It’s a basic lesson any semi-decent carpenter or weekend handyman knows. If you have the right tools, you can do your job a lot easier and a whole lot better. As basic as this premise might be, it is one that we have failed to follow in terms of dealing with fire and ice in this country. With a median age of several decades and enormous wear and tear, the reliability and safety our firefighting planes is in serious question.
This is not the first Weiner problem that Washington has had and poor behavior is not something one political party has an edge over the other. Despite all of those transgressions, the Republic has survived, and it will survive long after all of the salacious details of Rep. Anthony Weiner’s escapades come out. But in watching all of this unravel, I could not help but think of the security clearance process that I and many others have gone through. If he were anyone else and an investigator got his file to begin the rudimentary background check, he might otherwise be told, “You need not apply.”
There is solemnity to Arlington National Cemetery that is unique. While there is much that has changed about warfare since the first Union soldiers were interred in Mrs. Lee’s gardens, the carnage of battle and long standing pain of families of those lost in it remains steadfast. So often we are attracted to the ridiculous in life and get wrapped up in the fun of it, all too often forgetting the blood, sweat and tears by which this country was founded. That’s a powerful lesson that should not just be celebrated and shared on Memorial Day or Veterans Day.
Like most Americans, I’m happy Osama Bin Laden has been given his just reward. But I have become increasingly angered by the sieve-like qualities coming from Obama Administration and Defense officials who continue to divulge details of the May 1 takedown of Bin Laden. These motor-mouths seem more enchanted with currying and preserving their media relationships than preserving the unique capabilities of our intelligence and military forces.
Regardless of circumstance or event, be it flood, fire, tornado or terror, the American Red Cross has always been there. With the release of the Ready Rating Program, the American Red Cross has once again shown their capacity to do just about anything they set their mind too. When you compare this effort to those of DHS in its Private Sector Preparedness (PS-Prep) Program, it’s not even a fair comparison.
In this final installment of my five-part interview with Virginia Task Force 1’s Capt. Joe Knerr and Lt. Rodney Vaughan, the two veteran rescuers reflect on the resiliency of the people of Japan, the lessons they’ve learned along the way and how their experiences in Japan compare with other disasters to which they have responded.
This is Part 4 of my interview with Capt. Joe Knerr and Lt. Rodney Vaughan of Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department’s elite international search and rescue team, Virginia Task Force 1. In this part, we discuss the team’s decision to come home; their thoughts on not having any rescues; the difference their team makes; and what coming home feels like after being a world away.
Here’s Part 3 of my conversation with Virginia Task Force 1 where they talk about the conditions in which their team operated in Ofunato, Japan; what they knew about the leaking radiation coming from Fukushima nuclear power plant; what concerns they had about radiation exposure; and the survivability conditions of the area following the earthquake and tsunami.
Osama Bin Laden is dead. Those are the words we’ve all wanted to hear. For as happy as we may be to cheer the demise one of the world’s great mass murderers, there is every reason for us to be cautious and concerned. Bin Laden may have been one man who met his end courtesy of a bullet from one of America’s finest, but as an iconic figure, he has inspired countless individuals who believe in his perverse message and the murderous means to carry it out. The need for vigilance cannot be underestimated here.
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