Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Infrastructure week. at last.

Insiders who complain to politico: please report to the white house office of shut the fuck up.

I didn’t have alien invasion on my 2023 BINGO card.

The truth is, these are not very bright guys, and things got out of hand.

Something needs to be done about our bogus SCOTUS.

Proof that we need a blogger ethics panel.

They love authoritarianism, but only when they get to be the authoritarians.

fuckem (in honor of the late great efgoldman)

The cruelty is the point; the law be damned.

šŸŽ¶ Those boots were made for mockinā€™ šŸŽµ

When someone says they ā€œlove freedomā€, rest assured they donā€™t mean yours.

Good lord, these people are nuts.

Take hopelessness and turn it into resilience.

Too often we hand the biggest microphones to the cynics and the critics who delight in declaring failure.

Teach a man to fish, and he’ll sit in a boat all day drinking beer.

Their freedom requires your slavery.

It may be funny to you motherfucker, but itā€™s not funny to me.

Let’s finish the job.

Anyone who bans teaching American history has no right to shape Americaā€™s future.

You can’t love your country only when you win.

If you tweet it in all caps, that makes it true!

Russian mouthpiece, go fuck yourself.

A thin legal pretext to veneer over their personal religious and political desires

Republican obstruction dressed up as bipartisanship. Again.

You are here: Home / Politics / America / Some Labor Day Weekend Planning Tips From Your US Marine Corps

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137Comments

  3. 3.

    Jerzy Russian

    It is going to get close to 100F here, with relatively high humidity. I might have to turn on the AC.

  17. 17.

    raven

    I wonder if they can still count martial you if you get too bad of a sunburn because your young ass is government property?

  19. 19.

    Jerzy Russian

    @raven: 90+ in both temperature blows. Probably blows even worse for the players.

    It is pretty hot up and down all of the California coast. I was listening to the Giants and Cardinals game last night, and the announcer said the game was something like the 4th hottest game ever played in that stadium. They have a day game today, so it will be even hotter. I think the Padres and Dodgers also have a day game, and the Aztecs play in early evening. Fun times.

  20. 20.

    trollhattan

    @Gin & Tonic:
    Supposed to break about Tuesday (fingers crossed) so you’ll probably luck out. (Other than being in San Jose.)

    p.s. Load the Zillow app in your phone and prepare to be amazed at the disconnect between the ranch houses you’re looking at and the price of those ranch houses.

  22. 22.

    Jerzy Russian

    @Gin & Tonic:

    Iā€™m supposed to be in the San Jose area next week. Am I going to die?

    Temperatures are supposed to drop by 10 to 15 degrees (F), starting tomorrow. Mid to late September in the Bay area is usually pretty nice.

  24. 24.

    ? ?? Goku (aka The Hope of the Universe) ? ?

    It’s cold here in NE Ohio. 61 right now, maybe 65 later. Had to move the picnic from the back deck to the garage.

    Phillyā€™s Italian-American Community Fighting To Keep Columbus Day
    September 1, 2017 3:29 PM
    By Paul Kurtz

    http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2017/09/01/phillys-italian-american-community-fighting-to-keep-columbus-day/

    PHILADELPHIA (CBS) ā€” Los Angeles has joined Seattle, Portland, and many other cities in replacing the annual Columbus day celebration with Native American Day.

    But that wonā€™t happen in Philadelphia if the Italian-American community has anything to say about it.

    ā€œWe need to learn from history, not take down history,ā€ said Marco Circelli, Executive Director of the Filitalia Museum on Passyunk Avenue.

    He tells visitors the story of Christopher Columbus and other Italian explorers who paved a path to the new world. But in recent years, more than two dozen U.S. cities have decided to turn their backs on Columbus, and instead celebrate the offspring of the natives he annihilated.

    Thatā€™s not sitting well with Jody Della Barba, one of the organizers of Philadelphiaā€™s annual Columbus Day parade.

    ā€œI think itā€™s a disgrace to try to rewrite history. Itā€™s an assault on Italian-Americans, because Christopher Columbus is the symbol of Italian-Americans since the late 1800ā€™s, since the mass migration,ā€ she said.

    Della Barba says the recent flap over the Frank Rizzo statue has already primed the pump, so City Council better not get any ideas.

    ā€œThey will see more Italian people than they ever saw in their life, because this is an assault on every Italian-American in this country,ā€ said Della Barba.

    Have never understood how removing statues and renaming holidays is “rewriting history”. And “Italian-Americans” these days are considered white so its not like they have it as bad as Native Americans still do.

  28. 28.

    Kelly

    I have a cousin that is a retired Army Command Sergeant Major, 30+ years. Our birthdays are 2 months apart. In spite of regular visits at family gatherings I had no idea what a big deal a Sergeant Major is until he invited his Mom and my Mom to stay with his family in Hawaii when he was stationed there. Mom’s description of soldiers reactions as they saw him were really interesting especially when they went thru some kind of checkpoint with him in beach clothing. Still just my childhood playmate when we get together.

  30. 30.

    Jerzy Russian

    @Jeffro: As kids many years ago, we called that particular beer company “Buttwiper”. I myself have no opinion on the beer itself.

  34. 34.

    trollhattan

    @Jerzy Russian:
    Yeah, that would be a horrid development. A buddy lived in PB in the ’80s and I relished visiting him–foggy and cool in the summer, sunny and warm in winter. Not to mention party central. Win-win-win.

  36. 36.

    scav

    I just mentally photoshopped an orange face with long red ties into all shots where the cashier tossed a cell-phone and the interaction right at the end.

  37. 37.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Kelly: A good Command Sergeant Major (or Navy/Air Force/Coast Guard equivalent) is worth my weight in gold. A bad one is a nightmare.

    In Iraq the Soldiers in the brigade combat team I was assigned to talked about our Command Sergeant Major (CSM) in almost mythic terms. They believed that if they were in trouble he was personally coming to help. Our battalion command sergeants major were also excellent. I went on to work with one at USAWC – he was the first USAWC Command Sergeant Major. Great guy. My favorite Command Sergeant Major story from Iraq, however, is about the CSM from our artillery battalion. Command Sergeant Major Clark.

    One day his patrol shows up stalled on the blue force tracker. Not moving for a prolonged period. So the calls start going over the comms network to see what the problem is. Of course he’s in part of the area of responsibility with no comms signals (we had a huge area, a lot of it remote, and comms were sometimes a challenge). After he couldn’t be reached, and neither could anyone on his patrol, it was assumed they were in trouble. So the calls went out from brigade for any of the other elements from his battalion or from the brigade in the general area to respond. One of the other battalion assets responds and goes screaming into the sector, weapons free. Now the calls over the comms are time to target, warnings to the CSM and his Soldiers to seek cover, relief is coming in hot. Backup arrives and finds that Command Sergeant Major Clark and his Soldiers are dismounted, away from their humvees and MRAPS, and surrounded by a bunch of really excited Iraqi kids. He’d liberated a couple of cases of sweet rolls from the Dining Facility that morning, took them, toys, sports equipment, and essential supplies (food, water filtration kits, hygiene essentials, clothing), and went off to do a humanitarian assistance drop. Charlie Battery found a bunch of sugared up Iraqi kids squealing with delight, kicking soccer balls around, while CSM Clark handed out supplies to their parents and grandparents. They were too far away from the trucks for the comms signals to get to them.

    That man got it. Exactly what we were supposed to be doing there. I loved to go do humanitarian assistance drops and patrols with him and his Soldiers.

  39. 39.

    raven

    @Jerzy Russian: Shit, I had pretty long hair by Army standard and those motherfucking lifer assholes made us get haircuts before we ETS’s. I didn’t get a haircut for six years and the only reason I did was because I broke my back in a car wreck, they taped my hair up and when they took the tape off 2 months later it was badly matted.

  40. 40.

    raven

    @Adam L Silverman: I remember our first shirt breaking down in tears as we got ready to go on a convoy through the Delta. He was despondent that he was sending us out there and he couldn’t come.

  41. 41.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    The Rough Beast went back to TX and this time attempted to interact with people on a human level.

    Dave Dameshekā€Verified account @ Dameshek
    “Have a good time, everybody” – Trump in Houston just now

  42. 42.

    Kelly

    @Adam L Silverman: My cousin and I played soldiers or cowboys and indians as children. As our careers progressed we talk about our next bump up our career ladders. So when made SGT Major it seemed like one more step. It was after Mom’s Hawaii trip and a holiday discussion with him about going for Command SGT Major that I really understood what he’d accomplished.

  44. 44.

    Adam L Silverman

    @? ?? Goku (aka The Hope of the Universe) ? ?: @NoraLenderbee: Almost all of the Columbus statues and Columbus Day celebrations are the result of Italian Americans reaching the point where they were considered white. There was a huge movement to put the statues up and to create the Federal holiday by the community to demonstrate their pride that there would be no America without Italians. In this case Columbus despite the fact that the continent is named for Amerigo Vespucci. I fully understand why a lot of this upsets Native Americans, but these statues are not in the same category, not even close, to the Confederate statues put up during Jim Crow through to the Civil Rights period in the 1960s, which should come down unless on private property. And those are categorically different than battlefield markers and monuments, which are in the right place.

  46. 46.

    HinTN

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: Substituted Dead Guy Ale! Great stuff. I took a six pack to my best friend’s wake. Had minor, and thankfully unfounded, trepidation regarding buoys this would be received but was relieved when his widow, and our good friend, burst into a great guffaw and produced his favorite single malt to wash it down.

    Don’t forget to hydrate!

  47. 47.

    Adam L Silverman

    @raven: Our brigade CSM was a hell of a Soldier. I’ve been very lucky to have worked with, predominantly, good officers and good senior enlisted and good warrants/senior warrants. But I know those who haven’t and those stories are the stuff of nightmares.

  51. 51.

    Adam L Silverman

    @raven: One of my closest friends, who I recruited to join my team in Iraq, and who I teach aikido with, was an E4 during Vietnam. 47th Support Battalion. He was a medic. Never made it to Vietnam, every time they thought they were going they got sent somewhere else. Like Sinai. Anyhow when we linked up with our brigade in garrison before deploying it turns out that their Forward Support Battalion was the 47th. He was a wee bit worried. Apparently he had gotten in trouble at one point when assigned to its previous incarnation for inciting a mutiny…

  54. 54.

    Adam L Silverman

    @raven: Always good to have a goal. The worst rank/name combination I ever saw was when we were at Benning to do our equipment draw and gear draw. One of the Soldiers there to do the same thing before deploying was a major. His last name was Ariolah. Pronounced like the body part. So…

  56. 56.

    Ruckus

    @Tinare:
    The good thing about Bud light is that your body doesn’t have to process it on the way through. Either end, same exact quality.

  63. 63.

    Wapiti

    The worst (Army) Command Sergeant Major stories I heard were second hand, and involved the CSM screwing soldiers’ wives when the guys were in the field.

  65. 65.

    raven

    @HinTN:

    In both Doctoral programs, courses can cover curriculum development and ways to improve learning in the classroom. As your coursework progresses, PhD in Education programs generally require work that is conducted outside of the traditional classroom, whereas EdD programs generally only require in-classroom work. If you are working towards your EdD, you will likely study curriculum geared towards solving problems in the educational system as an administrator or trainer and much of the focus will be on application of your knowledge base to systems of learning.

    There are a few curriculum differences in the two courses of study. While both degrees require a set amount of hours and a cumulative project, often projects for Ed. D. programs consist of workshops and research in the community, such as implementing a program in a classroom and reporting the findings. Meanwhile, since the goal of a Ph. D. in education is to continue teaching and researching, generally internships in education and research are required along with a dissertation to obtain your degree.

  67. 67.

    Ruckus

    @raven:
    Same here on the hair. In the navy you wore a dixie cup with dress uniform or a ball cap at all other times, indoors or out. So it was pretty easy to have at least longish hair and up to actual long if you were very careful. When my discharge order came in, bastards made me get a haircut. I can’t remember exactly how long before I cut it but it was also years. I also have remained unshaven for for 44 yrs. Trimmed yes, clean shaven NFW. Now of course the forehead has not just receded, it’s a full rout.
    Had a work acquaintance who has a pony tail down to his butt for the same reason, but I knew him for at least 10 yrs before I knew it was long because he wore it up under a ball cap while working.

  69. 69.

    raven

    It happened to be his new chief of staff, John F. Kelly.

    Mr. Kelly, the former Marine general brought in five weeks ago as the successor to Reince Priebus, reacted calmly, but he later told other White House staff members that he had never been spoken to like that during 35 years of serving his country. In the future, he said, he would not abide such treatment, according to three people familiar with the exchange.

  72. 72.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Trump announcing a National Prayer Day– “We haven’t done that in a while in our country”. I have no idea if Obama ever proclaimed a National Prayer Day. It would be nice if he didn’t but this country is what it is. I’m an atheist and I still find it obscene when this Beast prattles on about religion. It’s like when he says the word love, it just makes him creepier.

    ETA: Alex Witt giving him rave reviews for his performance today

  73. 73.

    Mnemosyne

    Today it seems to have cooled off to “only” 100 degrees, but between that, the smoke from the La Tuna Canyon fire, and my lingering cold, I’m staying indoors until it’s time to go out to dinner tonight. We have the A/C set to 80 and about 6 fans going, including 2 ceiling fans.

  74. 74.

    Ruckus

    @raven:
    Wonder how that talk is going to go behind closed doors. I’d imagine that someone who has the record of Kelly would have had to have given that speech at least once before, but never to someone who had absolutely no idea what the proper way to deal with it is.
    I think many adults have had to give that one before, I did once in the navy and once in real life. The guy in real life didn’t have a clue in the end. At least the E7 chief did. But he may have liked hearing it or was just as clueless as we expected, I wasn’t the first to give it to him, sure I wasn’t the last.

  76. 76.

    Ruckus

    @Ruckus:
    Oh you weren’t talking about ME!
    So yes, Lifer Swine.
    Many were OK, some were assholes and with extra medals for same.

  80. 80.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Sweet Jesus, a “Democratic strategist” just called trump our “father-in-chief”

    Alex Witt is all in on the Pivot. Her word of the day is “tactile”, trump is touching people, and it’s touching! He’s pivoted to grandfather!

  81. 81.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Ruckus: “Prayer? Yeah, people down there like all that stuff, right? Should I mention Two Corinthians, or should go bigger, like Article 12 Corinthians? Omarosa wears a cross, get her in here.”

  84. 84.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Glad I waited a second before turning that dreck off– I got to hear an old lady say on camera how happy she was to meet the president and his wife Melivanka!

    He wishes

  85. 85.

    Ruckus

    @raven:
    My bad, I think it’s a reflex action anymore. Some people called others lifers if they made as much rank as possible, because of course doing your job and wanting to get paid less unreasonably for it meant you were a lifer. Must explain that making rank in the navy was a job test and you advanced if you passed and didn’t get disapproval from command. I understand in the army/marines you made rank if you weren’t in trouble and you got approval from everyone above you in command. A rather big difference between the two.

  86. 86.

    raven

    @Ruckus: Aw no big deal. I’m cursed by the ghosts of stupid, redneck racist fucks who couldn’t spell cat if you spotted them a C.

  87. 87.

    Ruckus

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:
    That’s fucking disgusting.
    Tactile? At least there are some strong chemicals in the Houston water now that might wash off that stench. So they take the skin too, as long as they cleanse the wound.

  94. 94.

    Jim Parish

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: Yes, Obama did proclaim National Prayer Day every year he was in office. What he didn’t ever do was hold a public prayer ceremony on that day. (Some presidents do, some don’t, some do it some years and not others.)

  98. 98.

    Lizzy L

    @Ruckus: For real.

    Seriously, water is tastier than Bud Light. STROH’S is tastier than Bud Light. (Anyone remember Stroh’s? Awful stuff. And then there was Stroh’s Light. Or maybe it was “Lite.”)

  101. 101.

    Ruckus

    @Lizzy L:
    Normally I would have used a substance other than water as comparison but I have no idea what that tastes like and am not about to find out. BTW some people pay to have people assault them with that liquid as part of a supposedly sexual arrangement. Not my cup of …… if you know what I mean.

  102. 102.

    Ruckus

    @burnspbesq:
    So cool then?
    It’s 97 here now and I’m what 30 miles from you. I work 16 miles east and it’s 99 there now. I do believe that it will get hotter than the 100 predicted.

  103. 103.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Adam L Silverman: Columbus? I did not know that. Fascinating fellow. Five hundred years after he died he inspired an episode of the Sopranos that made us miss Tony’s coma dream.

  104. 104.

    burnspbesq

    @Ruckus:

    We’re just about on the boundary of where you get some benefit from the ocean. I’m sure that it would suck to be over the ridge in Placentia/Yorba Linda/Brea.

  105. 105.

    Ruckus

    @burnspbesq:
    Yes. The only benefit that I think I get from the ocean is that I could drive the 25 miles to there in maybe an hour and spend another hour finding a parking space and then walk a mile to the beach where I probably couldn’t find enough sand to put my towel down and work up a good sunburn. Either that or I am getting a huge benefit from the ocean and it would otherwise be 120 here now.

  106. 106.

    burnspbesq

    @Ruckus:

    I’ve been out here long enough to remember when Solana Beach was outside the San Diego suburbs, and there was about a two-mile perimeter of empty land around the federal building in Laguna Niguel. Things have changed, and not for the better.

  108. 108.

    divF

    @Mnemosyne: We just got a slightly panicky phone call from a young friend who just moved to North Hollywood. He was sitting out on his porch and saw two fighter jets fly over, close enough to see the markings. We reassured him that no one is going to war with us.

    Are they using F-18’s to fly reconnaissance for the fire ?

  109. 109.

    Adam L Silverman

    @divF: They are probably just moving equipment around from one place to another. Or its a training and/or qualification flight. As in having to fly so many hours and make so many landings, land or deck. Those are the simplest and most likely explanations. The Carl Vinson is back at home port in San Diego, I would guess these are part of the air group.

  110. 110.

    Mnemosyne

    @divF:
    @Adam L Silverman:

    Actually, divF is probably right — they’re probably participating in the firefighting going on right now. There’s a very nasty fire in nearby Glendale (La Tuna Canyon) that is currently not well-controlled.

    I freely admit that I’m not sure exactly what they use the F-18s for with wildfires, but I feel confident that that’s why they’re around.

  111. 111.

    satby

    Just recovering after a long market day, and that clip made me LOL! My Marine son took me shopping at that PX when I visited him at Pendleton.

  115. 115.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Mnemosyne: No. We do not use F-18s, of any configuration, to fight forest or wild fires. They are either on training, quals, or they’re moving equipment from San Diego to somewhere else. That’s it.

  117. 117.

    Mnemosyne

    @Adam L Silverman:

    They apparently use them as lead planes for the superscoopers, but I can’t find a good US reference to them. Apparently Canada calls theirs the Red Flash.

    California is … a little different.

    ETA: It may also be that they’re doing a routine flight on a different flight path and/or at a lower than normal altitude so they can stay out of the way of the firefighting planes and helicopters nearby.

  118. 118.

    Mnemosyne

    @satby:

    Luckily, I am very far away, relatively speaking. If the fire got to me, we’d be talking about a huge urban fire the likes of which hasn’t been seen since the Great Chicago Fire. Friends of mine are standing by to see if they have to evacuate, though, since they live in the foothills.

    Mostly, it’s a lot of ash and other crap in the air. It looks like a cloudy day outside because of it.

  119. 119.

    debbie

    @Ruckus:

    I lived in NH in the mid-1970s. During a 104-degree heat wave, I dragged myself out to Hampton Beach, found a spot near the water, and then realized the wind was coming off the land and the water was too cold to even stand in. My friends had gone camping for the weekend. I don’t know who was the most miserable.

  120. 120.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Mnemosyne: California doesn’t own any F18s. Not the older CF-18s or the new FA-18 Superhornets. The closest the California Air National Guard has are F-15 (Strike) Eagles. And these assets are not compatible with a firefighting mission.

  121. 121.

    Mnemosyne

    @Adam L Silverman:

    I’m thinking US Forestry Service but, upon further thought, it’s probably my ETA above — they’re using a different flight path and/or lower altitude to stay out of the way of the ongoing aerial firefighting. Superscoopers are flying back and forth between the fire and Lake Castaic.

  122. 122.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Mnemosyne: The US Forest Service doesn’t own multi-purpose strike fighters either. I don’t mean to be rude, but the only people in the US that own multi-purpose strike fighters are the Navy, the Air Force, and the Marine Corps, including the appropriate Reserve and National Guard components.

    Seriously, think about it for a second. What is the US Forestry Service going to do with multi-purpose strike fighters? These are tools/weapons of war. They are not intended or suitable for routine or even extreme forestry service work.
    This is the list, for USDA’s Forest Service, of their aircraft:
    https://www.fs.fed.us/managing-land/fire/planes

    Planes
    The Forest Service uses planes of many types and sizes to manage wildland fires. Some are owned by the Forest Service, many are leased or contracted and during times of high fire activity, military aircraft may be activated. When aircraft arenā€™t being used to support wildland fires, they may be used for other natural resource management activities, such as conducting aerial surveys of wildlife populations and forest health.

    Unmanned Aircraft Systems
    Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) have great potential for use on wildland fires and in natural resource management. In contrast, unauthorized public UAS flights over or near wildfires threaten the safety of aerial and ground firefighters and users are encouraged to ā€œknow before you flyā€ (link is external)

    Aerial Supervision Module/Lead Plane
    Aerial Supervision Modules/Leadplanes coordinate, direct, and evaluate airtanker operations. Aerial Supervision Module/Leadplane pilots and/or air tactical supervisors communicate with firefighters on the ground, other fire aircraft, and airtanker pilots. They release white smoke to show airtanker pilots where to drop fire retardant. Aircraft Types: Beechcraft King Air 90 and Beechcraft King Air 200.

    Air Attack
    Air Tactical or Air Attack planes coordinate aerial firefighting aircraft over wildland fires. They provide vital eyes in the sky for firefighters on the ground, and ensure safe aviation operations. Aircraft Types: Twin Commander 500 and 600 are most common.

    Smokejumper Aircraft
    Smokejumper aircraft deliver Smokejumpers and cargo by parachute for initial attack and extended support of wildland fires. Each of the aircraft can carry eight to ten Smokejumpers and their initial supply of gear. Aircraft types: DeHavilland DH-6 300 series Twin Otter, Shorts Sherpa C-23A and SD3-60, Dornier 228, and CASA 212.

    Single Engine Airtanker
    Single Engine Airtankers (SEATs) can deliver up to 800 gallons of fire retardant to support firefighters on the ground. These small airplanes can reload and operate in areas where larger airtankers cannot. Aircraft types: Air Tractor AT-802.

    Large Airtankers
    Large Airtankers (LATs) can deliver from 2,000 to 4,000 gallons of fire retardant to support firefighters on the ground. Aircraft types: P2V, HC-130H, BAe-146, MD-87, C-130Q, RJ85, C-130 H & J equipped with Modular Airborne Fire Fighting Systems (MAFFS).

    Water Scooper
    Water Scoopers are amphibious aircraft that skim the surface of a water body and scoop water into an onboard tank and then drop it on a fire. Aircraft types: Bombardier CL-415 and Air Tractor Fire Boss.

    Very Large Airtankers (VLAT)
    Very Large Airtankers (VLATs) are capable of delivering over 8,000 gallons of fire retardant to support firefighters on the ground. Aircraft Type: DC-10.

    Resource Management
    The Forest Service uses airplanes for a wide variety of other missions in managing public lands. These missions include forest health ā€“ and wildlife surveys, law enforcement, gathering infrared data, fire detection, and transporting personnel and cargo. Aircraft types: Cessna 206, Aero Commander 500, King Air 200, DeHavilland DHC-2 Beaver, Piper Super Cub, and Cessna 185.

  124. 124.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Mnemosyne: I did a search for that myself. That is the only reference I saw. Yes, that is an F-18 of some configuration. What in Deity’s name the Canadians are using it for in regard to firefighting I have no idea. And since I can’t find any description of what they’re using it for either, I don’t think I’m going to get one soon. So great, they have a single F-18 as part of their equipment package. Great. When you see an F-18 with a maple leaf on the tail flying back and forth over the fire in California send me an email. Until then we, as in the US, are not using F-18s to fight forest fires in the greater Los Angeles area.

  125. 125.

    Ruckus

    @Mnemosyne:
    They are probably flying to Edwards. There are many, many restrictions about flights in the entire LA basin because of the number of flights in/out of LAX, Ontario (which is under the incoming flight path going into LAX) Burbank, Van Nuys, Whiteman, John Wayne, Chino, Santa Monica. I may have missed an airport or three and that doesn’t even account for all the helicopters, news, fire, police/sheriff, ambulance. And all of this over heavily populated cities.

  126. 126.

    Ruckus

    @Adam L Silverman:
    I’d bet the Canadians are using it for observation and maybe water drop planning. When they have fires they have to cover lots of ground to get places and speed might be of essence in planning what resources go where. Especially as they sometimes have multiple very large fires happening in remote areas that air drops are the only reasonable way to fight.

  128. 128.

    Mnemosyne

    @Ruckus:

    Yes, that’s what I said after second thought — divF’s nephew probably saw them in that unusual spot over North Hollywood because they had to change their usual flight path and/or altitude to stay out of the way of the nearby firefighting efforts. I bet a lot of flights going into Burbank and even LAX are having to change their approaches to get out of the way, and plenty of people in the LA Basin are probably wondering why a Southwest Airlines 757 just flew overhead out of nowhere.

    But Adam’s the one who decided to turn it into a pissing match. ?

  129. 129.

    Ruckus

    @Adam L Silverman:
    Well it’s probably a retired early fighter, not the latest model as well. Bought for a song (or given to them for free even) and with the radar and other sensors that plane most likely has, might actually be a good plane for that, given the territory and distances.

  130. 130.

    Ruckus

    @Mnemosyne:
    He didn’t really, it’s not at all a logical plane for the task, especially here in the states. In Canada, as I said it may make some sense, especially if it were say a B or D model, which are the early two seat models. Look at the planes that the US Forest service use, none of them have anything like the speed or handling of fighter, it isn’t necessary or reasonable, especially given the cost of purchase or operation.
    It’s like purchasing a Ferrari 812 solely for commuting 40 miles each way 5 days a week on the 405. It’s entirely and extremely the wrong car.
    I mean I can see why you think he’s arguing with you but he really isn’t.

  131. 131.

    Mnemosyne

    @Ruckus:

    It is not normal to see F-18s flying low over North Hollywood. We’re trying to figure out why those planes would do something that abnormal. Saying, oh, it’s just a routine flight doesn’t actually answer the original question, because there’s nothing routine about those planes flying that low over that part of the city.

  133. 133.

    J R in WV

    @raven:

    Dude, what a way to come home!!! FUCK LBJ !!

    I got to see a lot of good R&R in Chicago while in school at Great Lakes, and then got liberty twice in NOLA during Mardi Gras, so that was good. Never left the continental US in my hitch.

  135. 135.

    Ruckus

    @Mnemosyne:
    Actually I’ve seen fighters fly over LA on lots of occasions. Not of course the same thing but the B2 bombers flying directly overhead on Jan 1, but also on odd occasions. Also there used to be a fly over of WWII fighters in the valley once a week. And I’ve seen an SR71 fly so low next to my shop that I could see the pilots face. Now that was a special occasion, the day they took the SR 71 out of regular spy service. Was talking to a customer and we heard a rather distinct jet sound but couldn’t tell what it was. Customer said, it’s probably the SR71, I told him he was crazy and we looked to the south about 5 miles away and could see that it was in fact an SR71. It turned around and flew directly over the high voltage supply lines next door to my shop in Valencia, flying right to left. Just as we could see in the cockpit and see his face the pilot turned 90 deg right and hit full afterburner. He proceeded to fly directly away from us and over the Lockheed Skunk works, which was about 5 miles away. Just before he went supersonic he cut the throttles and all went pretty silent. So yes I have seen quite a few military aircraft flying over the skies of LA. Including fighters, and those twice over the last 6 months.

  136. 136.

    pappenheimer

    Regarding unfortunate rank/name combinations, I once gave an aircrew weather briefing to a Captain Krash. And thought his promotion might be some time coming…

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