Besides the fact that they are being operated by an agency that demonstrates on a daily basis a disdain and disregard for discretion, privacy, and professionalism, the Transportation Security Administration's full-body backscatter x-ray machines are just not safe.

That's the diagnosis of Dr. Dong Kim, the neurosurgeon who treated U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., when she was shot in the head in January 2011 by a crazed gunman in Tucson.

"There is really no absolutely safe dose of radiation," said Kim, chair of the department of neurosurgery at the University of Texas Medical School. "Each exposure is additive, and there is no need to incur any extra radiation when there is an alternative."

In fact, Kim says he doesn't allow the TSA to irradiate him when he travels; he always opts for the individual pat down when passing through airport security.