The Pen is Mightier than the Sword!
Letter-Op Ed:
After emptying my pockets for security, I was told to collect, my keys, wallet, small note pad, everything except my pen!
In astonishment, I asked if this was a joke? They guy said no, since it could be used as a “weapon” then nodded towards a stack of random pens piled on the table behind him. I really needed my pen to finish writing questions I might ask if called on & to take notes.
I am not one to simply accept a lame explanation for this ridiculous rule, so thinking quickly, I took out the thin ink cartridge and said he can keep the rest. He insisted that I still couldn’t go in with it, at which point I asked to speak to a Lawler staff member.
A woman named Donna gave only her first name & explained her main concern was to protect her staff & Mr. Lawler who have been threatened many times, and that even the little cartridge can be used as a weapon! I asked if she recognized the absurdity of what she was saying especially since I was allowed to go in with my metal keys but not a simple writing instrument! She paused for a moment, and then said, she would make an exception this time and then allowed me to re-assemble the pen and enter.
I guess the takeaway for me from this experience is that the Pen, and in your case the Camera, is for some reason, dangerous & truly feared by Congressman Lawler and his staff!
Afterward It occurred to me that “the pen is mightier than the sword!”
Respectfully,
Howard Jay Fleischer
Ossining
