# Malia Obama at Lollapalooza **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 11, 2016, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406 "2016-08-11T02:10:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2016, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/41 "2016-08-11T18:07:57Z")
If I was her, I would worry less about Secret Service and much more about her mom seeing those. In fact, I bet Secret Service is going to need protection from Michelle Obama. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2016, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/42 "2016-08-11T18:27:22Z")
She may be 18, but she still lives with her parents. They may or may not have set rules for her to follow. They may or may not have had a talk with her SS detail about what is allowed and what is not. But the SS works for Barack, not Malia. If the prez sez do X, they do X. Now, we don’t know what the prez has said to the SS, but I don’t see why would he shouldn’t have some say in the way she is monitored as long as she is their dependent. Once she’s on her own, then… she’s on her own. ---
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2016, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/43 "2016-08-11T18:40:27Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > It looks like her and she is distinctive. What’s odd is it looks like there’s others around her but no sign of the Secret Service. I wouldn’t think they would let her mingle to that extent. Coworkers of mine saw her there too. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2016, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/44 "2016-08-11T18:46:15Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > She may be 18, but she still lives with her parents. They may or may not have set rules for her to follow. They may or may not have had a talk with her SS detail about what is allowed and what is not. But the SS works for Barack, not Malia. If the prez sez do X, they do X. > > Now, we don’t know what the prez has said to the SS, but I don’t see why would he shouldn’t have some say in the way she is monitored as long as she is their dependent. Once she’s on her own, then… she’s on her own. She can leave the White House tomorrow and start signing book and TV show deals if she wants. You’re right the SS works for her dad, but other than reporting back, which they could do with anyone, they shouldn’t get involved in a family matter like that. Michelle and Barack aren’t idiots, I’m sure they’ve considered these things and talked to their kids about them, and expected this kind of thing to happen. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2016, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/45 "2016-08-11T18:54:10Z")
> [@Maastricht](#): > > Caption should read: > 18 year old girl is at concert, tries to hide that she smokes a cigarette. > > Why is this news? Probably for the same reason why you clicked on this thread. She is famous. If it was Jill Smith from Spokane it wouldn’t be news. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2016, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/46 "2016-08-11T19:40:32Z")
> [@Sir\_T-Cups](#): > > She was caught doing an illegal act and deserves to be punished accordingly. End of story. Well, you sort of need to be “caught” by someone in authority before you can be punished accordingly and I doubt the Chicago Police are dedicating a lot of manpower to investigating whether or not that’s a photo of a cigarette or a joint (or what was in the possible joint-looking object). ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2016, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/47 "2016-08-11T19:48:22Z")
I am not a lawyer and all that, but would the cops actually try to arrest Malia? Since simple possession is a minor crime punishable by a fine, wouldn’t they just serve her with a citation and require her to appear in court on a future time and date? Seems to me this is a crime on the level of a traffic violation. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2016, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/48 "2016-08-11T20:22:40Z")
> [@Sir\_T-Cups](#): > > Because it’s illegal. > > It has nothing to do with whether you _feel_ it should be legal or not, or any of the other million arguments about it…the simple fact is it’s illegal and therefore shouldn’t be done. > > Finger-waggers and pearl-clutchers shouldn’t matter in this situation, nor should society’s overall thoughts. > > Jury is still out whether it’s a joint or a cig. But if it was a joint then she should be punished accordingly. I don’t care if it’s the prez’s daughter, your daughter, Putin’s daughter or my daughter. She was caught doing an illegal act and deserves to be punished accordingly. End of story. At this point, there is not sufficient that she was doing anything illegal. She was photographed holding what may have been a hand-rolled cigarette. If there had been an officer there, perhaps he might have had reasonable suspicion to briefly detain her and confirm, or dispel, his suspicions that there was contraband in play. But that did not happen. So I’d say she wasn’t caught doing an illegal act: she was photographed with a hand-rolled cigarette, which is not a crime. ---
**Author:** ![Duke\_of\_Rat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Duke\_of\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke_of_Rat)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2016, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/49 "2016-08-11T20:31:16Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > So I’d say she wasn’t caught doing an illegal act: she was photographed with a hand-rolled cigarette, which is not a crime. How old is she? And was the concert in Chicago proper? [http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-smoking-age-increase-met-20160630-story.html](http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-smoking-age-increase-met-20160630-story.html) If it wasn’t actually in Chicago, then nevermind. If it was weed, then it was illegal, regardless. I don’t care one way or another, people skirt laws every day and then get bent if called on it. ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2016, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/50 "2016-08-11T20:39:35Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > Well, you sort of need to be “caught” by someone in authority before you can be punished accordingly and I doubt the Chicago Police are dedicating a lot of manpower to investigating whether or not that’s a photo of a cigarette or a joint (or what was in the possible joint-looking object). Berry true. And she wasn’t officially caught with anything other than some kind of smoke-y thing. Honestly, all I was trying to say is that it doesn’t matter her age, who she is related to, or your opinions on smoking weed, if that’s what she was doing she should be punished the same as if anyone else was doing it. ---
**Author:** ![HookerChemical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/278dde/32.png) [@HookerChemical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HookerChemical)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2016, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/51 "2016-08-11T22:01:31Z")
Isn’t it better for the Secret Service to turn a blind eye to a joint in order to maintain a solid relationship where she isn’t trying to ditch them all day? Their job is to protect her, which they can’t do if she doesn’t allow them near her. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2016, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/52 "2016-08-12T00:55:06Z")
> [@UDS](#): > > So if Malia throws a punch an an LEO who responds in the time-honoured American fashion by pulling out a piece, the SS don’t intercept the LEO; they intercept Malia and drag her away. It doesn’t have to be very far away. This defuses the situation; the LEO can then holster his gun, and usually will, since he’s no longer under the threat of even a girly punch. He can carry on with the task in hand, which is writing out a citation/effecting an arrest/whatever. The SS won’t stop him from arresting Malia, if he’s determined on it, but they will make sure that the arrest is effected in a way that doesn’t expose her to threats to her life or safety. > > You’ve seen footage, no doubt, of protection subjects being strong-armed out of danger by their own security details, so this is a drill they’re well used to. It would be no different here. And how do they do that if they aren’t right there beside her, stepping in as the cop comes near? The people you are describing have the security right there beside them. How does the SS get there before the officer pulls off a shot? The only answer I can see is that they do in fact step in. They let the cop do what he wants, but they are right there. The only other solution I could see is having a gun trained on the cop, ready to fire if he pulls out a weapon. And I hope they don’t do that. ---
**Author:** ![Waltzes\_with\_Cacti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/90ced4/32.png) [@Waltzes\_with\_Cacti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Waltzes_with_Cacti)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2016, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/53 "2016-08-13T21:14:30Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > It must suck to be the president’s kid. Seriously. From the musical comedy _Mr. President,_ here’s the official theme song of this thread: [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5J7Oo-gVLg) It’s a lament about the Secret Service disrupting her social life, sung by actress Anita Gilette in the role of the daughter of POTUS. It’s pretty funny. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2016, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/54 "2016-08-14T04:22:20Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > She can leave the White House tomorrow and start signing book and TV show deals if she wants. You’re right the SS works for her dad, but other than reporting back, which they could do with anyone, they shouldn’t get involved in a family matter like that. Michelle and Barack aren’t idiots, I’m sure they’ve considered these things and talked to their kids about them, and expected this kind of thing to happen. Which raises an interesting point; Malia’s a legal adult, what were to happen if, against all logic & advice, she were to put her foot down and absolutely refuse Secret Service protection? Can the President force a security detail on an unwilling citizen? Could she go to federal court and take out a restraining order against the Secret Service? ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Feldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lord_feldon/32/341_2.png) [@Lord\_Feldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Feldon)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2016, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/55 "2016-08-14T05:30:46Z")
> [@alphaboi867](#): > > Which raises an interesting point; Malia’s a legal adult, what were to happen if, against all logic & advice, she were to put her foot down and absolutely refuse Secret Service protection? The [law](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/3056) on Secret Service protection says that everyone except the president, vice president, and president and vice president-elect can decline it. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Lowry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Sam\_Lowry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Lowry)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2016, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/56 "2016-08-15T13:39:57Z")
> [@Sir\_T-Cups](#): > > Berry true. And she wasn’t officially caught with anything other than some kind of smoke-y thing. > > Honestly, all I was trying to say is that it doesn’t matter her age, who she is related to, or your opinions on smoking weed, if that’s what she was doing she should be punished the same as if anyone else was doing it. It sounds like she was punished just the same as anyone else smoking, meaning that no one who was smoking at Lollapalooza was punished. She wasn’t receiving any special treatment. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2016, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/57 "2016-08-15T14:44:22Z")
> [@Duke\_of\_Rat](#): > > If it wasn’t actually in Chicago, then nevermind. If it was weed, then it was illegal, regardless. Bricker’s point is that you cannot establish \*in a video or photograph \*that it was weed. The most you could possibly say it that might have been a hand-rolled cigarette, but there’s no way to see that the contents were illegal. So there’s nothing she could be cited with. Nor can you say, based on the picture, that she broke the law in Chicago concerning the minimum age to buy cigarettes. The picture does not demonstrate that she bought any cigarettes in Chicago, or bought any cigarettes at all. ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2016, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/58 "2016-08-15T14:48:58Z")
> [@Sam\_Lowry](#): > > It sounds like she was punished just the same as anyone else smoking, meaning that no one who was smoking at Lollapalooza was punished. She wasn’t receiving any special treatment. Also true. In this instance, my argument was less that it was about her and more about that you can’t simply brush off the act as “it’s weed who cares”. The Law cares and your (the royal “your”) opinions on weed doesn’t make it less illegal. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2016, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/59 "2016-08-15T15:17:55Z")
> [@Duke\_of\_Rat](#): > > How old is she? And was the concert in Chicago proper? > > [http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-smoking-age-increase-met-20160630-story.html](http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-smoking-age-increase-met-20160630-story.html) She turned 18 July 4th of this year. The law in Chicago changed on June 30th to forbid furnishing tobacco to those under 21, yes. And the Grant Park concert location is certainly within the city limits of Chicago. But that’s not a defined crime – it’s a local Chicago ordinance, the transgression of which is a violation, not a criminal act. See Chicago Businesses, Occupation, and Consumer Protection Code § 4-64-190, see also § 4-64-333(a). ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2016, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406/60 "2016-08-15T15:33:52Z")
> [@UDS](#): > > … Would they stop an LEO from approaching her? If they had any reason to think that an approach by the LEO would pose a threat to her life or safety, yes. … As far as the SS is concerned, a LEO is a guy wearing a uniform and carrying a GUN. I would hope they’d be much more careful of his approaching her than some kid in a t-shirt smoking a joint. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/malia-obama-at-lollapalooza/762406.md?page=4)