What happens when you take "leading edge technology" into enemy territory unescorted?
It had nothing to do with fortifying the mandated islands, Japan was not fortifying them.
It had nothing to do with her husband being in Fleet Intelligence. ALL New-England Blue-Bloods applied for a Naval Reserve commission in Fleet Intelligence to avoid the one year extra duty they would otherwise have to serve if they sought a career path in the Navy.
The search the Japanese conducted was a joke. The major vessels that supposedly took part in the search all stayed in port, there was no such search taking place.
It had nothing to do with Fred Noonan being moody, depressed and drunk. The best navigator in the world at the time was Fred Noonan, sober. The second best navigator in the world at the time was Fred Noonan, drunk.
It all related to the advanced technology of the plane. Japan wanted it. Lockheed sure wasn't going to sell it to them.
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Phone Hacking: continued ad nauseam.
Now it seems there are claims that unidentified editors have attempted suicide and that some managerial personnel at British news organizations have hired personal security guards.
Claims of everything such as "newspapers been doing this for hundreds of years" to cozy relations between press and London police was recent. A news editor being loaned a retired police horse is an incident providing some comic relief to how close the relationships are.
Big deal. It was hushed up as long as could be, now the cat is out of the bag so why is anyone resisting it at this point in time.
It was widespread. The press and the coppers knew it. Each made money from the relationship. Each found it convenient to overlook the extent of what was going on but neither side was ignorant enough to believe it was one rogue reporter and one rogue private investigator. Not even members of the public believed any such nonsense. So why now do we have the arrest of Rebekkah Brooks and her husband on some predawn raid? I guess its the old joke of why you should never trust a policeman: you never know when he will turn honest.
Claims of everything such as "newspapers been doing this for hundreds of years" to cozy relations between press and London police was recent. A news editor being loaned a retired police horse is an incident providing some comic relief to how close the relationships are.
Big deal. It was hushed up as long as could be, now the cat is out of the bag so why is anyone resisting it at this point in time.
It was widespread. The press and the coppers knew it. Each made money from the relationship. Each found it convenient to overlook the extent of what was going on but neither side was ignorant enough to believe it was one rogue reporter and one rogue private investigator. Not even members of the public believed any such nonsense. So why now do we have the arrest of Rebekkah Brooks and her husband on some predawn raid? I guess its the old joke of why you should never trust a policeman: you never know when he will turn honest.
Saturday, March 3, 2012
Eyeglasses and radar displays
News that the Costa Concordia's Captain was without his eyeglasses and unable to properly see the radar display hardly alters the basic situation. He was standing into danger at high speed towards well known submerged rocks on a publicity lark and most of the crew and all of the passengers were unaware of the obvious peril he was recklessly placing them in.
Bump into rocks at slow speed and there is a need for a damage report. Bump into rocks at nearly full speed and the damage report is simple: Fatal. Sinking Fast. What did anyone think? That pumps could handle the amount of incoming water or that the incoming water would somehow not interfere with the operation of the engines that provide power to the pumps?
Way would come off really fast and the vessel could have turned towards the available port since the speed would decay so fast and rudder authority lost fairly promptly.
Bump into rocks at slow speed and there is a need for a damage report. Bump into rocks at nearly full speed and the damage report is simple: Fatal. Sinking Fast. What did anyone think? That pumps could handle the amount of incoming water or that the incoming water would somehow not interfere with the operation of the engines that provide power to the pumps?
Way would come off really fast and the vessel could have turned towards the available port since the speed would decay so fast and rudder authority lost fairly promptly.
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Sorry for the hiatus: Surgery.
To the extent that I have any readers, you almost had to find some other obscure blogger to follow as I very nearly kicked the bucket. I had to go under the knife and a Catholic priest showed up in the dimly lit room. Shortly after beginning his activities he realized he should be at the next bed and I noticed he had slithered silently away. I thought for awhile how strange it would have been for someone like me to have been pronounced sober and to die so far away from a casino.
You all know I have an intense and abiding hatred for Medicine and refer to doctors as practitioners of the black and evil arts. So for me to go to the ER you can be certain that it was not simply that I was facing death but that the dying process seemed protracted in that death would elude me as I repeatedly regained consciousness time and time again only to lose it a few minutes later.
Idiots! Discharge Instructions are aimed at the level of an idiot. Pronunciation guide for the word "infection". What absolute idiots.
You all know I have an intense and abiding hatred for Medicine and refer to doctors as practitioners of the black and evil arts. So for me to go to the ER you can be certain that it was not simply that I was facing death but that the dying process seemed protracted in that death would elude me as I repeatedly regained consciousness time and time again only to lose it a few minutes later.
Idiots! Discharge Instructions are aimed at the level of an idiot. Pronunciation guide for the word "infection". What absolute idiots.
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Harbor Masters Log re: Concordia
The Telegraph has provided a Harbor Masters log:
>22.06 Carabinieri (police) at Prato contact the Harbour Master’s office.
I understand a flurry of cell phone calls went out from passengers.
>A woman has called to say her mother is on the Concordia
>and the dining room ceiling has fallen on her and the crew
>have ordered passengers to don life jackets.
This may have been the truth though it is unknown if this was a general order broadcast throughout the ship or not. The extent of the gash was not known and apparently no one knew the rate at which water was entering the ship and no one was doing anything about pumps or plugging the leak either internally or externally. There was no data on which to base any estimate of time left afloat.
>22.14 Harbour Master contacts the Concordia asking if it is having problems.
No indication of what telephone number the Harbor Master called or who he spoke to. Perhaps this was a contact via radio.
>An officer replies that it’s only a blackout
>which has been going on for 20 minutes and
>which they will fix shortly.
Clearly this is public-relations hogwash.
The initial impact with the rocks was felt throughout the ship. A blackout does not cause massive shuddering. That "will fix in 20 minutes" is pure whimsey concocted out of thin air.
>Harbour Master asks about passengers donning life jackets,
>but the officer insists it’s only a power cut.
More lies. Why is this woman telling lies to the police on shore? To calm them?
>22.16 Guardia di Finanza (finance police) patrol boat G104
>is close to the island of Giglio and asks
>if it should check the Concordia.
This is perhaps motivated by hearing radio traffic, it seems strange that permission would be sought or there would be any hesitancy for the police boat to set a course for the passenger liner.
>22.17 Harbour Master informs superiors it suspects
>there is more wrong with the Concordia than
>the ship’s officer is letting on.
A wise conclusion but one wonders what makes him think that? The citizen report relayed to him by the police is being given far greater weight than the statements by the ship's officer.
>22.26 Harbour Master contacts ship’s captain, Francesco Schettino.
Unclear as to the manner of contact.
>He says the ship is taking on water through an opening on his left side
Apparently no statement of I hit a rock.
> and the ship is listing.
No statement of direction or degree. This is vital data.
>He says there are no dead or injured.
At this time, the Captain appears not to have had any reports of death or injuries.
>Harbor Master asks if he needs help.
Holed below the waterline, listing, ceilings collapsing, life vests being donned... but the Harbor Master didn't know if they needed help.
> The captain requests a tug boat.
Going to tow a listing vessel taking on water at an unknown rate are you?
Not going to get the passengers off first?
>22.06 Carabinieri (police) at Prato contact the Harbour Master’s office.
I understand a flurry of cell phone calls went out from passengers.
>A woman has called to say her mother is on the Concordia
>and the dining room ceiling has fallen on her and the crew
>have ordered passengers to don life jackets.
This may have been the truth though it is unknown if this was a general order broadcast throughout the ship or not. The extent of the gash was not known and apparently no one knew the rate at which water was entering the ship and no one was doing anything about pumps or plugging the leak either internally or externally. There was no data on which to base any estimate of time left afloat.
>22.14 Harbour Master contacts the Concordia asking if it is having problems.
No indication of what telephone number the Harbor Master called or who he spoke to. Perhaps this was a contact via radio.
>An officer replies that it’s only a blackout
>which has been going on for 20 minutes and
>which they will fix shortly.
Clearly this is public-relations hogwash.
The initial impact with the rocks was felt throughout the ship. A blackout does not cause massive shuddering. That "will fix in 20 minutes" is pure whimsey concocted out of thin air.
>Harbour Master asks about passengers donning life jackets,
>but the officer insists it’s only a power cut.
More lies. Why is this woman telling lies to the police on shore? To calm them?
>22.16 Guardia di Finanza (finance police) patrol boat G104
>is close to the island of Giglio and asks
>if it should check the Concordia.
This is perhaps motivated by hearing radio traffic, it seems strange that permission would be sought or there would be any hesitancy for the police boat to set a course for the passenger liner.
>22.17 Harbour Master informs superiors it suspects
>there is more wrong with the Concordia than
>the ship’s officer is letting on.
A wise conclusion but one wonders what makes him think that? The citizen report relayed to him by the police is being given far greater weight than the statements by the ship's officer.
>22.26 Harbour Master contacts ship’s captain, Francesco Schettino.
Unclear as to the manner of contact.
>He says the ship is taking on water through an opening on his left side
Apparently no statement of I hit a rock.
> and the ship is listing.
No statement of direction or degree. This is vital data.
>He says there are no dead or injured.
At this time, the Captain appears not to have had any reports of death or injuries.
>Harbor Master asks if he needs help.
Holed below the waterline, listing, ceilings collapsing, life vests being donned... but the Harbor Master didn't know if they needed help.
> The captain requests a tug boat.
Going to tow a listing vessel taking on water at an unknown rate are you?
Not going to get the passengers off first?
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Concordia Video
I've withdrawn my comments on the video as the ship depicted as being the Concordia is actually a totally different vessel and the mislabled youtube video uploader clearly knows that.
Friday, January 20, 2012
Unauthorized but not unsafe course deviation?
It has been pointed out that the UK Hydrographic Office charts do not depict rocks in the area wherein the Concordia first impacted rocks. What other charts that might be normally used in the area depict has not been discussed.
A prior voyage of August 14th involved an even closer approach to the island and a transit near the area of impact on the fatal voyage.
So the course deviation on the fatal voyage might at this time appear to have been an unwise and selfishly motivated deviation that hazarded the vessel unnecessarily and that was made in a cavalier manner but the actual track of the vessel appears to have closely approximated that of a prior voyage.
It is unknown if the 24 year old ballerina who is supporting the captain's skill and actions has any knowledge of navigation matters.
It seems that with the vessel holed on the port side any listing should have been to port and should have been rather modest but the vessel listed to starboard and soon heeled hard over. It may have been that in an attempt to achieve a safe harbor the captain made such a tight turn as to cause the shipped water to slosh to the starboard side of the vessel.
A prior voyage of August 14th involved an even closer approach to the island and a transit near the area of impact on the fatal voyage.
So the course deviation on the fatal voyage might at this time appear to have been an unwise and selfishly motivated deviation that hazarded the vessel unnecessarily and that was made in a cavalier manner but the actual track of the vessel appears to have closely approximated that of a prior voyage.
It is unknown if the 24 year old ballerina who is supporting the captain's skill and actions has any knowledge of navigation matters.
It seems that with the vessel holed on the port side any listing should have been to port and should have been rather modest but the vessel listed to starboard and soon heeled hard over. It may have been that in an attempt to achieve a safe harbor the captain made such a tight turn as to cause the shipped water to slosh to the starboard side of the vessel.
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