Snark And Awe
It seems exercising one's First Amendment rights at LAX is expressly permitted. (Hey, thanks, Jews for Jesus!)
On Cracked.com -- which isn't cracked at all, but a great site with really smart stuff -- Eddie Rodriguez writes in "5 Awesomely Sarcastic Supreme Court Decisions":
#2. "The Issue ... Is Whether a Resolution Banning All 'First Amendment Activities' at LAX Violates the First Amendment."Have you ever been annoyed by those people coming up to you at the airport and trying to hand you religious material? The folks over at Los Angeles International Airport are right there with you, man. Hell, in 1983, the Board of Airport Commissioners at LAX even tried to pass a law banning the pamphlet people from hanging around anywhere near their airport.
They ran into one teensy problem, though. Let's see ... what was it? Oh, yeah! The First Amendment to the United States Constitution. That's the one that protects people's rights to say what they want, worship any way they want and express themselves however they want. It pretty much guarantees that religious groups don't get the crap harassed out of them when they peacefully try to save the souls of everyone waiting for the 5:15 to Houston.
But those ingenious bastards at LAX thought they had found a way around that pesky Constitution. In the resolution they passed, they expressly banned all First Amendment activities. Problem. Freaking. Solved.
And they didn't write it in vague legalese that they could somehow claim was misinterpreted. They expressly wrote that all First Amendment activities were forbidden in the terminal and could result in litigation. That cross around your neck that signals you're a Christian? Banned! Your Che Guevara T-shirt? Banned! Your "Free Mustache Rides" hat? You'd better believe that's banned!
Jews for Jesus was the first religious group to get kicked out under the new rule, and they filed a lawsuit. When the case got before the Supreme Court, Justice Sandra Day O'Connor must have paused and wondered whether someone was punking her when she had to write the complaint brought before the court:
"The issue presented in this case is whether a resolution banning all 'First Amendment activities' at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) violates the First Amendment."
Wink-wink...so, LAX, on a Saturday (in hopes that momof4 and a few others from out of town can join us), very soon...as soon as I can do the rest of the research on this. (Dress Code: Underwire.)
P.S. Seems we'll need a filming/taping permit -- see #11:
11. Commercial/Non-Commercial Photography and Student Filming. The LAX Film Office under the Airport Response Coordination Center (ARCC) is charged with the responsibility of administering the filming program as mandated by the Board of Airport Commissioners. All entities, including tenants, must contact the LAX Film Office at (424) 646-6843, and be issued a film permit for any film, video, or photographic projects at LAX.
Then they better start banning all cell phones and such. The way this is written is that if you are taking video of your family departing for Hawaii, you need a permit.
Jim P. at January 27, 2012 6:31 AM
Public areas don't seem to know how to handle cell phones. During a recent trip to court, my sister's small digital camera was taken. (She got it back when she left.) They allowed me to keep my cell phone, which has a better camera than her point-and-shoot.
MonicaP at January 27, 2012 6:52 AM
Ask for the definition of "film, video or photographic project" in writing.
Because snapping a picture of little Billy at the gate isn't illegal - or shouldn't be.
Actually, none of it should be. In fact, a serious security agency would take its own films to identify loopholes for closure.
They don't, because they're idiots.
Radwaste at January 27, 2012 10:46 AM
Awesome.
Ummm, pirates or cars???
Feebie at January 27, 2012 12:25 PM
Amy Alkon
https://www.advicegoddess.com/archives/2012/01/snark-and-awe.html#comment-2938396">comment from FeebieHah. Great to have you back, Feeb.
Amy Alkon
at January 27, 2012 12:35 PM
Ha! Leave it to LAX to screw up their time/place/manner restrictions. Of course, that works out well for us...
Cousin Dave at January 27, 2012 3:03 PM
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