It wasn't all fun and games (and hope – let's not forget hope) at the Inauguration of Barack Obama on January 20, 2009.
Congressional Youth Leadership Council organized trips to our nation's capitol for 15,000 students at a rate of $2500 for five-days. 1,000 of those students were from New Jersey, and some of their parents are mighty peeved that their young'uns didn't get a good view of all the Obama-mania.
According to New Jersey's Daily Record, parents are claiming that the students missed out on "many of the historic events," including the swearing-in ceremony. That was kind of a big one. I mean, if you had miss something, that wouldn't be my choice.
The company says that most of the attendees had "a positive experience." Whenever I hear that line, I always have to wonder if that means they just didn't complain.
For now, this all falls under the category of "allegedly." New Jersey's Consumer Affairs Division is investigating.
If the kids did miss the ceremony, it might not have been the company's fault. The New York Times reports that a lot of ticket holders were " abandoned by event organizers as they stood crowded, frustrated and cold in what some referred to as the Purple Tunnel of Doom," thus missing the chance to see Chief Justice Roberts show that he has difficulty reading. (Kidding. Sort of.) The name "Purple Tunnel of Doom" is a bit dramatic (ya think?) but I'd be annoyed too if I came to D.C. to see history being made and ended up standing in a tunnel. (I don't think I'd start a Facebook group, though.)
Maybe four years from now they'll just hit the Lego Inauguration. Cheaper, and probably smaller crowds.
Source: Daily Record
Image: foreignpolicy.com
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