Man dies of self-inflicted gunshot wound at Universal Studios Hollywood

Ugh...what a horrific thing for guests in the vicinity--particularly kids--to witness...

So I take it they don't have metal detectors. That's scary knowing how many nutty gun toting people there are out there. I had a morbid thought the other night while I was at the All American Rejects concerts at USO with a good 10,000 people crammed into a small area. They don't have metal detectors either, and the bag check is just a cursory scan of the contents. Are there other security measures Universal has that is not transparent to the guest?

Out of the 17 parks that I went to last year, the only parks I recall having metal detectors last year were the Six Flags parks and King's Dominion. Not the Ohio Cedar Fair parks, any of the Florida parks, Dollywood, Busch or Hershey. King's Island actually removed theirs a couple of years ago, in a state where it is legal to carry a concealed weapon. I guess they figure a gunman won't pay admission to do a mass shooting and that's enough protection?

Ah fun, this discussion again. My thoughts pretty much align with Richard Bannister's (post #3) and RideMan's (post #15).

Hoplophobia!

For me, metal detectors (working or not) present a situation I'm not particularly comfortable with: the inability for law-abiding gun owners to protect themselves from the non-law-abiding nutjobs who want to rub the lives of as many people as possible in the shortest amount of time (usually before they either get taken out by authorities, or--the more likely scenario--they take themselves out).

I apologize in advance for the spillage of worms...

Doesn't Ohio law still make it the owner's call about whether or not people can bring guns on the property?

My thoughts remain the same from that thread.

1. I'm not a fan of security theater.

2. I don't align with the recent trend of "safety" at all costs. The idea that any hassle is worth it even if one life is saved is not appealing to me. We've become scared...like really scared...of the boogeyman.

3. There is no number 3.

Speaking of security theater - when I flew to Seattle 2 weeks ago, (Yes, Jeff - I finally made it out there, and it IS a pretty awesome place, but my expense report showed just how expensive Bellevue can be) - I was taking my laptop out of my bag at CLE, which a TSA agent approached me and told me to put it back and step all the way to the left.

I was like, ummm, okay.. Then he followed up with "We've moved your access to TSA Pre-Check, no need to remove your shoes, belt, laptop, or liquids.

Oh, boy. No scanner, nothing - just a quick walk through the metal detector (That I'm assuming was set to low because I had a belt on and it didn't go off). It reminded me of flying pre-2001. It was glorious, and makes me want to invest in pre-check if I'm going to be flying out there more often. Then it occurred to me that white privilege is totally real, and if they can let everyone who wants to go through that way for a fee, what good is all the other stuff except to make it feel more official?

We didn't do shoes or anything at CVG last year either, which surprised me. I doubt much of it is necessary anyway, just interesting that they changed it up.

Raven-Phile said:

Then it occurred to me that white privilege is totally real

That's funny. I've had the same thing happen to me (twice) at IAD. Yet, the last time I flew out of there, I was pulled to the side after going through security, had my bag searched and I ended up being escorted back to the ticket counter to check my bag because I had a scary, threatening bottle of hair gel that was a couple ounces over the maximum size.

White privilege my ass.

While the white privilege thing is obviously a joke, at the same time, I noticed that everyone they sent through pre-check happened to be white and either nicely dressed, with expensive electronics, or wearing something with a flag on it.

I should also point out that my experience with security at SEA-TAC was quite different. Although I did get bumped up to "priority" screening, it was just as harsh as the regular line and the attitude was quite different.

Crap. My bad. My sarcastometer is on the fritz, apparently.

While "security theater" is obviously equal parts annoying and entertaining, the story as I understand it is that security practices have to constantly evolve so that would-be evildoers have a harder time figuring out which measures might be in place at any given time/place. Can't speak to the accuracy of that concept, but it does make some sense.

How could anyone be suicidal after spending time watching anything with The Minions in it? It's the funniest thing on the planet, presently. I would define Minions as the remedy to suicidal tendencies.

And... How terrible.

A little over a year ago I somehow got bumped up to TSA pre-check, I get it every time now, and I'm a hell of a lot sketchier looking than Josh. But it sure is nice to breeze right through.

I know our concentration here is amusement parks, but I'm not so shocked by the lack of strict security that may (or may not) prevent something like this from happening. Truth is, this can and does happen anywhere and everywhere. The ballpark, the office building, the restaurant, the mall, or anywhere large numbers of people congregate. God forbid we should be subjected to metal detectors and searches where ever we go.
Theme parks, (well, I guess Six Flags and KD) must feel a responsibility to keep all guests safe. Ok, as they should, but I remember when we discussed at length whether or not these things actually work, and I think the general consensus was that they don't really.

I'm not trying to make light, but if there's a bright spot at all to this tragic story it's that this poor soul chose to take just himself out and left everyone else alone. And sadly, that isn't always how these things go. It would certainly be a horrible thing to witness, but it's still better than dodging bullets.