After reading about the plans being made for the inauguration, I’m very glad that I will not be attending:
Tough rules have been instituted for individuals wanting to attend President-elect Barack Obama’s inauguration, forcing some to rethink their plans to come to the nation’s capital on Jan. 20 for the historic oath of office of the nation’s first black president.
Among other items, thermoses, coolers, silly string, backpacks and lawn chairs will be banned along the parade route. Those objects and strollers are also prohibited up on the Capitol, where Obama will be sworn into office at the West Front Capitol.
So hundreds of thousands of people are going to be forbidden from carrying any significant quantity of beverages, and they’ll have to stay standing because they’re not going to be allowed to carry chairs.
For those 240,000 people with the up-close tickets, umbrellas and posters will also be forbidden on the Capitol grounds, though they will be permitted along the parade route. Signs or placards must be made of cardboard, poster board or cloth and not larger than 3 feet by 20 feet.
People with seats further out on the Mall will endure more lax rules, but alcohol is prohibited as are glass bottles and no tents will be allowed.
Of course, nowhere along the way will weapons, fireworks or pepper spray be allowed.
Better hope it doesn’t rain! Even if you’re only on the parade route so you’re allowed your umbrella, your cardboard, poster board, or cloth sign isn’t going to hold up too well. Oh, and you’re not allowed to bring anything to defend yourself, so you’d better not risk bringing anything of value.
When asked if specific items such as canes, walkers, lighters, matches and diaper bags would be prohibited from the parade route and the Capitol, authorities said they didn’t know yet.
Way to impress the AARP crowd, there. Something tells me the smokers and the moms with infants aren’t going to be too pleased, either.
Some people have already discerned the writing on the wall:
D.C. officials and the National Park Service are expecting anywhere from 1 million to 3 million people for the inauguration. They say the inconvenience is a small price to pay to witness history in the making.
But some parenting blogs are abuzz with complaints about the less-than-kid-friendly restrictions.
“Of course, they’re not going to say, ‘no children,’” said Sunny Chanel, a San Francisco-based contributor to Babble.com, a parenting Web site. “But they’re definitely not making it easy for parents with smaller children to go.”
Antron Johnson, who’s organizing an inauguration trip with three busloads of Obama supporters from Atlanta and Savannah, Ga., said he’s had about a dozen people, mostly elderly, who dropped out after learning about the parade’s no-chair policy.
Additionally, Johnson said seven people, including families with young children, recently backed out — losing their deposits — because they’re afraid they won’t be able to maneuver in big crowds.
Most people will be traveling to the city by bus or subway. Some estimates have suggested that if 1 million people try to ride the subway after the inauguration is over, it will take eight hours to move everyone, assuming everything runs smoothly. So area transportation officials are warning — if you’re coming, be prepared to walk a lot and wait even more.
Metro service has already said it is charging rush hour rates for travel and bathrooms will be closed for security. The option left for parents wanting to change stinky diapers? Hundreds of porta-potties the transit system and park officials are providing downtown.
“It’s truly scaring people,” Johnson said. “The news is becoming more and more bleak.”
What a wonderful way to begin a presidential administration– by scaring your most die-hard supporters! Deprive the elderly of what they need to be able to get around (wheelchairs and canes), the mothers of what they need to keep their littlest ones happy, and generally make everyone miserable– for up to eight hours afterward. Oh, and this is all in the middle of winter in a town that thinks it’s a Southern city but often gets the winter weather of a Northern city.
Whee.
