...why a motorcade requires a train line to be shut down? Don't get me wrong, I'd love to see Obama take the T from Kendall to Copley (tip to POTUS: get on the second Red Line car for an easy change at Park Street), but since he's obviously not, why clog up the works for the rest of us?
If pressed, I would say because I believe the motorcade went down Storrow Drive (based on the fact that Matt Viser of the Globe is the pool reporter and talked about a Coast Guard boat shadowing the motorcade down the Charles and people on the Esplanade waving), and if I were with the Secret Service, I would not want anyone on the bridges above the roadway. I think the train presents a particular problem because while the spotters could at least see any people on the pedestrian bridges, they would not be able to see people (and more importantly, the large packages they might be carrying) on the train.
and avoided the toll, but the motorcade would probably have been carjacked in East Boston (how embarassing to report that 25 Secret Service agents were all relieved of $200 cash, cell phones and gold chains), and then they would have blown all the limos' tires out on Beacham Street in Everett. They can't win.
a Longfellow to Storrow to Mass Pike to Copley Square routing makes quite a bit of sense from a security standpoint. Espeically as the Copley ramp gets the motorcade right to the venue with almost no mucking about on surface streets.
Don't hold your breath on this, chief. None of the security measures, theater or not, will be rolled back unless and until a majority of the American population decides they are willing to accept the loss to terrorism of some number of their fellow citizens each year. Given your screen name, you appear to be in that camp, but I don't think too many others are. Consequently, I think that the tolerance will remain at 0 losses to terrorism per year for the foreseeable future and policy will reflect that.
As for the bag inspections on the Orange Line in '04, I think that was probably one of the least theatrical measures taken, given the proximity of the line to the venue.
None of the security measures, theater or not, will be rolled back unless and until a majority of the American population decides they are willing to accept the loss to terrorism of some number of their fellow citizens each year.
Perhaps you misunderstand what the phrase "security theater" means.
Secret service activity and searches of those entering Obama's MIT speech = security. Randomly searching every bag that Excited Security Dog barks at and finding tuna sandwiches = "security theater".
Security measures keep people safe.
Security theater is the pretense of security measures that do nothing and protect nothing but look all secure and stuff.
The problem is NOT that these bogus security theater measures are intrusive, it is that they are BOTH intrusive AND they have NOT been shown to be effective measures to prevent terrorism - or have such glaring holes that they can't work (see tunadog, above).
So we don't have to "accept more dead bodies" as a price for ridding ourselves of this officious ridiculousness and abandon accountability just because it makes you feel warm and cozy to see tuna sandwich searches. For risk to rise, that would entail weakening actual, demonstrated, best-practices "security". In fact, sticking to actual defensible and demonstrable measures, training personnel to act professionally, and getting rid of the fakey and annoying "escape is futile" security pretenses makes us much safer - note the TSA retrainings after they discovered that conditions conducive to keeping most people non-pissed off and non-hostile and non-anxious mean being better able to spot highly agitated and hostile people who are more likely to have weapons or bombs.
Nothing like a little panic to go with your caffeine in the morning. When the MBTA announced a "police action" and you see a police helicopter circling downtown Boston, you are gonna assume things are not good! Should I even bother going into work and risking my life? What's happening? My assumption is the City of Boston did not even bother to inform the officials at the MBTA, 'cause they were clueless. This is the ONLY forum in which I found the truth. Stupid! I want my T fare back, Obama!
Comments
What a Dick
As they say.
Can someone please explain
...why a motorcade requires a train line to be shut down? Don't get me wrong, I'd love to see Obama take the T from Kendall to Copley (tip to POTUS: get on the second Red Line car for an easy change at Park Street), but since he's obviously not, why clog up the works for the rest of us?
Is the motorcade crossing the Longfellow Bridge?
That's the only reason I could see for stopping Red Line service.
Red Line
If pressed, I would say because I believe the motorcade went down Storrow Drive (based on the fact that Matt Viser of the Globe is the pool reporter and talked about a Coast Guard boat shadowing the motorcade down the Charles and people on the Esplanade waving), and if I were with the Secret Service, I would not want anyone on the bridges above the roadway. I think the train presents a particular problem because while the spotters could at least see any people on the pedestrian bridges, they would not be able to see people (and more importantly, the large packages they might be carrying) on the train.
That's all they can tell us
They can't say anything more than "police action", because...
wait for it...
we've eliminated the police details.
I just reflexively....
...reached into my pocket to fish out a few bucks to tip the waitress with.
Well played.
He took the Mass Pike into
He took the Mass Pike into Boston, from Cambridge. Seems like a roundabout way, but I assume it was for security purposes. Either that, or a GPS FAIL!
He could have gone a different way
and avoided the toll, but the motorcade would probably have been carjacked in East Boston (how embarassing to report that 25 Secret Service agents were all relieved of $200 cash, cell phones and gold chains), and then they would have blown all the limos' tires out on Beacham Street in Everett. They can't win.
Depends
It would depend on how good their cell phones were.
As crazy as it sounds from the average person's perspective,
a Longfellow to Storrow to Mass Pike to Copley Square routing makes quite a bit of sense from a security standpoint. Espeically as the Copley ramp gets the motorcade right to the venue with almost no mucking about on surface streets.
Another theory
They hired a Boston Cab Driver to take him to and from the Airport.
Recall the bag checking on the Orange Line in 2004...
...during the Democratic convention. So much for common sense.
In general, there's been slightly less "security theater" since then, but there's plenty more "anti-terrorism" nonsense that needs to be rolled back.
Bag Checking
Don't hold your breath on this, chief. None of the security measures, theater or not, will be rolled back unless and until a majority of the American population decides they are willing to accept the loss to terrorism of some number of their fellow citizens each year. Given your screen name, you appear to be in that camp, but I don't think too many others are. Consequently, I think that the tolerance will remain at 0 losses to terrorism per year for the foreseeable future and policy will reflect that.
As for the bag inspections on the Orange Line in '04, I think that was probably one of the least theatrical measures taken, given the proximity of the line to the venue.
Show us some numbers, please
Perhaps you misunderstand what the phrase "security theater" means.
Secret service activity and searches of those entering Obama's MIT speech = security. Randomly searching every bag that Excited Security Dog barks at and finding tuna sandwiches = "security theater".
Security measures keep people safe.
Security theater is the pretense of security measures that do nothing and protect nothing but look all secure and stuff.
The problem is NOT that these bogus security theater measures are intrusive, it is that they are BOTH intrusive AND they have NOT been shown to be effective measures to prevent terrorism - or have such glaring holes that they can't work (see tunadog, above).
So we don't have to "accept more dead bodies" as a price for ridding ourselves of this officious ridiculousness and abandon accountability just because it makes you feel warm and cozy to see tuna sandwich searches. For risk to rise, that would entail weakening actual, demonstrated, best-practices "security". In fact, sticking to actual defensible and demonstrable measures, training personnel to act professionally, and getting rid of the fakey and annoying "escape is futile" security pretenses makes us much safer - note the TSA retrainings after they discovered that conditions conducive to keeping most people non-pissed off and non-hostile and non-anxious mean being better able to spot highly agitated and hostile people who are more likely to have weapons or bombs.
Take a $1.70 Off My Taxes
Nothing like a little panic to go with your caffeine in the morning. When the MBTA announced a "police action" and you see a police helicopter circling downtown Boston, you are gonna assume things are not good! Should I even bother going into work and risking my life? What's happening? My assumption is the City of Boston did not even bother to inform the officials at the MBTA, 'cause they were clueless. This is the ONLY forum in which I found the truth. Stupid! I want my T fare back, Obama!