Fearful someone might get popped at the Corn Palace, Mitchell leaders are recommending metal detectors at the South Dakota landmark:
“I think it’s a great idea, because anytime you get 3,500 people in one building, it’s a good idea to have some type of security measure,” [Davison County emergency manager Jeff] Bathke said.
…”Having come from from Memphis and Miami and just seeing [metal detectors] everywhere I went, I guess I was just kind of expecting it moving back,” [Corn Palace director Scott] Schmidt said. “It didn’t shock me, obviously, having the small-town feel. But, like I said, I don’t think you can ever be too careful” [Evan Hendershot, “Protecting the Palace: Security Upgrades Discussed for Mitchell’s Main Attraction and Event Center,” Mitchell Daily Republic, 2017.12.29].
But Mitchell leaders aren’t worried enough about Corn Palace carnage to spend their own money on safety:
Luckily for Schmidt and the city of Mitchell, grant funds might be available to add metal detectors to the city’s primary event center.
According to Davison County Emergency Management Administrator Jeff Bathke, the South Dakota Office of Homeland Security makes funds available through an application process each year. The grants are meant to help agencies protect and recover from acts of terrorism and catastrophic events, and Davison County alone has collected approximately $330,000 in Homeland Security funds in the past seven years [Hendershot, 2017.12.29].
The South Dakota Office of Homeland Security is supported by $9.5 million in federal funds. That’s 85% of the Emergency Services and Homeland Security budget under the Department of Public Safety.
In 2014, the federal Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Security found that South Dakota “did not establish measurable goals and objectives” or “demonstrate the extent to which… grant funds enhanced the State’s ability to prevent, prepare for, protect against, and respond to natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other manmade disasters.” Perhaps SDOHS has tightened its application procedure and will require Mitchell to provide evidence on the number shootings and other terrorist incidents at the Corn Palace, the likelihood that metal detectors will reduce those incidents, and the ongoing fiscal impact of staffing and maintaining these security measures.
I was under the impression that the Corn Palace was not on the short list of public places allowed to exclude firearms, and thus has to let in any gun-toter. If I’m mistaken, then metal detectors are at least logical under the current state of security theater.
But… um… what is the point if the metal detectors go off and you have to let person in anyway?
Having metal detectors everywhere might be a good idea. According to this poll at jobsangerblog, 71% say we are less safe than one year ago.
https://tinyurl.com/yavw5d39
Color me skeptical, but all the scenarios we have been seeing under wingnuts seem to be wingnut laid, made and played. Drumpf has irritated all our allies. They just cut millions from the UN because of a hissy fit. They rack up huge deficits on purpose to give them an excuse to slash billions from entitlements/safety nets to pay for taxcuts for the rich. All the investigations against Drumpf and cabinet are because not a one of these wingnuts cares enough to tell the truth.
I did notice mean old Drumpf stopped insulting radical Muslim terrorists, just like his predecessor- Obama the GOAT.
Just like with the Gear Up money, South Dakota state government cannot be trusted with homeland security money. Once the Republican cronies have divvied it up there is probably very little left. Lawrence and Schiller likely received a big chunk of that already, and who knows how many consultants received no-bid contracts to come up with innovative ways to spend what little was left after they got paid for their consulting. The Inspector General seems to agree with this assessment. Now, where did the money go that the Inspector General believes was frittered away?
Does anyone see a pattern here?
Utter nonsense and a waste of money. There is a strong faction that wants you to be afraid. They profit from your unreasonable, continual fear. Be very afraid.
Miller makes a valid point, guns are metallic, so what is the NRA going to do about that? Freedom First John Thune, will certainly put his big roypublican foot down against that hogwash, no?
Maybe what the Corn Palace fears the most is a metallic popcorn popper that is somehow slipped into the tourist trap and then utilized with free distribution. Yikes!!
Gotta watch out for pressure cookers, as well.
Hmm… when’s the last time they had a gun show at the Corn Palace?
How about we put metal detectors outside the Corn Palace, on the sidewalk? We hook the detectors up to the cell-phone network and a GPS app. Every time the detector gets a hit, it identifies and tags the person and uploads the data to the app database. Then if we download the app on our phones and take a picture or video of the sidewalk, the app will tag that person’s image with a warning like, “Watch out! This dude is packing heat!”
Maybe Mitchell could just hire a couple more police officers to stem the threat. Put a surcharge on the ticketing to offset the new officers pay, insurance, retirement etc. and move on. Why does my taxpayer dollar from way out here in the wild west have to pay for a system that will not work with our open carry laws?