FAA vs. NYC: A Federal Case Against Narcissism and the Abuse of Power

Like a lot of people, I was outraged by the presidential airplane "photo op" that frightened a lot of New Yorkers. In spite of professed knowledge that the stunt could stoke the fears of residents and visitors, federal officials demanded secrecy and even threatened federal sanctions against the city if the secret got out.

Think about that for a second.

This wasn't a matter of national security. It was an attempt to get a cool looking photograph to put in publicity materials.

In other words, it was a "branding" exercise -- or at least what passes as branding in some circles.

Still, federal officials had the hubris to threaten peacekeepers and representatives with the full force and weight of the federal government for being so dastardly as to try to prevent the public from panicking.

(This, by the way, makes a strong case for diligently protecting individual liberty, for it is the peculiar nature of granting the power to incite and destroy that leads it to its intolerable abuse.)

The cost for this photo shoot, not including the time spent on damage control after the fact, was already $328,835, and according to an FAA memo, they knew it would cost that much. On a federal scale, $328,835 isn't a lot of money -- at least, when you're not concerned about whose money it really is.

But if they were committed to wasting taxpayer money (and I've never been alive to witness a time when the government wasn't so committed) they could have at least wasted less of it.

A decent painter -- or even a Photoshop expert -- could have simulated the event for much less.

Heck, with all the Obama sycophants out there, they probably could have found someone to donate their time to the cause of promoting him or the office he now holds.

It's true that the terrible memories of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks are still alive in New York. Given the repercussions of forgetting history, we can all be glad of that.

I suggest we follow New York's example by learning a lesson from this:

No matter how brightly we think our star shines, we cannot fool ourselves into thinking that our wants are more important than those we're supposed to serve. That is a foolish trap. Branding is a farce if we make it all about us. When we do that, it's not branding at all -- but narcissism. - Cam Beck