Is gyrocopter on Capitol lawn a threat? #tellusatoday

A Florida mail carrier landed a gyrocopter on U.S. Capitol grounds. His actions sparked a discussion among readers about national security. Comments from Facebook are edited for clarity and grammar:

The guy was in the wrong for violating restricted airspace, but other than that, it's an overall cool story. A dude takes off from Pennsylvania in his gyrocopter with his letters for members of Congress and makes it to Washington, D.C. All the wrongdoing aside, you have to give the man credit for pulling this feat off!

— Luke Lee

Doug Hughes landed his gyrocopter in a very restricted area. That he could do this, despite the inability of his aircraft to do damage, is cause for concern. The next time this happens, that may not be the case.

— Richard Wilson

Terrorists are not likely to inform authorities ahead of time and detail their intentions. Hughes said he tried to let people know by sending an email to info@barackobama.com. Officials likely knew Hughes was coming, so it makes sense that they chose not to shoot him down. They arrested him when he landed. There is no security scandal.

— Ian Citti

If a small helicopter or small plane were packed with explosives instead of just gasoline, it could cause significant damage and death.

Use just a little bit of your imagination, and you get something worth worrying about. I say this as a terrorism analyst and licensed pilot. Watch more dangerous copy cats appear. This is just the beginning.

— Michael Fjetland

Anyone who was disturbed by this peaceful man needs to look at the reason he did it and understand the message.

— Neil Enderland

We asked followers what they thought of the man who landed a gyrocopter on U.S. Capitol grounds to push campaign-finance reform. Comments from Twitter are edited for clarity and grammar:

I can see why authorities arrested him with all of the terrorist threats, but what happened to freedom of speech?

— @jonathanhmayes

Although unnerving to many, whatever draws attention to campaign-finance reform is a good thing. We must get money out of Washington.

— @MontanaRusa509

If it was done, as stated, for campaign-money reform, then good for him.

— @JeaneeJoe

The Islamic State, also known as ISIL or ISIS, is taking notes.

— @jussmee10

For more discussions, follow @USATOpinion and #tellusatoday on Twitter.