vanderwal.net

Driving to work this morning (I normally do not drive) I saw a blimp floating over the Mall near the Capitol building. I thought it was an odd place for a blimp. I also realized their is not a sporting event that would cause the blimp to be in town today (a city being awarded a baseball team is not a blimp event). I tried to figure out whose blimp it was, but it was all gray.

My next thought was somebody stole a blimp and is going to fly it into the Capitol. Very quickly that was ruled out as a rational option. I switch my radio from satellite to AM to the news station, which is chatting on about the baseball team and the weather. Nothing about a rogue blimp.

A co-worker at mid-day brings up the odd blimp story in the Washington Post. Yes, the U.S. Army is leasing a blimp to protect the Nation's Capitol. Have we spent so much money on Iraq that all we can afford is a blimp?

OMG, that was funny. I heard about it on NPR this AM so was surprised to hear folks out D.C. way weren't warned or didn't otherwise have an easy way to find out what the blimp was about. But that your first thought is essentially, "A blimp? To fight terrorists?" is just hilarious. Yep, a blimp... and a leased one at that. Turns out we can't even afford to buy one.