Top 3 Most Outrageous RNC Preparations

COMMENTARY | TAMPA, Fla. -- The Republican National Convention is less than a week away?dun, dun, dun!

OK. So the exaggeration might not be necessary; it's not like the delegates will be fighting each other to their deaths -- though that would probably be more entertaining to the younger generation. However, the convention will have some drastic effects on the city of Tampa, especially on the students attending the University of Tampa who will be witnessing all of it firsthand.

50,000 guests, including the press, delegates, and protestors, will all be crammed into downtown Tampa at the Tampa Bay Times Forum from Monday to Thursday, and yet, the crazy only starts there. Over the past couple of days, I've learned more and more about the preparations that have been made by the university and the city to make life "easier" for students, residents, and guests. Here are the top three most outrageous preparations as we come within a week to the start of the RNC.

Outrageous RNC preparation #1 -- Across the river from UT, in the Curtis Hixon Park, a club has been built for the delegates. First off, why do the delegates need a club? Are they going to party and dance on tabletops after long hours of debating and talking to one another at the convention? Living arrangements, which will shut down Kennedy Boulevard at 11 a.m. and at 3 p.m. every day, will already separate the delegates from each other and require 500 buses to transport them from their hotels to the convention and back. So are they going to shut down the "Gateway to Tampa" for an extra third time each day? It's not like the buses aren't already causing traffic issues?

Outrageous RNC preparation #2 -- Speaking of traffic, UT administration and faculty are voluntarily staying at the Howard Johnson to beat any traffic jams that may derail them from being at school on time. I guess that beats arriving to UT before 7 a.m. like other professors have decided to do. For instance, Dr. David Krahl, visiting assistant professor of criminology and criminal justice, intends to arrive by 6:30 a.m. so that he is available for his students and not stuck in bumper to bumper traffic. The way he looks at the situation is "plan for the worst, and hope for the best," as the age-old Army adage goes.

Outrageous RNC preparation #3 -- Unfortunately, some students may have to plan for the worst, such as missing class, if the city decides that the convention is too crowded and has to pull the bridges up that connect the downtown area to the rest of the city. By pulling the bridges up, the freshmen boarding at the Howard Johnson will have no way to get to the university, except by water taxis. It's hard enough to make sure you wind up in the right classroom on time during the first week of college, never mind finding a water taxi that will bring you across the river to get you to class on time -- though water taxis will be available to students as long as they are wearing their neon green lanyards with their Spartan I.D. cards.

Sadly, this doesn't even put a dent on the list of outrageous preparations for the RNC and more will it will most likely be added on by the time the convention is over. So to those who will be in Tampa during this historic time, may the odds be ever in your favor.

Stef Crocco is a sophomore at the University of Tampa.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/top-3-most-outrageous-rnc-preparations-150300741.html

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