Security Experts Worry About Safety at College Stadiums

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

By CHRIS TALBOTT

HATTIESBURG, Miss. (AP) -After more than a decade in counterterrorism, Jim McGee can no longer relax and enjoy watching a sports event.

The fans look like potential victims of terrorism to the former FBI agent turned college instructor. The players are possible targets and the security gaps are easy to detect.

"It's always in the back of my mind, even when I'm watching them on TV," McGee said. "You're kind of looking at things. The thing is if I can sit there or any spectator can sit there, and think, 'Hmmm, that doesn't look right,' that's probably a little bit of a risk there."

It was long McGee's job to worry about security at stadiums and arenas. Now, as part of the University of Southern Mississippi's Center for Spectator Sports Security Management, it's his job to teach others the concerns that face event managers in the post-9/11 era.

Read more: http://sports.excite.com/news/12252007/v6790.html

[ixion]

1. "the post-911 era" blows

sucks and bites.

I'm really tired of hearing about how "terrorists" are always out to get us. This logic is used for nothing more than to implement a police state. :grr:

[marmar]

2. The greatest danger at college stadiums is and always will be drunken assholes....

.... of the student and alumni variety.

[Bozita]

3. fear - the mother's milk of the GOP

They're dead in the water without it.

[MetaTrope]

4. Ooooooo, scaaaaaaary

Sounds like they'd better start posting tanks on the college campuses...

[PSPS]

5. "that's probably a little bit of a risk there"

"It's always in the back of my mind, even when I'm watching them on TV," McGee said. "You're kind of looking at things. The thing is if I can sit there or any spectator can sit there, and think, 'Hmmm, that doesn't look right,' that's probably a little bit of a risk there."

What? That's just outrageous! I simply won't stand for having any risk in life!

[gtar100]

6. The risk wouldn't exist if GOP'r types didn't piss everyone off

Something that will always pass over the heads of republicans - if they didn't act like such pricks, they wouldn't be feeding the flames of hatred toward America. But they are lost in their "America's the greatest" rhetoric and refuse to listen to the criticisms from other people around the world.

I don't disagree with McGee about the "potential" of a threat. But our solution shouldn't be to wall ourselves off and thumb our noses at people being exploited. As far as I can tell, the fear-mongers are bringing it on themselves (except that a lot of innocent people could get hurt, and rarely the ones who caused the problem in the first place). There are terrorists and there are also terrorist provokers.

[Mind_your_head]

7. So, this guy (McGee) is paranoid and he 'teaches' his brand of paranoia to others....

great. Just f*cking great. *sigh*

[Newsjock]

8. The correct headline:

Security experts worry about their livelihood in an America that's no longer scared.

[Mind_your_head]

9. Spot on!

I'm not an 'Aussie', but I would rather align myself with another country than this USA of late.....

[TomClash]

10. I saw that movie too!

It was called the Sum of All Fears.

High school football stadiums in some states were identified as potential targets at least as early as October 2001.

Happy Terror!