Stories from Behind Security - The Preface for B.S. to Come

Stories from Behind Security - The Preface

A wise philosopher once said, “There are three things I have learned never to discuss with people: religion, politics and The Great Pumpkin.”  Ok, so it was Linus Van Pelt, a Peanuts character that said it.  But, it is wise, nonetheless.

When I fly, ride a bus, take the train, or sit in any inescapable situation with strangers, I have a rule.  I don’t tell people who I am or what I really do for a living.  We will call this the Linus rule.  Why?  Because political discussions with the average person who isn’t deeply involved tend to either become heated or nauseating very quickly (and I have nowhere else to sit in these situations).   Most people get their ideas about politics, government, campaigns, and politicians from the newspaper, TV News (dear God), and blogs.  As such, it is like discussing the finer points of high quality sushi with a pre-schooler while he munches on Cheerios.

But, there are those occasions when I am “outted” by a well-meaning host at a dinner party, wedding reception, or the like.  I have found that the best way to survive the political junkies of any ideological persuasion (and keep the peace so I will be invited back) is to revert to story telling.

Story telling is a family tradition and can fill “my end” of the conversation through all courses of the meal and well into the coffee/cordial period of the event.  I’ve got a bazillion stories that hail from behind the security doors of our building.  And, since most people who have never served in office have a very messed up idea of what we do all day, they eat these stories up like dessert came early. 

Over the course of my blog experiment, I will share these “stories from behind security” with you all.  I hope you enjoy them as much as my fellow dinner guests and occasional airline flight “friends” who manage to figure out my identity hours before we land.  I will title them with the appropriate acronym preceding each title (“B.S.”) so you can find them easily, either to read them or to avoid them.  I’m a user-friendly distributor of  B.S. stories, after all.  Enjoy.