Security checkpoint at the movie theater
My partner and I left the house this afternoon to see Wolverine, but we had one qualm about this plan; the last time we'd been to the movies at this particular theater complex, we'd had our purses searched. This change in process caught us by surprise, with tickets in hand, so we went through that security check as requested, but this time around we weren't so eager to repeat that exercise.
On the face of it -- as blandly iterated by the theater manager -- this policy is about checking bags for weapons to ensure a safer experience for customers. In truth, it's nonsense. Men are the most likely people to carry guns and shoot-up an establishment and they're far more likely to stick a gun in a pocket of their cargo pants than in a man-purse. The most violent movie incident in Aurora, Colorado involved a man with assault rifles entering through an exit door. Checking women's purses is not an effective policy; it's just a token (and somewhat discriminatory) gesture to create an illusion of safety while furthering a very real erosion of personal privacy.
Beyond that inane illusion of saftey, however, is yet another creeping normalization of "Your papers, please" authoritarian control of our daily lives. Our gun culture resists any kind of regulation of our freedom to own weapons, but then meekly bows down to the checkpoints against gun violence that permeate our participation in community activities.
This is ultimately what my partner and I were objecting to: the normalization of authoritarian control that numbs everyone to a process that can slide into crowd-control with less sterling motivations than protecting us from the violence of unbalanced individuals.
The larger context was emphasized this morning, before we even left for the theater, as we listened to Diane Feinstein discuss Snowden on a news program. Without even blinking at the screaming irony of her own statements, Feinstein spoke somberly about our reassurances to Russia that we would not torture or kill Snowden, and that she felt as a former KGB agent, Putin would most assuredly understand the United States' concern over Snowden's actions.
When we've reached the point where we count on the shared understanding of the KGB to act in our national interest, we have blatantly and openly admitted that we are a fascist state.
Welcome to the American Homeland.
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No, one can't bring in a small bottle of water.. You must pay $4.50 for some aspartame or HFCS-containing CRAP. 
I carry a small insulated thermos bottle with a pop-up lid with iced tea--and if asked will tell them it is my medication that must be consumed on time and kept cool. I'm betting they won't want a scene over that, but who knows. 
are SO scary! 
... that lesbians even carried purses.
...back in 2002.
They decided that the best way to ensure safety for their lowlife, scum-sucking lowball guests was to have the cars of all employees -- but not the guests -- searched on some major holiday. I think it was New Years' Eve but now I'm not sure. It also may have been July 4th, but at any rate it was one of the days when they close the strip at night for fireworks and mass partying.
Anywho, I do remember for a fact that there was like a four day period -- including the day in which I had to allow my own car to be searched -- when there was a big van parked in the garage, somewhat crookedly and off in a corner of one of the middle floors, which never seemed to move. It had a dirty (even creepy, and I was not the only employee who felt that way) look about it, which just elicited a feeling of unease and suspicion. I asked security what they thought of that vehicle, and they couldn't provide anything in the way of an answer.
Mystery Security Theater 3000 is right!
