New Security Measures At The Parks

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Great post, Mac. I'm sure this may have been discussed up-thread, but I think this rushed roll-out has to be due to a potential threat. I can't believe Disney, Universal, AND SeaWorld all implemented stricter security the same week unless they were advised about SOMETHING by the government.

Thank you

Yeah it seems very strange doesn't it that all three did it in the same week. I mean I would expect at least Universal to do something somewhat similar to WDW or vice versa but I wouldn't expect SeaWorld to join in much less for all three to do it all in one week...

 

[blondietink]

FWIW: My son is in a wheelchair and when going through airport security, besides getting an inspection by hand, his wheelchair also gets wiped down by some special cloth that supposedly detects explosives. So, I would also expect that this would need to happen at theme parks if they are serious about any threat.

Regarding the head coverings of women who might or might not be Muslims. What about baseball caps and/or sunglasses? Hoodies? These items can all obscure the face and I would think people should be made to take them off for any kind of thorough screening. Happens all the time at the airport, hats off, headphones off, sunglasses off, jackets off, etc.

 

[Lorajo]

Any first hand experiences from today?

I didn't even notice the metal detectors!

I did notice this week that security was a little more thorough, slower to look through our bags than last year. it was just a small thing.

Crowds haven't been bad this week and we've had an excellent week - including today.

 

[pangyal]

We arrived to MK around 8:45am today. Three of us were waved on, hubby was sent through the metal detector, as was a roughly ten year old girl from anothe line. So it does seem to be random, and I didn't notice more than a few seconds of delay as a result.

 

[kittyab]

FWIW: My son is in a wheelchair and when going through airport security, besides getting an inspection by hand, his wheelchair also gets wiped down by some special cloth that supposedly detects explosives. So, I would also expect that this would need to happen at theme parks if they are serious about any threat.

Regarding the head coverings of women who might or might not be Muslims. What about baseball caps and/or sunglasses? Hoodies? These items can all obscure the face and I would think people should be made to take them off for any kind of thorough screening. Happens all the time at the airport, hats off, headphones off, sunglasses off, jackets off, etc.

Not sure if they can ask guests to take off their hats & sunglasses with the sun blaring down on them. I think they would have to have a enclosed area for guests to walk through to remove coats etc to help protect them from the weather.

 

[Hudson Hornet]

They also stopped selling toy guns on property starting today. Talked to a cast member manager she said they haven't given a why just told them to pull all of them today at Pirates and it is company wide. Idiotic security theater with little to no reduction in actual risk. People running security have no idea what they are doing in terms of accurately accessing risk

You've got to be kidding!!! How could anybody mistake those things sold at the Pirates exit for real guns? Who would carry around a single shot, muzzle loading flintlock pistol??? A kid who just got watched Cpt Barbosa bombarding an old Spanish fort or saw Jack Sparrow sitting on a pile of gold sing Yo ho a pirates life for me, that's who. It's not like like they're selling toy AK-47s or Glock 9mm.

Massive overreaction WDW.

 

[DVCcurious]

The metal detectors are stupid. yesterday I saw them putting women and children thru them while letting single men pass. The woman running it pulled me after I went thru security. I had only a wristlet & was wearing work out shirts (obviously no pockets), a tshirt, & yoga shoes. The only thing I had hidden under my clothes were my private bits & the new the fat rolls I acquired while dining all week at Disney, lol. Totally not a terrorist threat, but pulled me & another middle aged woman & her little girl, but letting single men go. So I think it's stupid and a waste. If Disney wants to implement these machines, either everyone goes thru or actually make the suspicious go thru. And if the operators can't do that then dismantle. It's bad enough we wait in line for everything else.

And this is the sad state of racism/sexism our country has fallen to. Profiling is always evil.

Women are just as capable as men and can do anything a man can do. A woman can kill people just as well as a man can. They should not be choosing single adult men and excluding women and children because that is sexist and ageist.

The above rationale is the exact same thing the right-wingers use when they say we should ban muslims from entering the country. Yes, men are more likely than women to commit murder. But muslims are more likely than non-muslims to commit murder. So should the metal detectors be reserved for muslims only? Blacks are more likely to commit crimes than whites. So should metal detectors be only used for blacks?

Are you shocked at my comment that blacks are more likely to commit crimes than whites but not shocked at my comment that men are more likely to commit crimes than women? Why are you shocked? Both are statistically accurate. And both are equally offensive and wrong to say out loud. If it's wrong to "profile" blacks and muslims then it's equally wrong to "profile" solo adult males.

Just because something is a statistical fact doesn't mean it's OK to treat EVERYBODY in that category as a criminal. Calling out single adult men for profiling is as bad as saying all blacks should be profiled or all muslims should be profiled.

These racist/sexist arguments need to be shut down immediately before they make this country even more intolerant.

 

[JaxDad]

It seems these increased security measures at the parks may be the result of a threat warning of some kind, maybe from the government. I know this is an assumption, but it is one scenario that explains the actions we have seen at ALL the parks at the same time.

We don't know what this warning may have included. (It's interesting to consider whether the government would tell us any specifics or would they try to avoid panic and not tell us. Telling us could have a huge economic and security confidence effect, and be a win for the terrorists. It's all risk/probabilities.) If the threat did include any specifics, such as the organization and/or means and methods, I would hope security forces would act accordingly. If they have reasonable intel that red-haired men over six feet tall could commit an act of terrorism, I hope they would pay more attention to tall red-heads!

I'm not a fan of profiling, but I think security forces should act on what they know. If they have information on the threat, it is not so much profiling as due diligence. If they don't know specifics, then they should not profile. Randomness is a deterrent too. The key is to try to stay a step ahead of those that would harm us. You have to assume they are observing what is being done and looking for opportunities.

 

[Magpie]

It seems these increased security measures at the parks may be the result of a threat warning of some kind, maybe from the government. I know this is an assumption, but it is one scenario that explains the actions we have seen at ALL the parks at the same time.

We don't know what this warning may have included. (It's interesting to consider whether the government would tell us any specifics or would they try to avoid panic and not tell us. Telling us could have a huge economic and security confidence effect, and be a win for the terrorists. It's all risk/probabilities.) If the threat did include any specifics, such as the organization and/or means and methods, I would hope security forces would act accordingly. If they have reasonable intel that red-haired men over six feet tall could commit an act of terrorism, I hope they would pay more attention to tall red-heads!

I'm not a fan of profiling, but I think security forces should act on what they know. If they have information on the threat, it is not so much profiling as due diligence. If they don't know specifics, then they should not profile. Randomness is a deterrent too. The key is to try to stay a step ahead of those that would harm us. You have to assume they are observing what is being done and looking for opportunities.

At the same time, so as not to alert the Diabolical Society of Tall Red-heads (AKD: the DaSTaRdly), a clever screener would throw in a lot of brunettes and blondes of both genders and all ages, in order to be able to claim that they were being "random" in their checks.

 

[JaxDad]

At the same time, so as not to alert the Diabolical Society of Tall Red-heads (AKD: the DaSTaRdly), a clever screener would throw in a lot of brunettes and blondes of both genders and all ages, in order to be able to claim that they were being "random" in their checks.

Yes. Randomness is a good deterrent in many ways. However, I don't think we really need to worry about blondes planning a complex operation do we...

(It is obviously humor, but I have donned my flame-resistant suit nonetheless.)

 

[Magpie]

Yes. Randomness is a good deterrent in many ways. However, I don't think we really need to worry about blondes planning a complex operation do we...

(It is obviously humor, but I have donned my flame-resistant suit nonetheless.)

I don't know... this blond kid looks pretty shifty to me...

 

[larryz]

Yes. Randomness is a good deterrent in many ways. However, I don't think we really need to worry about blondes planning a complex operation do we...

(It is obviously humor, but I have donned my flame-resistant suit nonetheless.)

Around here, one person's humor is another person's call to fight injustice throughout the galaxy.

 

[BigAlsGal]

I am fully aware that everyday I am alive my life is at stake.

 

[PetePanMan]

unfortunately times have changed....

 

[jk2006]

Unless they put a fence (half joking, I know this isn't realistic) around the entire property and did strict border control on the roads in, I don't feel any safer with the new measures. I had to do active shooter training for my job and remember the most that a determined shooter will make the metal detector operator, security guard, etc. their first victims and keep going. Scary stuff.

 

[Magpie]

Unless they put a fence (half joking, I know this isn't realistic) around the entire property and did strict border control on the roads in, I don't feel any safer with the new measures. I had to do active shooter training for my job and remember the most that a determined shooter will make the metal detector operator, security guard, etc. their first victims and keep going. Scary stuff.

One of the lessons my mum learned while living and working in Pakistan - the metal detector operator and security guard aren't necessarily there to stop the attack, they're just there to slow it down and give other layers of security time to react and respond. And sometimes they act as an early warning system - having the first shots fired at the entrance to a venue is far better than having those first shots fired from inside the venue.

As you know from your training, every second counts.

 

[Shanti]

Wow, you don't give law enforcement enough credit. They can tell difference between a Pirates gun and a real one.

There have actually been multiple documented cases of police shooting and killing children who were playing with guns, because they couldn't take the chance that those guns might be real. Don't assume that every police officer can instantly tell if a gun is fake or not while at a distance, particularly at night.

 

[jnncooke]

Ugh! I tried to fix a typo and just lost my whole rant!

 

[MolonLabe]

There have actually been multiple documented cases of police shooting and killing children who were playing with guns, because they couldn't take the chance that those guns might be real. Don't assume that every police officer can instantly tell if a gun is fake or not while at a distance, particularly at night.

This is ridiculous, in virtually every circumstance it was in response to MWAG calls or the suspect doing something stupid with a realistic looking toy.

I don't think there has ever been a case of a cop shooting a child with a buzz light year blaster. I'd bet money there has NEVER been a case of a cop at theme park shooting a child with a toy gun either.

 

[MolonLabe]

Update. Back in MK today. They went up to 4 dectectors this morning.

Not sure if they can ask guests to take off their hats & sunglasses with the sun blaring down on them. I think they would have to have a enclosed area for guests to walk through to remove coats etc to help protect them from the weather.

I think we're COMPLETELY missing the point here. The point of all this is, allegedly, to stop a terrorist attack.

How in the world is a person wearing sunglasses or a hat a threat? When was the last time someone hid a gun under their sunglasses? How are a pair of Oakleys in any way necessary to attack a person? This is beyond absurd at this point.

The fear and paranoia shown by some on this thread is incredible. These people better not have a shower, or God forbid a bathtub in their home. Both kill more people per year in America than terrorists do. Certainly they wouldn't have set foot in a death trap known as an automobile either. Lol, it's truly pathetic.