Two years ago, I observed that the second level ramp at Washington's Dulles International Airport seems to serve as a parking lot for the privileged, despite signs about every 50 feet warning "No Parking, No Stopping, No Standing."
The situation has not changed, as I learned on April 25 while waiting for the Washington Flyer shuttle bus to the West Falls Church metro stop. I counted at least 16 Masters Of The Universe sitting blissfully behind the wheels of their Beamers, Lexi and other high-end iron for more than 15 minutes without one law enforcement official telling them to move on.
Evidently the folks who run the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority do not view this unofficial parking lot for the high rollers at Dulles as a security issue. But how do we know that a Beamer driver is not an employee of a contractor working for the Homeland Security Department and is not a bad actor who wants to do in homeland security, starting with Dulles Airport?
Given the possibilities, I hope I'll never find out the answer to that question.
Bob Brewin
Bob Brewin joined Government Executive in April 2007, bringing with him more than 20 years of experience as a journalist focusing on defense issues and technology. Bob covers the world of defense and information technology for Nextgov, and is the author of the “What’s Brewin” blog.
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