We found out about an air show close to our house through the news paper 'LA Parent'. You know - LA Parent filled with information that parents in LA should know and expose their kids to. As few of you know I am a pilot and always looking out for opportunities to get the youngster interested in aviation - so we planned to go there.

It sounded a bit strange that the show was at Hansen Dam Park and not a few miles down at the local airport, but I thought maybe it's just a good place to watch all the aircraft coming from the airport and doing their stunts.

But not so!

When we got there yesterday just before noon, there were quite some cars and the usual contingency of police and parking enforcement around. We navigated our way into the parking lot and things started to look stranger and stranger.

Lot's - I mean LOTS of cop cars, the fire engines in hordes, navy, army, border patrol - the whole enchilada of government agencies.

Looking at the main banner over the event it became apparent that the word 'air show' was only appended as an after thought. Probably with the idea that this pulls a bigger crowd, despite all the effort to suppress civil aviation since 9/11, or at least make it harder and harder.

The main theme was 'American Heroes'.

OK, there was some 'air show' going on. A huge Sheriff's Helicopter was there, running up its engines and pretending to do something, but then shutting down again. A cool looking Coast Guard Chopper also started up and indeed took of.

Then there was the usual demonstration of a water drop by a fire helicopter.

At least a little bit American entrepreneurship was visible - in a far corner one little helicopter was continuously taking off and landing with guests who wanted to take their first steps into the air (in a small air craft, that is) for - as I heard - $85 a pop.

But why was this scary? It was just a fun family outing for the weekend, and our youngster definitely got on the gravy train. He got posters from the navy, a fire man hats from the fire department, brochures from here, coloring books from there, and even a little am/fm radio from the FBI (by the way, it did not receive anything on am and on fm we got one sports channel).

So again - why was that scary? For me it was glaring obvious that this was a total propaganda stunt to instill the idea in the youngsters that it is good to be a hero. There is no doubt in my mind that many of the guys and gals on that event believed that it was good what they did and I believe so too. I admire somebody who fights a fire and puts his life on the line, or a rescue helicopter pilot who gets somebody out of an avalanche he himself had created while skiing (talked to one of the guys - he was really nice and his statement was that he likes better to save people than to shoot them - but then again it escapes me why you would join the navy when that is your goal?)

But these poor souls were used to prepare folks for a time when it will not be voluntary to join the army, the navy - or whatever. The voices are getting louder that the draft might be coming back. I never had any worries about that - until I had a son, especially one who might find all this fighting and hero stuff very appealing. Scary!

I have seen how it all started in central Europe seventy years ago, and how easily we were convinced to fight for the good cause, but hey - you all know how the view of what's good changed after a few short years.

But then again - there is still hope. These guys do make serious mistakes negating all their efforts: There was - amongst all the heroes - one person walking the field with a big sign on his back - - - IRS!