Stupid Panic

There is still wall to wall panic over the Christmas 'Fruit of the Loom' bomber and it is getting really tiring. The thing is all the excitement about full body scanners which are being implemented in Amsterdam and other places(the U.S. supposedly has a couple of hundred on order with more planned) is tilting at windmills. There is a good possibility that even a full body scan would not have detected the explosive secreted away in the bomber's underwear. Reports are suggesting they are not effective and would not have had any impact on the Christmas day event over Detroit.

Tests by scientists in the team at Qinetiq, which Mr Wallace advised before he became an MP in 2005, showed the millimetre-wave scanners picked up shrapnel and heavy wax and metal, but plastic, chemicals and liquids were missed.

If a material is low density, such as powder, liquid or thin plastic – as well as the passenger's clothing – the millimetre waves pass through and the object is not shown on screen. High- density material such as metal knives, guns and dense plastic such as C4 explosive reflect the millimetre waves and leave an image of the object.