William Saleton wrote this on Slate –

Ignore these imbeciles. Their plan would clog security lines and ruin your holiday for no good reason. They don’t understand the importance of the electronic scans. They’re wrong about the scanners’ safety. And from the standpoint of dignity, their advice is insane. If you opt out of the scan, you’ll get a pat-down instead. You’ll trade a fast, invisible, intangible, privacy-protected machine inspection for an unpleasant, extended grope. In effect, you’ll be telling TSA to touch your junk.

This is what he says he is reacting to –

In case you haven’t heard, there’s a big holiday coming up. No, I don’t mean Thanksgiving. I mean the day before it. Wednesday is the busiest air travel day of the year, and a horde of paranoid zealots—techno-libertarians, Tea Partiers, rabble-rousers, Internet activists, and congressional demagogues—has decided to make it even worse. They’re calling it “National Opt-Out Day.” Rather than endure an electronic scan of your body at the security gate, they want you to “opt out” and force the Transportation Security Administration to physically inspect you. Their hero is John Tyner, the man who recorded himself a week ago as he warned a TSA officer not to “touch my junk.”

Guess what?? Now, I’m either no longer just an imbecile but paranoid zealot as well!

Now, I am also referred to as an Internet activist, but that sound kind of cool, I mean, not in the women liking you way but more out there on the edge. It’s like not having the Harley Davidson but having the jacket.

I have a sneaking suspicion that Mr. Saletan is not trying to persuade me. His idea here is that if he can make me appear to be foolish (or ugly for that matter), it will destroy the force of my argument. This is a logical fallacy, nevertheless I am heartbroken to be called an imbecile and a paranoid zealot. I’m going to shut down my internet site and turn myself in for confinement in an asylum for paranoid delusionals. Yeah right, and I going file for Cambodian citizenship too.

This is not a legitimate strategy for persuasion. I admit he does throw in what he would term facts.

But really all temptation for me to criticize him was erased when I read the comments on his post. As of 8:16 PM, Central Standard Time, the comments number 593. I looked at them. Around 400 would be willing to participate in a lynch mob.

Now, I don’t want you regular people commenting, just my fellow a) imbeciles, b) paranoid zealots or C) internet activists. But if you guys want to, you can go here and let him know your opinion. My semi-insane comrades and I will comment too!

James Pilant