Flight 1549

"Miracle on the Hudson," my ass!

US Airways flight 1549's crash landing on the Hudson River yesterday was no such thing. It was the result of 10's - no, probably 100's - of thousands of man-hours. The Air Bus 320 has a ditch switch that seals off the plane for just such an emergency. That was the result of engineers applying scientific research to the design of the plane. More to the point, the entire plane is designed to survive a water landing.

Add to the facts that the plane was in the hands of a pilot with 40+ years of experience. Captain Chesley Sullenberger not only has decades of flight experience but is also an experienced accident investigator and instructor. He stayed cool, calm, and collected and made a very difficult landing safely. After putting the plane down in the water he walked the aisle of the plane twice to make sure eveyone got off safely. Let's say that again, after the plane was in the water Cpt. Chesley Sullenberger walked the aisle TWICE to ensure his passengers were safe.

With the plane in the water and people safely deplaning rescuers responded immediately. If there was any major amount of luck here it was that the crash was in a heavily traveled water way. NPR this morning mentioned a police rescue diver who dropped from a police helicopter to pull one struggling passenger out of the water.

That 155 people survived the plane crash with no reports of serious injury was not a miracle. It is the result of science, engineering, experience, and fast responding rescuers. Calling it a miracle disrespects the people that did all the work.

Protected Waters

Bush today issued an executive order protecting nearly 200,000 mi² miles of Pacific Ocean. Two years ago he did a similar thing around Hawaii. This is a good thing. Good for him.

More CPD Good Deeds

This blog is not going to start fellating the CPD on a regular basis but here's another incident where the Chicago Police Department does the job they are paid for and rescue another person from burning to death.

CPD Hero

The news for the Chicago Police Department has been dominated by the bad for over a year now. It is easy to get lost in all the scandals and beatings and apparent cover ups. Despite counting several police officers as friends, and one as one of my best friends, I'm at the point where I can no longer give the police the benefit of the doubt when a new story breaks. There are too many "rouge officers" for that term to hold much meaning.

BUT DON'T FORGET There are still more good officers out there than bad and they are doing a dangerous job on our behalf. Stories like this need publicity too! A police officer, responding to a burning building, caught a child that was dropped from a window to safety. As I write this the officer's name is not published in the paper but s/he performed a great, if seemingly innocuous, act of heroism.

One Step At A Time

San Diego Mayer Jerry Sanders backs gay marriage rights after having publicly opposed it for the past couple of years. In announcing his support for equal marriage rights he also revealed that his adult daughter is a lesbian.

In the end, I could not look any of them in the face and tell them that their relationships -- their very lives -- were any less meaningful than the marriage that I share with my wife Rana

I remember when I discovered that one of my closest friends was gay. We'd been friends for years. We played softball and racquetball together. I had keys to his house, sometimes crashed on his couch and regularly used his washer and drier.

When I realized he was gay I didn't come out and say anything to any one for a few days. I think I was a slightly nonplussed. A couple of days later I asked his younger brother, subtly, about it. He confirmed what I knew. By the time it already didn’t matter to me. I never had anything against homosexuals. I just had never known that I knew any. My friend was still my friend. He was still the same guy I had always known. I still played sports with him, still watched Bevis and Butthead and The Muppets at his house before going out to the bars, still did my laundry at his house.

Ultimately, this is what is going to change opinions across the country. As more and more people realize they have known and befriended gays and lesbians their entire lives the prejudices will begin to disappear. It may not be as fast as many would like and there will always be residual hatred by those that don’t like people different than them. Ultimately though, and it seems to be happening quicker and quicker now, equality will come.

Who are you?

And what did you do with Texas?

In a completely shocking move Texas Governor Rick Perry commuted the death sentence of Kenneth Foster after the Texas parole board recommended 6 to 1 that commutation be granted.

Foster was a driver during a string of muggings he and his friends were committing. He admits that. One of those friends ended up shooting and killing a man that did not produce his wallet fast enough. Foster deserves his prison term and is not a good man. Even chalking up the robberies to youth he needs to do time. The killing was not premeditated and not part of the "plan" as I understand the situation.

This is not Shrub's and GoneZo's Texas anymore.

City Clerks Office - Responsive!

On June 20th or 21st I went on line to and ordered my 2007-08 city vehicle sticker. The receipt generated said I should expect my sticker in 14 days and if I didn't receive it I should email the city clerks office. Well, I waited past the 14 day mark. There was the July 4th holiday and what not. Plus, you know, it is the post office in Chicago.

Still, as of July 15th, the end of the moratorium period for the old sticker, I had still not received my sticker. So I emailed the City Clerk's office. Late in the afternoon they responded and said they had created a temporary sticker. It would be good for 30 days. I could either come to City Hall to pick it up or they could mail it to me. This mail thing isn't working so well and since I work downtown anyway I went to pick it up. They had it waiting for me. All I had to do is show my driver's license.

As of today, I still haven't received my permenant sticker. So I emailed the City Clerk back and asked if the sticker could be declared lost in the mail and have a new sticker issued. Within minutes they responded, yes. I could get a new sticker, free of charge. They warned that they would only issue one free replacement sticker. This obviously is to prevent fraud. Again, I could pick it up or have it mailed to me. Again, I decided to pick it up. I emailed them back to ask if the sticker would be available at 12:30PM. Again, a minute later they responded, "Yes."

Nearly everyone has a "horror story" of dealing with government. Things don't get done. The wait in line is intollerable. The employees don't care and are unresponsive. I could relate some of those stories myself. But I must give praise to the Chicago City Clerks office in this case. They were responsive and they were helpful.

Thanks!