[MilCom] Fwd: MCAS New River NC Airshow Security

[domyers at voicenet.com]

I received this from a friend.  Kind of makes not want to bother...........................
Dan
Horsham, Pa
    
    Well, Security is one thing, but stupidity is another. We arrived about 8:45, the 
    gates were supposed to open at 9. First we had to go through a machine that 
    took pictures of the underneath of the car. Then the car was searched. Then we 
    got to talk to every marine between that point and the place where we parked. 
    Each one had to stop us and tell us to go to the next Marine. Finally we got 
    parked (about 9:30). Then we gathered up our airshow paraphanalea and started 
    out for the show. When we got to the next security checkpoint, I was told I 
    couldn't take a camera bag in. Well, I didn't feel too bad about that because they 
    were also telling mothers they couldn't take in diaper bags! Seriously. We even 
    saw a disabled Viet Nam veteran with a cane turned around because he wasn't 
    allowed to have a cane. Seriously. So we walked the quarter mile back to the 
    car to put away the things we couldn't have. After talking to several people, they 
    finally decided the man with the cane was no danger to anyone and they told him 
    he could walk the quarter mile back again and he would be able to take his cane 
    into the airshow. Linda has a fanny pack that has been taken to every airshow 
    she has ever been to and that was refused. So she took everything out of the 
    pack and stuffed it into her chair bag. Seriously. When we got to security the 
    next time, we had to take everything out of our pockets and go through the metal 
    detector and wand. But the Marine that was inspecting chairs and other things 
    that wouldn't fit into the metal detector felt the outside of Linda's chair bag and 
    asked, "What's in the bag." She said, "Everything that was in the fanny pack you 
    wouldn't let me bring in." He said, "OK, you are good to go." Didn't even look in 
    the bag! Seriously. Then when we got inside, there were women walking around 
    with bags the size of suitcases! Needless to say, it was not a good day for our 
    blood pressure. After we got our chairs set up, Linda went back to the car and got 
    some of my camera stuff thatwasn't allowedthe first time. This time, it was fine. 
    Still no camera bag, though.

After that, the flying didn't start until noon. It was a good thing because it took me that 
long to stop seeing red! When the flying did start, it was first rate. They started off with 
the Canadian and American national anthems and next was the Marine Air Ground Task 
Force demonstration.
Larry