SAN DIEGO, Kalifornia - November 15, 2010 - A man trying to board a plane at San Diego International Airport refused the airport's "backscatter" machine (which takes a snapshot of items beneath a passenger's clothes), got into an altercation with a Transportation Security Administration agent after telling him he'd have him arrested if he touched his property, and captured the entirety of the incident on his mobile phone.
He posted it to the web, along with an extended blog post on Saturday. He said he viewed airport security policy as sexual assault.
"I stated that I would not allow myself to be subject to a molestation as a condition of getting on my flight," he wrote in an extended blog post.
The incident comes on the eve of an effort by pilots and flight attendants to protest the new machines. A group leading an effort they say is intended to allow flyers to "see for themselves how the government treats law-abiding citizens" has called for a national boycott of the body scanners November 24.
"We're going to do a groin check," the agent says, at about 3:32 into the video.
"If you touch my junk, I'm gonna have you arrested," the man replies.
"Security is everyone's responsibility," booms the airport announcer. "We recommend you keep your luggage and personal belongings in view at all times."
