Countering Chemical Detectors
by
Bill Riley
It seems like the State is always dreaming up new ways to snoop on us. They like chemical sensors because they don't have to actually open up a bag or get into your house or car to start a search; that lets them get around the pesky need for little legal niceties like search warrants. Rules are for us, not them.
I recall several cases where cops got their probable cause for a warrant by peeking in people's windows. So I make a point of using curtains. Drapes block prying eyes, but how do you block prying noses?
Git, Fido! Which is their vulnerability. They're so sensitive that they can be overwhelmed. A dog hit with pepper spray is a pitiful sight. But a less direct application works, too. Next time you don't want some canine sniffing around your car, give it -- the car, that is -- a pepper treatment. Buy a cheap can of pepper spray and squirt your fenders, doorframes, hood, and trunk; Just walk around the vehicle spraying lightly. Be careful not to get downwind of the spray, and you'll want to avoid your car for a few minutes. Don't spray the interior. Rover will be hesitant to come near your car, and his detection capacity will be diminished. This'll keep the damned cats from trotting around leaving pawprints on your windshield, too.
Misdirection Some marijuana activists prepared a "pot perfume" and hosed down a ferry with the stuff, cars and all. Made it impossible for the dogs to isolate a target for harrassment. You'll have to sacrifice some precious weed to do this:
Reinforcing the point Fact is, those machines are dangerous because they also provide a false sense of security. They don't work, but too many travelers don't get it. The point should be hammered home. Let's try the perfume trick again. This time, dissolve common lawn or garden fertilizer in water. Fertilizer contains nitrates, which what those machines are trying to sniff out. You're just going to give them something to smell. Because of what you're going to spray, you'll likely want something more surreptitious than a spray bottle. Try a little bottle of nasal spray; empty the medicine, and replace it with liquid fertilizer. Take it to department stores and spray all the luggage. Concentrate on zippers and handles. You don't need to soak and visibly stain the merchandise; just leave enough nitrates to be chemically detectable. Visit bus stations, too, and baptize travelers' gear. You can do this at airports, but you'll need to operate in the non-secured areas, before the checkpoints. Be aware of surveillance cameras. Just spray a casual puff of fertilizer into the air as you pass waiting passengers and their luggage.
Payback
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