Category: Rants

In which I go off on the stupidity of politics, politicians, world affairs, religion, and whatever else I deem to be screwed up.

Secondhand Smoke Sucks!

Posted on by chappyshi

Spring is in the air which is great but…  I get to open up my apartment, air out the cat dander, and freshen things up a bit.  Sadly, my downstairs neighbors, who are friends, regularly go out on their porch and smoke.  My balcony is right over their porch and if my sliding glass doors are open,  which they are likely to be in this fine weather, the cigarette smoke wafts into my apartment all the way to my back  bedroom where I sleep.

Now, it is not a huge issue, the smell doesn’t seem to  linger, and I cannot really do anything about it but the other night it was annoying.  I was tossing and turning at 1:30 AM, had the doors open to cool down my apartment and had to deal with the secondhand smoke.  I was not a happy camper!

Waste Disposal Blues

Posted on by chappyshi

Below is most of what I sent to my apartment manager regarding illegal dumping of waste on our apartment complex.  Names and such are redacted to protect those  presumed innocent until proven guilty.

“I am sorry to bother you since I understand you are out of town but I need to cover my bases on this one as I am know I have pissed off one of your maintenance staff.  I viewed him earlier today emptying the contents of a carpet cleaning unit on the lawn below/in front of my apartment.  I surmised that this was not legal and subsequent research has shown that my suspicions are most likely true.

I wanted to talk to you about it but when I went in the office I found not only that you were not there but that the maintenance staff in question was so I deferred reporting the incident at that time.  Later in the day as I passed by the office, I just couldn’t let go of it and in hopes that the maintenance staff member was not there, I decided to tell your office staff about the incident.

Unfortunately, the maintenance staff member was in the office and I put myself in a spot where it would have looked weird if I walked out again without saying anything.  Accordingly I brought the subject up to your assistant manager, the office assistant and the maintenance man.  Needless to say it was an uncomfortable situation.  Your maintenance man was on the spot and obviously disgruntled with my revelation.

According to the maintenance man, disposing of carpet cleaning waste on the lawn is commonplace if not the norm.  It however should be disposed of through a home/business sewer system and where not applicable at an authorized disposal facility.  It should not be dumped on lawns, pavement, or storm sewers.  I do not have pictures of the action but do have pictures of the residue from the dumping of the waste.

I want ….. Apartments to take action to come up with a legal and ethical means of disposing said waste and I do not want to be a victim of retribution by the management or staff of the organization for reporting this incident.  Please assure me that you will follow up with me on this.”

I am waiting for a response….

Puke in My Shoes

Posted on by chappyshi

Nice  to get up today to feed my cat, have breakfast, and return to the fartsac to find that the cat had barfed on my comforter.   Thankfully he’s only done that twice in four years.  Still I was pissed…especially since I didn’t realize what he had done it until I flipped the covers back to climb into the sac and pulled the  now soiled flannel sheet back onto my bare legs.  Nothing quite like the feel of cold cat vomit on your legs to get your ire up.

To top it all off, I pulled the soiled sheet and comforter off the bed to put them in the washer.  Having done that, I stepped into my slippers only to realize that the cat had barfed into one of them.  Now I know why they are called “slippers.”

In Afghanistan, High-tech Intel Fails Commanders, as Does Seeming Lack of Low-tech intel, Boots on the Ground Needed

Posted on by chappyshi

According the  Washington Post article, “As Marja assault progresses, coalition considers challenges in rebuilding area,” dated 20100221, the commanders of the 5000 U.S. Marines inserted into the Marja area of Afghanistan (long standing Taliban stronghold crisscrossed by impassible canals (built by the U.S. after the Soviets left) and center of opium production) expected, based on overhead imagery, to find a functioning local government and police force.

However “…when Marine officers reached the area, they discovered that two-dimensional images can be deceiving. What they had thought was the flat roof of the municipal building turned out to be a concrete foundation, and the police station was a bombed-out schoolhouse.”   I worked in military intelligence (yes, oxymoron, I know) many years ago.  One tenet we followed then and I assumed, probably erroneously, we followed now is that we should base significant actions on intelligence that can be confirmed by at least two sources.

The U.S. military has been in Afghanistan since 2001.  Now, as I stated previously, Marja has been a Taliban stronghold for some time.  Presumably it is not an easy area to insert a U.S. intelligence officer or a Special Forces team without detection.  Nonetheless, I find it very hard to believe that there was no intelligence on the ground in Marja (human intelligence, HUMINT in the vernacular of the U.S. intel community) that couldn’t verify the status of the local government center or police station.  The Marines did not go in there without warning…in fact there was plenty of warning…to give civilians the opportunity to evacuate.

That unfortunately gave the Taliban plenty of opportunity to set a bunch of IED’s to welcome the Marines.  What a blast to have you here, eh?   Here is the bottom line for me; use multiple sources to verify your intelligence and work with the Afghan government to verify your intelligence.  If the mission to Marja had been a secret, and one that had not been shared with the Afghani government to avoid leaks, I could understand this intelligence failure.  However, it was not a secret and I find it hard to believe that there was no one on the ground that couldn’t tell the U.S. that what were thought to be functioning organizations, the local government and police force, were  in fact shells of their former selves.

As such, an occupation/pacification strategy was initiated based on the false assumption that there was a functioning local government and police force to take the place of the Taliban.

So Much Tragedy…Where Is the Supreme Being?

Posted on by chappyshi

If you haven’t heard about the tragedy in Haiti, pick up a newspaper or turn on the TV.  It is a disaster of epic proportions in a country that was already in disastrous shape.  I feel for all those dead, injured, or otherwise impacted.

On the home front, a good friend of mine lost the offices of his business last night in a fire that burned them to the ground.  Also lost were his boat and the company mascot, a beautiful dog.  I hadn’t immediately thought of it but what that dog must have gone through as the building burned down around him but it had to have been hell on earth.  No one (that we know of) was there or hurt in the fire but then there was no one there to get the dog out either.

Since I helped with the installation of a computer-based surveillance system, I got a couple of calls from the fire investigator asking for anything I had from the system that could help with their investigation.  I was able to provide them some alerts that I got over the day that may or may not be of assistance.  Unfortunately, since the system the data was recorded on was in the office, the data isn’t readily, if it will ever be, available.

So where is the supreme being I ask and why do I ask?  I had not really thought about it until some do gooders came to my door right after I got off the phone with the investigator.  They were talking to people about the tragedy in Haiti and asking what we thought God had to do with it and why.  Perhaps they eventually were going to get around to asking for donations but I did not let it get that far.  I said I didn’t believe in a supreme being.

When asked why that was so, I said science was much more compelling than religion and that were there truly a supreme being overseeing us all, I couldn’t image that we should have so many tragedies befalling us.  I wish I had thought to mention my friend’s, his family’s, and his employee’s loss.  It sure is closer to home.

War Is Hell, Especially If You Have to Fight Your Fellow Man/Woman

Posted on by chappyshi

According to the Army psychiatrist alleged to be responsible for the recent shootings at Ft. Hood, TX, as cited in the Washington Post article, Fort Hood suspect warned of threats within the ranks, dated November 10, 2009, “…the military should allow Muslim soldiers to be released as conscientious objectors instead of fighting in wars against other Muslims.”  What the hell???!!!!

I am vehemently anti-war and I can sympathize with this guy.  Had such a policy been in place years ago perhaps World Wars One and Two would have been minor battles rather than global conflagrations.  However, I firmly contend that the majority of the wars over the course of history…up until about the late 17th century… were fought for religious causes.  I don’t think it is necessary to go into those details to prove my point but can do so if necessary.

More recent wars have been the  result of economic/imperialistic/nationalistic desires.  Nonetheless, religious differences continue to be a major cause of disagreement from the individual to the national level.  We could certainly take the “as a Muslim, I should not be compelled to fight against fellow Muslims” to a higher level and suggest that as human beings we should not be compelled to fight against our fellow man/woman!  That is the stance I would take were I a conscientious objector…

Is it significant that a radical Muslim cleric with whom the alleged perpetrator had contact over the years commented, according to the Washington Post in the same article, on his web site that “…a Muslim who “properly” understands his religious obligations cannot serve as a U.S. soldier, as American forces are engaged in fighting Islam and occupying Iraq and Afghanistan.”?  Only time will tell…eh?

Waco’s in the (Fort) Hood!

Posted on by chappyshi

Texas sure has had it’s share of wackiness:

These folks I think were just a little bit nuts!  However, today’s massacre at Fort Hood, TX, doesn’t appear to me to be an act of the criminally insane.  I am admittedly paranoid and see nefarious plots in many scenarios that others do not see but…

I have read much about how groups such as Al-Queda may not be able to carry out an act of terrorism such as that we experienced on 911 due to the intense scrutiny of security services worldwide.  Accordingly, there are said to be many fanatical decentralized groups/cells around the world that can plan and carry out less extravagant operations and still hit hard at the heart of the West.

Put aside that fact that Major Malik Nadal Hasan’s name would indicate that he is of Middle or Near Eastern heritage.  Compare the assault on a U.S military “readiness area” to similar assaults, including suicide bombings, on military and police recruiting and process facilities in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan.  The fact that Major Malik (forgive me if that is not his last name) was not the only one implicated in the attack leads one to believe that the shootings were not the actions of one crazy man like the Tower Shooter but the actions of a small cell of terrorists.

To me it was only a matter of time.  Terrorists can strike anywhere with a huge impact with a minimum of resources and strike deeply at the targeted people and/or nation.  Imagine the affect this strike will have on U.S. military personnel everywhere.  Paranoia will strike deep and anyone who has a Middle/Near Eastern sounding name or visage will be automatically suspicious.  Can we stir some discontent in our armed forces please?

No Money to Improve Local Parks but…

Posted on by chappyshi

…plenty of money to ruin them.  As I am sure I have mentioned at some time, I like to take a walk on a paved path through a nearby park.  The park is a narrow strip of forest with a stream meandering through it and house on one side and office buildings on the other.  The path exits the park after a while and briefly follows a power line which parallels a road.  While this is hardly wilderness, it is pretty good for me in metro D.C., since it is only a five minute walk from my home.

I have noted for a months now that there has been little effort to maintain the path by clearing back brush and cleaning up trash.  Today I found that they cleared all the brush back for about 10 to 20 feet on either side of the path on the power line.  Woe am I and the fauna that used to inhabit and/or frequent that flora!  I like a bit of trimming of the bush but they wiped out a large quantity of wild berry bushes that certainly provided forage for the birds if nothing else.

The area today seemed devoid of life.  I usually see all kinds of birds and frequently deer, raccoons, and woodchucks.  I don’t know if those bushes can grow back and, if so, how quickly but clearing them all out was a crime against nature.  To make matters worse, now all the trash that has been and will be thrown from cars going down the road is and will be blatantly obvious.  It is bad enough around when the foliage thins out.  Our brown and gray winter landscapes are decorated with the detritus of our throw away society.

I think that I have a mission to lead a crew to clean up that area next year during the Annual Potomac River Watershed Cleanup!

Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, Never Worked

Posted on by chappyshi

In the Washington Post Outlook section article, Joseph Rocha — ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ Didn’t Protect Me From Abuse in the Navy , dated October 11, 2009, Mr. Rocha tells a tale of how the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy for gays in the military not only did not work for him but worked against him.  Rocha joined the U.S. Navy in 2005 and was sent to the Bahrain, perhaps in Shore Patrol unit.

After qualifying and training for a spot in a dog handling unit, he joined a unit of 24 individuals responsible for 32 dogs.  The dogs were used to search for and detect  explosives, drugs, contraband,  bound from Bahrain to Iraq and Afghanistan.   Joe’s description of how he was treated vies with notoriety for stories of Abu Graib:

“– the chief had decided that I would be down on my hands and knees, simulating oral sex. A kennel support staff member and I were supposed to pretend that we were in our bedroom and that the dogs were catching us having sex. Over and over, with each of the 32 dogs, I was forced to enact this scenario.”

To make matters worse, the only person that stood up for Joseph, was the unit second in command, a 1st Class Petty Officer, who was named “Sailor of the Year” when she was 27, was blamed for  not reigning in her boss, a Chief Petty Officer.  WTF?  This woman, with orders to return to the States, was charged with negligence, had her orders rescinded and had to stay in Bahrain.  She killed herself.

The story continues.  Please read the whole article and write to your elected representatives and ask them to support gays in the military…or  anywhere.

I hadn’t had the time, or energy, to publish this entry before I read in the Washington Post on October 21, 2009, that the Chief Petty Officer responsible for the dog handing unit was under investigation for  “years-old allegations of hazing and sexual harassment against a gay sailor and others.”  Read more here…”Navy petty officer to face punishment in hazing.”

Disclaimer:  I am not gay.  I spent 10 enjoyable years in the Navy.  I worked for five years as an equal opportunity coordinator while I was in the Navy.  I have written, planned, coordinated, and conducted numerous classes/seminars on equal rights/opportunities, sexual harassment, and discrimination and briefed the Chief of Staff, Chief of Naval Operations, Korea, on said topics.

Bats in the Belfry

Posted on by chappyshi

In this Washington Post article, “Environmentalists divided over wind turbines, endangered bats, ” dated October 22, 2009, the merits of a wind turbine farm planned near Greenbriar, WV, are compared to the threat the farm might pose to the endangered Indiana bat.

According to one self-proclaimed caving fanatic and animal rights activist, “…if the turbines kill one Indiana bat, that ought to end it.  That ought to shut it down.”  I am all for animal rights but maybe we should stop driving cars too…fool!