I think I've been here too long already, today was only 118 and I wasn't sweating. In fact tonight it felt chilly at 109.
Proves you can get used to anything.
Thursday, August 31, 2006
LETTER FROM IRAQ
A soon-to-be co-worker currently in Iraq emails:
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
OBSERVATIONS ABOUT TWO WORDS
The words: “Thank you.”
Three times in the last two weeks I’ve been “thanked for my service” for volunteering to go to Iraq on a research assignment for the Department of Defense. This from people who are nearly strangers – a waitress at a restaurant I eat at regularly; a nurse at my doctor’s office; and a business executive at my daughter’s office. In all three cases, the “thank you” was spontaneous and genuine.
The observations.
One, I can’t imagine how meaningful the words must be to a soldier, sailor, marine, or airman who is going over, gotten back, or otherwise serving our country. I’m a civilian – contractor, not government employee – going to a location that can’t possibly be much more dangerous than my daily commute to work, and I left each encounter with a lighter heart and greater respect for my fellow Americans.
Two, try it yourself when you see someone in the military. I know they’ll appreciate it, and I suspect you’ll walk away feeling a little brighter as well.
Third, from a political perspective, I have to wonder if the Democrats and other anti-war types are overestimating the anti-war sentiment in real America. My sample space is trivially small, but these folks’ “thank-you’s” were genuine. I can’t possibly know their political leanings, but my strong sense in every case was that whether they thought the US should have gone to Iraq in the first place, they were committed to staying until the job is done.
If I’m right, the 2006 elections will be interesting indeed.
Three times in the last two weeks I’ve been “thanked for my service” for volunteering to go to Iraq on a research assignment for the Department of Defense. This from people who are nearly strangers – a waitress at a restaurant I eat at regularly; a nurse at my doctor’s office; and a business executive at my daughter’s office. In all three cases, the “thank you” was spontaneous and genuine.
The observations.
One, I can’t imagine how meaningful the words must be to a soldier, sailor, marine, or airman who is going over, gotten back, or otherwise serving our country. I’m a civilian – contractor, not government employee – going to a location that can’t possibly be much more dangerous than my daily commute to work, and I left each encounter with a lighter heart and greater respect for my fellow Americans.
Two, try it yourself when you see someone in the military. I know they’ll appreciate it, and I suspect you’ll walk away feeling a little brighter as well.
Third, from a political perspective, I have to wonder if the Democrats and other anti-war types are overestimating the anti-war sentiment in real America. My sample space is trivially small, but these folks’ “thank-you’s” were genuine. I can’t possibly know their political leanings, but my strong sense in every case was that whether they thought the US should have gone to Iraq in the first place, they were committed to staying until the job is done.
If I’m right, the 2006 elections will be interesting indeed.
Sunday, August 27, 2006
GARRISON KEILLOR IS A GHOUL
In an August 23 Chicago Tribune commentary titled “Why shouldn’t their voices be heard?” Garrison Keillor proved his bona fides as a ghoul and voyeur. Arguing that the 911 tapes from the World Trade Center should be publicized, he wrote:
The city argued that to hear people in anguish in their last minutes constitutes invasion of privacy. The truth is that the callers had no interest in privacy; they were desperate to be heard, and censoring them now is a last insult by a bureaucracy that failed to protect them in the first place.Um, Garrision, when were you anointed the knower of all truth?
[T]he first thing we thought, seeing the burning buildings on TV was: What is it like for the people in there?” We wanted to know.
No, Garrison, we didn’t. You did. You’re the ghoul, not us. Did the thought ever occur in that split-pea-sized brain of yours that perhaps, just perhaps, the families of those who died might not want their husbands, wives, parents, children and friends final anguish to be that for which they are remembered?
Nah. Of course not. They’re just hicks; not the nuanced elite. They don’t count. This is too important for them to matter. Besides, it’s a delicious opportunity to slam the President:
[I]nevitably, politicians began to seize the day and turn it into a patriotic tableau starring Themselves.... [A] few days later the Current Occupant mounted the wreckage with bullhorn in hand and vowed vengance, and the media were glad to focus on the martial moment ...
Garrison Keillor, you’re a ghoul, a vampire, a voyeur. You lack humanity; you discredit the human race.
WORLD’S BIGGEST JERK – CHICAGO DIVISION
My wife and I were having a quiet breakfast in a Chicago diner ... until we were rudely interrupted by the entrance of Chicago’s candidate for the World’s Biggest Jerk. Daisy won’t let me use the language I’d ordinarily use to describe his behavior, so I’ll have to limit myself to describing him as huge – as in barely able to wedge himself into the booth, unkempt, loud, arrogant, self-centered, demanding, and viciously rude.
Ordinarily I’d blow him off as just another jack-, um, jerk, until I overheard (as if I could have avoided it) him boast of being on welfare and only use cabs for transportation. No buses for him – too slow, too inconvenient. Never mind that the (employed) person he was meeting was taking the bus.
That did it for me. Here’s a man on welfare, too “important” to take a bus, willing to embarrass his companion into paying for his meal, demanding more than was on the menu, constantly complaining, viciously rude to the waitress, and I’m picking up the tab with my taxes.
What’s wrong with this picture?
Ordinarily I’d blow him off as just another jack-, um, jerk, until I overheard (as if I could have avoided it) him boast of being on welfare and only use cabs for transportation. No buses for him – too slow, too inconvenient. Never mind that the (employed) person he was meeting was taking the bus.
That did it for me. Here’s a man on welfare, too “important” to take a bus, willing to embarrass his companion into paying for his meal, demanding more than was on the menu, constantly complaining, viciously rude to the waitress, and I’m picking up the tab with my taxes.
What’s wrong with this picture?
Sunday, August 20, 2006
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
Friday, August 11, 2006
GOING TO IRAQ - PART I (ORIENTATION)
Since I’m going for a 90 day or so tour in Iraq starting in late September, I thought I’d summarize my experience so far by commenting on the orientation tour that began this assignment.
The orientation itself was quite common-sense:
Iraq has two seasons - hot and hotter.
Always wear your body armor/helmet when outside camp.
Don’t get captured - it’s bad for your health.
The base exchange is well-stocked; if you can buy ‘em at Wal Mart,
you can buy ‘em here.
What was interesting about the experience were the attendees themselves. About half were military officers, the rest civilians. The officers were typically field-grade, and many were preparing for their second, and in some cases, third tour. They were serious, business-like, optimistic, opinionated, and yes, realistic. Much of the value of the orientation session came from listening to their discussions of what went well, what didn’t go well, and how to improve.
The civilians were even more interesting as a group. I don’t know what I did expect, but I didn’t expect what I saw. The civilians divided rather neatly into two equal groups: under 35 and over 55 - no “middle-aged.” In all other aspects, a more diverse population I’ve never seen. No two alike in terms of personal history, occupation, or field assignment. Two were women; one going to the field where weapons qualification was required (she qualified “Expert”), the other to an embassy assignment. One man was a former State Department contract worker recently back from Afghanistan. Two were retired Army, one officer and one enlisted. The retired officer was going on a technically-oriented field assignment; the retired enlisted man was going to the International Zone as an Iraqi culture expert. And then there was me.
One last item on the age gap. The younger group, as a group, tended to be quite adventurous and enthusiastic about ‘making change happen;’ the elders, me included, tended to be more business-like and less sanguine about our ability to change things.
With age comes wisdom, perhaps - or at least caution.
The orientation itself was quite common-sense:
Iraq has two seasons - hot and hotter.
Always wear your body armor/helmet when outside camp.
Don’t get captured - it’s bad for your health.
The base exchange is well-stocked; if you can buy ‘em at Wal Mart,
you can buy ‘em here.
What was interesting about the experience were the attendees themselves. About half were military officers, the rest civilians. The officers were typically field-grade, and many were preparing for their second, and in some cases, third tour. They were serious, business-like, optimistic, opinionated, and yes, realistic. Much of the value of the orientation session came from listening to their discussions of what went well, what didn’t go well, and how to improve.
The civilians were even more interesting as a group. I don’t know what I did expect, but I didn’t expect what I saw. The civilians divided rather neatly into two equal groups: under 35 and over 55 - no “middle-aged.” In all other aspects, a more diverse population I’ve never seen. No two alike in terms of personal history, occupation, or field assignment. Two were women; one going to the field where weapons qualification was required (she qualified “Expert”), the other to an embassy assignment. One man was a former State Department contract worker recently back from Afghanistan. Two were retired Army, one officer and one enlisted. The retired officer was going on a technically-oriented field assignment; the retired enlisted man was going to the International Zone as an Iraqi culture expert. And then there was me.
One last item on the age gap. The younger group, as a group, tended to be quite adventurous and enthusiastic about ‘making change happen;’ the elders, me included, tended to be more business-like and less sanguine about our ability to change things.
With age comes wisdom, perhaps - or at least caution.
SODUKU
Any takers? This one is rated “very hard” and I’m forced to agree. I can get this far (black is for the starting numbers; blue is for my contributions) without guessing. I still (naively?) believe it can be solved by logic alone, but the proof is in filling in the blanks ....
UPDATE (9/1/2006): Reader Janet G. reports that she has solved the Soduku puzzle without resorting to guessing. Congratulations!
CHICKENHAWKS
I’ve noticed spotty outbreaks of the ‘chickenhawk virus’ in the blogosphere since the war in Lebanon began. If ‘chickenhawk’ is the proper term for a pro-war advocate without prior military service, doesn’t it follow that ‘chicken’ is the proper term for an anti-war advocate without prior military service?
JEEZ - NOW FAUXTOGRAPHY
Just when you think media reporting of Iraq/Iran/Israel can’t possibly get any worse, we find that even the photographs are fraudulent.
RIGHT, LEFT, AND WRONG
Over breakfast last week my wife (who’s a elementary teacher preparing to return from summer vacation) observed that the teachers in her school didn’t seem to care about the children.
At the micro level, I think she nailed the problem with modern education: the Right wants highly qualified teachers, a structured curriculum, and testing, and the Left wants unionized teachers, a “social justice” curriculum, and no testing. Neither gives a rat’s a-- (Ed. Note: Michael, stop that! Uh ... OK, Daisy, OK) --behind about the children themselves.
It seems to me that the three most-sought characteristics of an excellent teacher should be, first, a genuine love of children. There is simply no substitute for caring. Second, a love of, and enthusiasm for, learning. Teaching isn’t rocket science; a PhD isn’t required. Neither is a Master’s degree, or for that matter, a Bachelor’s degree. And third, a modest ability for classroom management. It used to be called “Motherhood 101” but motherhood (and fatherhood, for that matter) is now out of fashion.
If all educators shared those three characteristics, education would not be in the state it is today.
At the micro level, I think she nailed the problem with modern education: the Right wants highly qualified teachers, a structured curriculum, and testing, and the Left wants unionized teachers, a “social justice” curriculum, and no testing. Neither gives a rat’s a-- (Ed. Note: Michael, stop that! Uh ... OK, Daisy, OK) --behind about the children themselves.
It seems to me that the three most-sought characteristics of an excellent teacher should be, first, a genuine love of children. There is simply no substitute for caring. Second, a love of, and enthusiasm for, learning. Teaching isn’t rocket science; a PhD isn’t required. Neither is a Master’s degree, or for that matter, a Bachelor’s degree. And third, a modest ability for classroom management. It used to be called “Motherhood 101” but motherhood (and fatherhood, for that matter) is now out of fashion.
If all educators shared those three characteristics, education would not be in the state it is today.
LAWYERS ACTING FOOLISH
This one is rich. I wonder if the plaintiff and defendant know that they’re paying the bill?
Thursday, August 10, 2006
WHAT IS A SYSTEMS ENGINEER?
My neck of the woods is densely populated by PhDs, mostly of the science, business, political science, and economics variety, There are very few engineers. Since I’m the only one to define myself as a systems engineer, I’m often asked “Just what is a systems engineer?” My usual response is to answer “The opposite of an expert.” Here’s why.
It’s a joke, people, but with a ring of truth. The job of a systems engineer is to wander around a project on the lookout for the (usually bad) unintended consequences of engineering design decisions and prevent them from happening. (Ed. note: he wanted to call this blog “Unintended Consequences,” but we wouldn’t let him. Shadow, keep out of this.)
The job requires a little knowledge about a lot of different things, and the experience of having already made most of the common bad decisions. (Ed. note: he has lots of experience. Down, Daisy Mae.) Which is why systems engineers are usually graybeards - male and old enough to sport gray beards if they choose (and I do).
The good part of systems engineering is that it is hard; correctly done, one of the toughest in engineering today. The bad part is that success is invisible and failure obvious. You never know whether a successful outcome is a result of the systems engineer’s efforts or dumb luck. Unsuccessful outcomes, though? One guess where the finger of blame points ....
An expert is one who knows more and more about less and less until he eventually knows everything about nothing.
A systems engineer is one who knows less and less about more and more until he eventually knows nothing about everything.
It’s a joke, people, but with a ring of truth. The job of a systems engineer is to wander around a project on the lookout for the (usually bad) unintended consequences of engineering design decisions and prevent them from happening. (Ed. note: he wanted to call this blog “Unintended Consequences,” but we wouldn’t let him. Shadow, keep out of this.)
The job requires a little knowledge about a lot of different things, and the experience of having already made most of the common bad decisions. (Ed. note: he has lots of experience. Down, Daisy Mae.) Which is why systems engineers are usually graybeards - male and old enough to sport gray beards if they choose (and I do).
The good part of systems engineering is that it is hard; correctly done, one of the toughest in engineering today. The bad part is that success is invisible and failure obvious. You never know whether a successful outcome is a result of the systems engineer’s efforts or dumb luck. Unsuccessful outcomes, though? One guess where the finger of blame points ....
COMMENTS POLICY
Comments are welcome, and opinions - even strong opinions - are encouraged as we are interested in what you have to say. But - there are some caveats.
Shadow is not a fan of all upper-case or lower-case posts and he has an intense dislike of spelling errors. Use your spell-check and keep your shift key under control; otherwise he is liable to delete your comments on purely aesthetic grounds.
No vulgarity, no ad hominem attacks - none! Daisy Mae is adamant. She considers either to be prima facie evidence of opinions not worth reading and will delete them with no prior notice. Be warned.
Other than that, welcome to Shadow’s World. Look around, enjoy, and we look forward to meeting you.
Shadow is not a fan of all upper-case or lower-case posts and he has an intense dislike of spelling errors. Use your spell-check and keep your shift key under control; otherwise he is liable to delete your comments on purely aesthetic grounds.
No vulgarity, no ad hominem attacks - none! Daisy Mae is adamant. She considers either to be prima facie evidence of opinions not worth reading and will delete them with no prior notice. Be warned.
Other than that, welcome to Shadow’s World. Look around, enjoy, and we look forward to meeting you.
Friday, August 04, 2006
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
