OPINION:
I went to Wolf Trap last Saturday, and it was embarrassing. Handicap parking in Lot 4 that was formerly available is now restricted to only those purchasers of orchestra-seating tickets. I guess one’s severity of handicap increases with the purchase of higher-priced tickets.
I joined a small group of approximately eight seniors who stood close to the ticket booth watching everyone else file in while awaiting the release of senior tickets — which would not be released until half-an-hour before showtime. We were joined by a young family — father, mother and baby. I asked the father why he had been shunted over to our line, and he said he was active-duty military, a Marine, and had been told to wait in line with us for the release of active-duty-military discounted tickets. He said, “Gee, I’ve never been a second-class citizen before.” It was embarrassing.
However, the National Park Service was not done with us yet. The young Marine and I happened to arrive at adjacent ticket windows at the same time. When I overheard the ticket clerk tell him he had to purchase a ticket for his 2-year-old son, that, too, was embarrassing.
People were interested in these podcasts
When exactly did the National Park Service acquire the notion that it is OK to discriminate against seniors and active-duty military as long as they offer these groups a discount? This fact has probably been lost in the fog of bureaucracy.
That their refined policy reflecting this idea serves to limit by embarrassment the participation of seniors and active-duty military members is simply beyond question. By observation I would estimate that less than one half of 1 percent of the tickets sold that day at Wolf Trap were discounted to either seniors or active-duty military. How embarrassing for the nation.
KEN McQUAGE
Baltimore
Please read our comment policy before commenting.