On Mon, 30 Jun 2003 14:10:28 -0800, Bart wrote
(in article ):

I think this is really wrong! If they were on official biz for
the government I could understand it, but they're just stumping
for re-election and panhandling with rich people, and I don't
think they should be doing it on our dime or at the expense of
the public's right to travel.


Some of the stupidest reasoning that I have ever heard, which is going some
for Usenet. Look, you can argue about whether the security measures are
effective or necessary. But to suggest that they should in place only when
they are on "official biz" is utterly ridiculous. Terrorists and assassins
work 'round the clock. They do not only strike when Presidents and Vice
Presidents are on "official biz."

No doubt if your favorite politician was assassinated while visiting his Aunt
Mathilda in Hoople, North Dakota, you would be outraged if he normally had a
security detail but, because he was not on the job, the detail was back in
DC.

So, you want them to have security, only when they are on official business,
and then only if it is not a personal inconvenience to you? Limitations on
your right to travel are the tip of the iceberg. Your freedom to speak is
also limited. I remember when President Carter visited the Olympic Hotel in
Seattle. Several staff members were given a few weeks off, without pay,
because they had said things critical of Carter. Every guest had to undergo a
background check. Anyone who had ever said anything even remotely threatening
had his reservations canceled. People who had lived in the hotel for years
were evicted because the President clears out not only the floor he is
staying on, but also the floors above and below it.

Presidents who go to ball games have entire sections of seating cleared out
for security purposes. It does not matter if you have had season tickets for
50 years; you're out.

Presidential motorcades close out whole networks of streets and highways,
because the exact route of the motorcade is a secret. If you were counting on
that route to get to your job on time, or even the hospital, tough luck. It
has been that way for more than 40 years. You once wrote a threatening letter
and your office overlooks a potential route? You get to stay home for the
day, without pay. And maybe your boss will fire you because you did not show
up to work.

And then there is the cost of all this security, the money for which is taken
from you every year at gunpoint. But hey, if all you are worried about is
TFRs, no prob, Bro. Just remember you sound a little like a 3 pack a day
smoker worrying about getting cancer from the MSG in a Chinese restaurant.