoplifting and like that reach a new high and that the best place to spend the whole thing is a Moslem country."

Anyone reading the book might be inclined to agree, at least for this family. Like Auntie Mame, this book also combines sad situations, and tears, with sidesplitting humor. Many readers report laughing so much that other people in the room demand to know what is so funny, and also end up reading the book. The Joyous Season is wonderful winter holiday book.

References

Patrick Dennis' Books. Auntie Mame. Around the World with Auntie Mame. The Joyous Season

Peace Signs, Vietnam War Protests, and Dwight Eisenhower
Written by Teresa Knudsen. Published on Suite 101July 31, 2010 .
Republished January 11, 2012 on Sweet Suite Writings

Peace Signs, Vietnam War Protests, and Dwight Eisenhower

With wars raging in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other countries, the peace sign has resurfaced. Yet the sign has moved from protest signs into almost every element of modern life. Shoppers will see the sign on everything from clothing to jewelry and key chains.

Origin of the Peace Sign

In her 2009 article 'Peace Sign Popularity Continues to Grow', published by the Augusta Chronicle, Lauren Noto explains the background of the peace sign.
"Called a broken cross by religious leaders and a Communist symbol in by the conservative John Birch Society, its real origin lies in nuclear protest," wrote Noto.
According to 'The Origin of the Peace Sign,' an excerpt from A history of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) (CND) logo, the sign was designed in 1958 by conscientious objector Gerald Holtrom. He explained that the symbol design evolved from semaphore letters for N and D, to stand for Nuclear Disarmament.
"I was in despair. Deep despair. I drew myself: the representative of an individual in despair, with hands palm outstretched outwards and downwards in the manner of Goya's peasant before the firing squad. I formalised the drawing into a line and put a circle round it," said Holtrom.

Popularity of Peace Signs

In 2010, peace signs appear more frequently than they did during the Vietnam War. During that war, peace signs mostly appeared on protest signs and worn by hippies. The sign itself did not appear in mainstream society, and to wear one often invited a discussion, or argument, about the Vietnam War.
However, in the years 2009 to 2010, the peace sign appears in mainstream society, especially on clothing and items for children, tweens, teens, and young adults. Clothing stores are filled with shirts and pants with peace sign designs. The designs appear on items such as jewelry, kites, and boogie boards for surfing.

President Eisenhower and Peace

The peace signs worn by the youth in the early 21st century sound like a muted appeal for peace. The appeal echoes the words of a United States World War II general and later President of the United States. Before becoming President of the United States, Dwight D. Eisenhower served as General Eisenhower during the Second World War. Despite his military career, Eisenhower saw that people over the world exhibited a distaste for war and a desire for peace.

"I like to believe that people in the long run are going to do more to promote peace than our governments. Indeed, I think that people want peace so much that one of these days governments had better get out of the way and let them have it."

Sources:
Eisenhower, Dwight. (1890-1969). 34th President of the US. 1953 to 1961. Quotations by Author. Quotations Page.
Noto, Lauren."Peace Sign Popularity Continues to Grow." The Augusta Chronicle. Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2009.
"The Origin of the Peace Sign." A History of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND).