I have to say, I'm watching this Baltimore Event now, and it scares me.....

[RollWithIt]

What a security nightmare. Highrise buildings surrounding the area, security glass only appears to protect from below and not above. I just don't like this kind of exposure anymore. I'm not saying I don't want him to give large speeches in front of huge crowds, but I have to say I'm very concerned with the buildings surrounding.

[BelleCarolinaPeridot]

1. There are sharpshooters everywhere...

and those buildings have been swept through and no one has been in those buildings for days.

[Berry Cool]

28. You could see them walking the tops of buildings in downtown Cleveland

the Sunday he was here before the election.

Rest assured, he is well protected. They've thought of stuff you haven't even dreamed of.

[azmouse]

2. I'm sure they've done everything humanly possible to keep this special man safe.

Breath deep and enjoy the speech!

[Politicub]

3. The only thing to fear is fear itself - FDR

Get control of yourself and stop being afraid. It's how Bush was able to snooker the populace following the mass hysteria after 9/11.

[Waiting For Everyman]

4. I wouldn't worry...

It's mostly municipal buildings around the square, and it's Saturday, they're mostly closed. Baltimore isn't a hostile area for him anyway.

[RollWithIt]

8. LA wasn't very hostile to RFK, New York to Lennon.... just saying....

It could happen anywhere and I hope the Secret Service is on their toes at all times with weeks of planning.

[TheDebbieDee]

19. Good point!

[TTUBatfan2008]

5. He is very courageous...

for not being paranoid. If I were him, I would have a bulletproof glass cube around the podium.

[mucifer]

7. he had that in Grant Park in Chicago

[RollWithIt]

9. The glass in Chicago was higher than it is today.... 20 feet....

Todays glass looks to be just 10 feet. That's what scared me, the overhead angle.

[TTUBatfan2008]

12. The glass wasn't behind him or to the sides...

it was just in front of him. What I'm saying is I'd have every angle covered around the podium to take away any threat. The biggest threat is when he starts walking around greeting the crowd.

[Merlot]

16. I was wondering about that

any info or links on that?

[TTUBatfan2008]

20. There were pics of it...

It was just in front of him. I don't think it covered behind or to the side.

[Muttocracy]

37. it was on all 3 sides, just hard to see from some angles

http://www.daylife.com/photo/03fgekn4Yq7ZR/obama_grant_park_glass



2 months ago: President-elect Barack Obama and his wife Michelle, right, along with Vice president-elect Joe Biden and his wife Jill wave to spectators at their election night party at Grant Park in Chicago, Tuesday night, Nov. 4, 2008. The individuals are behind bullet proof glass.
AP Photo by M. Spencer Green

[TTUBatfan2008]

38. That is very comforting to see...

Thanks for posting it. :)

[TTUBatfan2008]

24. Here's a picture...

?v=80000

[TTUBatfan2008]

25. Looks like it was on the sides...

but not in front? Kinda strange.

[RollWithIt]

40. It's a light trick...

The light wasn't striking the front, it was there, just no light bouncing off at that angle.

[rhiannon55]

6. oh, now I'm scared, too

thanks. :eyes: I am so on the edge of my seat (physically AND emotionally--lol) this weekend that I go from being elated to worried about his safety pretty quickly. This all seems like a dream I might wake up from--and I don't want to wake up. We have all waited so long for this...

[RollWithIt]

14. I'm sorry I scared you....

I'm just worried I guess, not so much scared. History shows that men of historic change are targeted the most. I just want the secret service to maybe increase some of these security measures. I don't want him riding around in a pope mobile or anything. But events like this I'd like to see maybe a fully enclosed glass cube.

[mecherosegarden]

10. Praying and praying ...

By the way, on a much lighter note...

Does anyone knows who was the gentleman with the beautiful voice just sang the National Anthem in Baltimore?

[Barack_America]

11. Have you ever been to a large Obama rally and seen the snipers?

They mean business.

I stood on an overpass today to wave at Obama's train and had a police helicopter circle me at least a half a dozen times. It was unnerving and yet comforting at the same time.

[DCBob]

21. Yep. I am sure they are all over.

and they are the best in the business.

[OnceUponTimeOnTheNet]

33. Did you wave at the police copter? Did you see that thread earlier?

It had a picture of people on a bridge waving at the train. Read your thread already, it was a different shot of the group. I wonder if that was yous guys.

[OnceUponTimeOnTheNet]

34. Found it...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x8097056



Is that your crew?

[Barack_America]

35. I saw that one, and I can't be sure, but I think that was...

...the Gray's Ferry bridge which was the bridge just before ours.

[OnceUponTimeOnTheNet]

36. That would have been neat if was your crew. What a great day it has been.

[DCBob]

13. Obama now has the best security on earth. Don't worry about it.

Obama's got this.

[backscatter712]

15. The Secret Service probably cleared out all the buildings.

They ordered everyone out, locked the buildings, posted guards, sharpshooters on the roofs. Those buildings are likely empty, and have been swept.

[TTUBatfan2008]

17. I hope you're right.

And I hope that's what they do all the time.

[RollWithIt]

22. I'm sure you're right, and I hope they don't ever let their guard down for an instant....

I just want to see them on their toes.

[Merlot]

18. this should scare you even more:

WASHINGTON (AFP) — The outgoing US administration indicated Thursday that President George W. Bush could issue pardons in the last hours of his term.

[ecstatic]

23. I get nervous when I look directly at the TV

I just listen :)

[lonestarnot]

27. LOL

:rofl: Sorry. :D

[marlakay]

26. Streets closed and so is parking near by the buildings

a friend from another weight blog i am on said he was going to watch from his office a block away but couldn't go because of streets and parking places closed. They are watching everything.

[EconomicLiberal]

29. Isn't there an aerial presence during these events?

I would think so.

[darius15]

42. Yes. In fact, during Obama's Grant Park speech you could hear the faint buzz of the helipcopters

flying over the venue to keep him safe.

[pnorman]

30. YAY! (you asshole, you!)

(Just kidding, of course!) But I have NEVER been as emotionally involved with a President, as I am now with Obama! And I was born in the last years of Hoover, and cast my first vote for Stevenson in 1952. I've seen most of the last century!

You got me worrying again! Tuesday can NOT come too soon for me!

pnorman

[EffieBlack]

31. The Secret Service knows exactly what it's doing

They are well aware - more than anyone else - of the security issues involved and how to deal with them.

Relax. They got this.

[ecstatic]

32. That SS agent behind him is really intense! nt

[RollWithIt]

39. I saw that guy, ya, he was definitely staring down every single person...

But since I'm a worrier I wondered why there wasn't a five guys behind him ready to pounce.

[pipi_k]

41. I've been nervous ever since

Obama was elected.

I know they're doing everything they possibly can to keep him safe, but all it takes is one nutcase with the means and opportunity able to get past security

:scared:


I think I'll probably feel a whole lot better once he's sworn in and actually living in the WH....

[VolcanoJen]

43. One thing I heard an ex-Secret Service guy say on TV during the election....

... that I'll never forget: "When going through security, and after, especially on the rope lines, we're looking at your hands, and even more so, at your faces. We're not so worried about happy, excited people in a political crowd. But if we see someone who's not smiling, our eyes are glued on that person, and every agent in the area is quickly made aware of that person."

I always found that to be very interesting. And when my Mom (DUer Kukesa!) and I were on the rope line to see Joe Biden, the Secret Service were moving several paces ahead of him. As they moved down the line, they were saying, sternly to everyone, "Let me see your hands." We were all holding "Change We Need" signs and American flags. The agents made us put the flags down (pointy? I don't know), and made sure they could see everyone's hands before the Senator got anywhere near us.

The Secret Service does not play. Thank God!!!