Day 5 Posting 1 - Fleet Center security, unusually friendly cops, "trust fund baby" protesters, and GOP convention planning
This series of postings will describe my journey to the Democratic National Convention in Boston with media credentials and access to the main floor of the Fleet Center. Past postings are here:
Day 0 Posting 1 - Blogging: Journalism or Activism or Both?
Day 1 Posting 1 - Arriving in Boston: Saturated Air & U.S. Topography
Day 2 Posting 1 - Clinton a No-Show at Rock the Vote, Disappointed Grassroots Young Dems
Day 2 Posting 2 - a not-so-typical day for delegates and others
Day 3 Posting 1 - Teresa, Hillary, bloggers, and 5000 other "revolutionaries"
Day 3 Posting 2 - Altered Perspectives of Bloggers and Media - The Physical Logistics
Day 4 Posting 1 - Obama 10 years ago, Wesley Clark's amazing handshake, Fox's Gray Davis fixation, Orthodox Jews and Transgendered for Kerry, Bill O'Reilly's Self-Love Factor, John Cusack's obligatory "hi", and other crazy tales
Most people who work in security know that you can never provide 100% security. I sure saw that in Boston. Despite an estimated $50 million spent building barricades, erecting wire walls and alleyways, hiring military and security officers from all over the country, installing screening machines that checked all bags, training sniffing dogs, implementing metal detectors for each person entering, and frisking each person entering the Fleet Center, I still heard about people having no trouble sneaking in...
I'm sure there were protesters who were deterred by the massive security presence. It really looked like a military zone. The most similar experience I've had is getting on a bus in Jerusalem (military with guns all around) or boarding a plane anywhere in America since 9/11 (long lines with screening and frisking taking place), but even those paled significantly in comparison. It's quite possible that a potential terrorist would also have been deterred by the massive security presence.
But, I know some folks who weren't deterred - Democratic Party activists who hadn't planned ahead. They really wanted to be in the Fleet Center and so they got in. They figured out ways to fit in the middle of big crowds and pass through unnoticed. They found ways to get credentials passed to them (for example, a state delegation or a media outlet might have multiple credentials in the Fleet Center--one person would collect a number of these, then exit, meet some more people and all go back in - sure some folks had to avoid being caught without credentials inside, but apparently that wasn't that hard).
When our bags were screened before entering the Fleet Center, they asked us to throw out any water bottles. I guess they were concerned that they might actually be large vials of ricin or some other biological weapon. I dunno. It was kinda funny to me to have this large security officer afraid to touch my water bottle. "Uh... can you throw that thing out," he asked me with some trepidation. "Sure, ok," I said and threw out my water bottle quite confident it was simply a water bottle. But I was allowed to bring into the Fleet Center an apple, a bag of almonds, granola bars, chapstick, and other items that I assume could have contained biological weapons just as easily as water bottles. Some people were asked to throw out their umbrellas, but I brought one in one night without any questions. Many people wore buttons and I suppose the pin could be a weapon. They didn't ask us to turn on and off our cell phones to make sure they weren't actually explosive devices, though they did make everyone do that at the Rock the Vote concert on Sunday night. You get my drift. It didn't seem particularly consistent.
I almost got the impression the security was more for show than actually accomplishing something. If so, it was quite a show. There were thousands of armed officers all over. There were wire compounds and special security tents. There were secret passageways in the Fleet Center. If it's a show, what's the purpose? To keep people in a state of fear, and to have them think the security measures are keeping them safe from whatever they fear? Jay Rosen at PressThink writes about how the security essentially means Al Queda came to the Convention but no one wants to say that. I was never afraid; if I thought that something might have happened, I wouldn't have left my kids and gone to Boston. I must admit to having some fear about the GOP Convention, and I haven't decided yet if I'll go if I get media credentials. Given that nothing happened at the Fleet Center, it may be that the security was actually really effective, thwarted off all kinds of danger, and I should be very thankful. I just wonder-- that's all.
Protesters were able to get right up to the people entering the Fleet Center. They handed us printed materials, buttons, and stickers. They also had a designated area some feet over inside a wire "cage" with loudspeakers. I saw a sign by the "cage" that said, "Animals live in pens."
Police and security officers were unusually friendly. On Monday evening prior to entering the Fleet Center I grabbed a sandwich at a small Italian restaurant with a few outdoor seats. A Boston police officer walked over and told me, "The ravioli is really good. You should try it," with a big smile. That sort of interaction doesn't normally happen to me with police officers. I asked a Boston local and she said that sounded pretty odd to her. But I had similar exchanges with cops throughout the week.
I was being screened upon entering the Fleet Center, and the security officer said to me, "I'm from California too!" because my press credential said "California media." It turned out we were both from Southern California and he seemed even happier about that. I can't say that officers I've met while in Southern California were ever this excited to talk to me. Maybe the Fleet Center assignment was particularly thrilling for police officers; maybe they had never traveled outside their cities or states before; maybe it was like a convention for security officers because there were thousands of them, everything was going smoothly, and they were having a really good time.
The chef in this small Italian restaurant also came out to chat. We were on Canal Street, which was just one block from the protester "cage." The folks working in the restaurant had no choice but listen to the protesters on their loudspeaker all day. The chef ranted that the protesters are "trust fund babies" who have traveled to Boston to complain. He added that, "When they need dough-re-mi they call their parents for help. So much for anti-authority." He also made a few other comments that made it clear he was a Republican who didn't like the Convention-goers or the far-Left protesters. I figured there was some truth to his comments about protesters having access to financial resources that a guy working hard in his small restaurant all day doesn't have.
My father, who is a Republican, is concerned about my traveling to New York to cover the convention. He thinks it's really a terrorist target. He suggested that we watch the convention on TV together, that I read coverage by the mainstream media and the bloggers at the convention, and then I can still blog the convention and write a column in my local newspaper on the convention. Doing this with just one Republican won't be quite the same as 30,000 Republicans, but it's not a bad alternative. I'll keep you posted!