thedrifter
12-11-07, 03:26 PM
Schneider: Stories from mall, Marine not very uniform
John Schneider
Lansing State Journal
It sounded like a story with an off-the-charts outrage factor.
A ban on uniformed soldiers, sailors and Marines at the Lansing Mall? In these support-the-troops days? How could they?
Before 8 a.m. Monday Charles Roost of Lansing fired off an e-mail to the State Journal that began this way:
"Today I learned that the Lansing Mall will not allow members of our armed forces to enter the mall in uniform. They are asked to leave, and their commander is threatened with fines - just for being in the mall in uniform. I know because it happened to my son (Pvt. Jacob Roost) and one of his sergeants.
"Apparently the concern is over recruiting practices, but there is a huge difference between having policies on recruiting, and dishonoring our Marines by ejecting them simply for being in uniform."
My first call Monday was to Lansing Mall's senior general manager, Ken Huge, who acknowledged that a couple of Marines were, indeed, confronted by mall security guards a few days ago. But it wasn't because of their uniforms, Huge said: it was because they were, in the judgment of the security guards, engaged in shopping for more than Christmas presents.
No recruiting
"They're not allowed to solicit, or recruit," Huge said, adding that military personnel, uniformed or not, are under the same restrictions that govern all mall visitors.
"We keep a pretty tight reign on people soliciting at the mall," Huge said. "We don't want them interfering with the enjoyment of our shoppers."
Huge added that the Marines were not ordered to leave the mall - simply to stop soliciting.
Pvt. Roost did not return my calls Monday.
Local Marine Corps spokesman Sgt. Donald P. Bohanner maintained that Pvt. Roost and his sergeant were abiding by mall rules, and the confrontation resulted from "a bit of a misunderstanding."
"We may be in uniform, walking around the mall," Sgt. Bohanner said. "Young people walk up and ask questions; we give them information, and maybe make arrangements to get together later."
That, Bohanner said, meets mall rules.
"As far as my Marines are concerned, they followed the policy," he said.
Sleep well
Hooray! A biological excuse for our sloth:
Janet Abramson of East Lansing wrote: "Your (Dec. 9) column on human hibernation accurately describes a very real behavior pattern.
"Graham Robb's new geographical history, 'The Discovery of France,' discusses the near-total absence of activity in the French countryside during the winter.
"An official report from 1844 in Nievres states:
"'After making the necessary repairs to their tools, these vigorous men will now spend their days in bed, packing their bodies tightly together in order to stay warm and to eat less food. They weaken themselves deliberately.'
"Robb comments: 'Human hibernation was a physical and economic necessity. Lowering the metabolic rate prevented hunger from exhausting supplies.'
"Of course, nowadays most people have access to heat and light 24 hours per day, with the result that we can work eight hour days year round. But the yearning for hibernation is very ancient."
What do you think? Call John Schneider at 377-1175, send a fax to 377-1298 or e-mail jschneid@lsj.com.
Include your name, phone number, city, town or township.
Ellie
John Schneider
Lansing State Journal
It sounded like a story with an off-the-charts outrage factor.
A ban on uniformed soldiers, sailors and Marines at the Lansing Mall? In these support-the-troops days? How could they?
Before 8 a.m. Monday Charles Roost of Lansing fired off an e-mail to the State Journal that began this way:
"Today I learned that the Lansing Mall will not allow members of our armed forces to enter the mall in uniform. They are asked to leave, and their commander is threatened with fines - just for being in the mall in uniform. I know because it happened to my son (Pvt. Jacob Roost) and one of his sergeants.
"Apparently the concern is over recruiting practices, but there is a huge difference between having policies on recruiting, and dishonoring our Marines by ejecting them simply for being in uniform."
My first call Monday was to Lansing Mall's senior general manager, Ken Huge, who acknowledged that a couple of Marines were, indeed, confronted by mall security guards a few days ago. But it wasn't because of their uniforms, Huge said: it was because they were, in the judgment of the security guards, engaged in shopping for more than Christmas presents.
No recruiting
"They're not allowed to solicit, or recruit," Huge said, adding that military personnel, uniformed or not, are under the same restrictions that govern all mall visitors.
"We keep a pretty tight reign on people soliciting at the mall," Huge said. "We don't want them interfering with the enjoyment of our shoppers."
Huge added that the Marines were not ordered to leave the mall - simply to stop soliciting.
Pvt. Roost did not return my calls Monday.
Local Marine Corps spokesman Sgt. Donald P. Bohanner maintained that Pvt. Roost and his sergeant were abiding by mall rules, and the confrontation resulted from "a bit of a misunderstanding."
"We may be in uniform, walking around the mall," Sgt. Bohanner said. "Young people walk up and ask questions; we give them information, and maybe make arrangements to get together later."
That, Bohanner said, meets mall rules.
"As far as my Marines are concerned, they followed the policy," he said.
Sleep well
Hooray! A biological excuse for our sloth:
Janet Abramson of East Lansing wrote: "Your (Dec. 9) column on human hibernation accurately describes a very real behavior pattern.
"Graham Robb's new geographical history, 'The Discovery of France,' discusses the near-total absence of activity in the French countryside during the winter.
"An official report from 1844 in Nievres states:
"'After making the necessary repairs to their tools, these vigorous men will now spend their days in bed, packing their bodies tightly together in order to stay warm and to eat less food. They weaken themselves deliberately.'
"Robb comments: 'Human hibernation was a physical and economic necessity. Lowering the metabolic rate prevented hunger from exhausting supplies.'
"Of course, nowadays most people have access to heat and light 24 hours per day, with the result that we can work eight hour days year round. But the yearning for hibernation is very ancient."
What do you think? Call John Schneider at 377-1175, send a fax to 377-1298 or e-mail jschneid@lsj.com.
Include your name, phone number, city, town or township.
Ellie