I like Ike (or not)
- Thread starter georgedwilkinson
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Col, as uncivilized as we are over here in the (former) colonies, we CAN learn.
We evacuate because the weather forecast models are getting much better. We can correlate the predictions to pictures of various storm intensities. When the National Weather Service says we are going to get storm surges in a range that includes good odds of overtopping the levees, it is time to leave an area.
George, I can truly, honestly relate to your situation. We were lucky, too, as Gustav missed my neighborhood mostly. Just some downed power lines with no predictability as to which neighborhoods. My stepson, about 2-3 miles from us, lost power. So far as we know, our microwaves never even starting blinking. For us, power was continuous.
Our bigger concern was for what COULD have happened. (Col, you can read this - it might explain to you why we evacuate.) My mother-in-law has a degenerative back condition. We evacuated so we would have extra time to take care of a little old lady stuck in a wheel-chair or walker. When dealing with the handicapped, it ALWAYS takes twice as long as you think it should to get everything going. But you do that gladly for your family.
Of course, we also know about Katrina and her aftermath. Gustav could have been another Katrina if it had hit New Orleans square on instead of jogging west towards Houma and Lafayette first.
Glad to hear you're OK, George. Been there, done that, bought (and wore out) the T-shirt.
We evacuate because the weather forecast models are getting much better. We can correlate the predictions to pictures of various storm intensities. When the National Weather Service says we are going to get storm surges in a range that includes good odds of overtopping the levees, it is time to leave an area.
George, I can truly, honestly relate to your situation. We were lucky, too, as Gustav missed my neighborhood mostly. Just some downed power lines with no predictability as to which neighborhoods. My stepson, about 2-3 miles from us, lost power. So far as we know, our microwaves never even starting blinking. For us, power was continuous.
Our bigger concern was for what COULD have happened. (Col, you can read this - it might explain to you why we evacuate.) My mother-in-law has a degenerative back condition. We evacuated so we would have extra time to take care of a little old lady stuck in a wheel-chair or walker. When dealing with the handicapped, it ALWAYS takes twice as long as you think it should to get everything going. But you do that gladly for your family.
Of course, we also know about Katrina and her aftermath. Gustav could have been another Katrina if it had hit New Orleans square on instead of jogging west towards Houma and Lafayette first.
Glad to hear you're OK, George. Been there, done that, bought (and wore out) the T-shirt.
georgedwilkinson
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Poor soul, you missed us so badly ?
Yeeeeeeeup.
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For what it's worth, Ike wasn't really that good a general as a strategist. A friend of mine who is a war buff educated me on this one. Dwight David ("Ike") Eisenhower was a West Point graduate who didn't excel in very much, but he was a logistics person without equal. Strategy he left to guys like Montgomery, Bradley, Patton, Mountbatten, and such. But he could -and did - make the wartime supply system work. He played the supply & logistics side of the war like a concert violinist on a Stradivarius.
Apparently, the U S Army knew that Ike wouldn't be a good battlefield commander, so they pigeon-holed him in an intermediate position for a while and let his career develop. But then the war broke out. The US Army knew that Ike would be a good man to head up the operations division if he had help from good strategists. So Ike was in charge and knew what his supplies would allow. He was the "practical" thinker on "what can we do with the supplies we have" when other guys like Patton were the "damn the supply lines, full speed ahead" types.
As a president, Ike understood... supplies and logistics. He was good for business because he know what was needed after the war to get business pumping. Which really DID happen. He wasn't great at labor issues and he surely wasn't the sharpest pencil in the knapsack when it came to issues of law or diplomacy. But then, he knew a lot of the players in the field of world politics and DID have some exposure in dealing with them. So he knew more than many people gave him credit for. I surely wouldn't call Ike one of the greatest presidents ever, but he wasn't anywhere near the bottom of the pack.
Apparently, the U S Army knew that Ike wouldn't be a good battlefield commander, so they pigeon-holed him in an intermediate position for a while and let his career develop. But then the war broke out. The US Army knew that Ike would be a good man to head up the operations division if he had help from good strategists. So Ike was in charge and knew what his supplies would allow. He was the "practical" thinker on "what can we do with the supplies we have" when other guys like Patton were the "damn the supply lines, full speed ahead" types.
As a president, Ike understood... supplies and logistics. He was good for business because he know what was needed after the war to get business pumping. Which really DID happen. He wasn't great at labor issues and he surely wasn't the sharpest pencil in the knapsack when it came to issues of law or diplomacy. But then, he knew a lot of the players in the field of world politics and DID have some exposure in dealing with them. So he knew more than many people gave him credit for. I surely wouldn't call Ike one of the greatest presidents ever, but he wasn't anywhere near the bottom of the pack.
Okay, that's not funny, Tony the Tiger. Please don't hack into poor Geroge's account again, mmkay?
ColinEssex
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It just seemed to me that GWB was trying to win back voters that he lost during Katrina and him not giving a toss for the people afterwards.
It was the first time I had heard of so many people evacuating a large city in America. The Mayor was whipping up panic by saying it was the worst storm due for a century and you'll die if you stay. That's all you need - Mayors are supposed to bring stability and calming order to things, not whip people into a panicking frenzy.
Then they go and do it again in Houston! By the time it hit, it seems it was no more than a rain shower. It still seems an over-reaction and a haven for looters.
Next time, people won't believe it and then they will suffer if it hits square on.
Col
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Colin, look up Galveston and see if there are any pictures posted for that area, which is just south of Houston.
Over 2 million people in Texas were without power for a few days. Galveston is worse. It might literally be MONTHS before people have any services available to help them start rebuilding. Galveston was not quite leveled. Don't know what news services or pictures you were seeing, but what we've seen on the local telly is pretty convincing. That WAS a potential killer storm.
MrsGorilla
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There is no pleasing you, is there? If there is no evacuation (which, by the way, there was for Katrina also), then GWB doesn't care (which doesn't make any sense anyway since Bush isn't responsible for calling hurricane evacuations). If there is an evacuation, it's an overreaction. Maybe you would like to have stayed around for this:
Here is the original source, affiliated with the Boston Globe newspaper, BTW.
georgedwilkinson
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OMG. There are a couple of things that amaze me.
1. How did that one house stay standing? I'd like to hire the contractor who built that house to build my next home.
2. Why did 3 smart people take the bait?
1. How did that one house stay standing? I'd like to hire the contractor who built that house to build my next home.
2. Why did 3 smart people take the bait?
MrsGorilla
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I was thinking something along those lines while I was looking at that picture. I was reminded of that old joke about making the whole airplane out of whatever the "black box" is made of, same thing applies here.
I know.
I usually just ignore, but occasionally have to pop in with something. 
Rich
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Where will they borrow the money from to re-build yet again?
Where will they borrow the money from to re-build yet again?
Thats what federal flood insurance is for.
LOL ya sure it was just a rain shower... I didn't realize people's homes get demolished in your everyday thunderstorms. Must be shitty living wherever you do. Next time I'll just chill in my home while it falls around me because I don't want people looting and the government lies about the severity of the so-called "hurricanes". They just photoshop the weather services...
Besides, I didn't hear about any looting in Houston, just in New Orleans.
Someone just told me that house was destroyed during Rita so they hired a contractor to make the whole thing be able to withstand hurricanes. It obviously paid off, but I don't think they'll be having many neighborhood friends for a while.
What *does* puzzle me, however, is that houses among such place doesn't seem to be suited specifically for withstanding hurricanes.
Even the most primitive and backward natives know how to build a shelter that can withstand the recurring disaster (think of the huts perched on a frameworks of sticks in Africa to survive the monsoon that runs through the area).
Surely it would be something a bit different... I'm just going to make a wild guess as a way of example: would a pyramidal house be more resistant to high winds blowing off the roofs? Should it have drainage ten times of that what is normally expected for most building (e.g. a gravel foundation for example)? Or just make it all concrete bunkers & pillboxes?
I don't think I'm going to stop anybody from wanting to live there, and I'm sure there's several good reasons to do so. I just would think someone would have figured out optimal design for the area instead of doing what the rest of country are doing with stick-built houses...
Even the most primitive and backward natives know how to build a shelter that can withstand the recurring disaster (think of the huts perched on a frameworks of sticks in Africa to survive the monsoon that runs through the area).
Surely it would be something a bit different... I'm just going to make a wild guess as a way of example: would a pyramidal house be more resistant to high winds blowing off the roofs? Should it have drainage ten times of that what is normally expected for most building (e.g. a gravel foundation for example)? Or just make it all concrete bunkers & pillboxes?
I don't think I'm going to stop anybody from wanting to live there, and I'm sure there's several good reasons to do so. I just would think someone would have figured out optimal design for the area instead of doing what the rest of country are doing with stick-built houses...
Even though I don't personally really have any, I would think people would hate to lose certain sentimental valuables that can't be evacuated every time a storm is coming through those types of high-risk areas. Such as fine china, your favorite recliner, big screen tv that was a gift, collectables, dead grandma's stuffed dog, you know that sort of stuff. Not always easy to replace some things for some people.
Besides, who wouldn't want to be the only pyramid on the block
Besides, who wouldn't want to be the only pyramid on the block
Fifty2One
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Why do people insist on rebuilding houses in a high risk area? Would it not make more sense to build somewhere that you would not have to be replacing a dwelling every couple of years?
What a rediculous risk and sensless waste of resources!
What a rediculous risk and sensless waste of resources!
Well I would say it's nice to be on the beach but Galveston's a pretty nasty beach in itself, disregarding shopping and restaurants. Besides, haven't you learned people are generally stubborn? Come try to convince those people that have been living there their whole lives and see where it gets you.
