That NPR article you linked seems to say the opposite: "The government says it's OK, but scientists aren't so sure."
I personally opt out every time for the reasons in the OP: my principles. Getting the pat-down is unpleasant and I have indeed had my "junk" jabbed at by zealous TSA agents. (The sides of their hands go up your inner thigh until they encounter "resistance"--which is a nice euphemism for something much more sensitive.) You end up feeling like a common criminal. Neither of these was required just a few years ago--so saying one is better than the other isn't a good argument, because both are bad for more than a few reasons.
Whether or not you believe in scanning on a principled ground, you should also be wary of what the government--and more importantly, a private company the government has contracted--tells you is OK. The same country told veterans that Agent Orange was OK. Of course the private company that makes billions is going to tell you their product is OK. Even if you give the government the benefit of the doubt and assume they think they're telling the truth, they might have misunderstood, or not completely researched, things.
I would never trust the government to irradiate me with a technology only a few years old, in any amount. I do trust thoroughly-researched technology that time has proven--medical x-rays, air travel.
I personally opt out every time for the reasons in the OP: my principles. Getting the pat-down is unpleasant and I have indeed had my "junk" jabbed at by zealous TSA agents. (The sides of their hands go up your inner thigh until they encounter "resistance"--which is a nice euphemism for something much more sensitive.) You end up feeling like a common criminal. Neither of these was required just a few years ago--so saying one is better than the other isn't a good argument, because both are bad for more than a few reasons.
Whether or not you believe in scanning on a principled ground, you should also be wary of what the government--and more importantly, a private company the government has contracted--tells you is OK. The same country told veterans that Agent Orange was OK. Of course the private company that makes billions is going to tell you their product is OK. Even if you give the government the benefit of the doubt and assume they think they're telling the truth, they might have misunderstood, or not completely researched, things.
I would never trust the government to irradiate me with a technology only a few years old, in any amount. I do trust thoroughly-researched technology that time has proven--medical x-rays, air travel.