Scurrry Airplanes Return!

Yeah, even if he does have a thing against VMI rings...:)

Chapter 69? Whisky tango..? I'm just going to skip the joke I was thinking of.

Man, San Fran is all jacked up.

I feel sorry for the child who's afraid of jetnoise. Not because she's terrified, but because her parents have odviously sucked all the fun, excitement, and wonder out of her life. My base has an airshow every year, and nobody loves it more then the children. I spent many days of my illgotten youth scanning the skies looking for helicopters. (Grew up in KY near Fort Campbell, They do come in low enough to make stuff fall off the walls.)

First kid I've ever heard of who didn't equate 'loud as hell' with 'fun'.

Their child was never scared of all the commercial traffic before?? and now, all of a sudden, after the Blue Angels, their child is scared?? I wonder how that happened.

"Mommy, what are those neat planes?"

"Honey, those are EEVIL war planes of fasco-nazist-military-industrial-war-machine and all they do is kill innocent children and take their mommy's and daddy's away and create destruction and kill animals, and......"

And then they sit around and wonder why their kid is scared......

Alright, I just have to speak up for San Francisco. I live here. I love it here. I support the military (though not always all the decisions which are made for it by its civilian leadership). Fleet Week has been, since I was a kid, one of the best events that gets put on and the highlight has almost always (except for I, believe two years, when the Blue Angles chose to do shows elsewhere) the highlight of the week.

Remember, Chris Daly (the supervisor mentioned in the article) is also the resident lefty radical of the board of supervisors. He often does inane things, like this, that do not reflect the majority of San Franciscans.

Yes, there is a large majority of the city that oppose the wars going on. Yes, they do protest. No, only a fringe actually hate the U.S. Yes, most of the people hate the President and his policies. There is a difference.

Although, I have to say, in fairness to a little kid, it could be scary since the noise is loud and unexpected. They come in very low relative to the city. I like it since, even with my poor vision, I can almost see the face of the guy in cockpit. Her parents, on the other hand, must be the type that never leave the kid's side and constantly complain to the school teacher. I will miss the Blue Angles practing over both the library I do my research at and my home if they stop coming because of Chris Daly and Code Pink.

ok I'll say it:

that' not noise!

its the sound of FREEDOM.

C

What is it with people on the West coast? I've often felt that it's a combination of the heat, the smog, the San Andreas fault, and sheer lunacy that makes them come up with these hair-brained schemes. Vancouver is just as whacky, and surrounding coastal communities are the same.

The Blue Angels would be more than welcome in Canada...especially Toronto...as would all the American Military. We need all the help we can get, what with cutbacks etc.

I do hope that the child outgrows her parents' apparent massive case of over-protectiveness as soon as possible, but it's sad they're using her in such a manner; which achieves nothing but robbing their daughter of a large part of the enjoyment of childhool.

Veritas et Fidelis Semper

Does anyone know what it is with people on the West coast? I feel that it's a combination of the heat, the smog, the San Andreas fault, and sheer lunacy that makes them come up with these hare-brained schemes.

The Blue Angels would be more than welcome in Canada...especially Toronto. We need all the help we can get with air defence, port security, border security, increasing our Military, et cetera.

I don't mean to denigrate a fine city such as San Francisco, but are there not more pressing issues upon which they might be focusing their attention? Illegal immigration? The Forty Niners' upcoming season? Port security? The Forty Niners' upcoming season? Bringing all structures up to earthquake-proof code? Did I mention the Forty Niners' upcoming season?

We may only hope that sense, common or otherwise, prevails on this one.

Veritas et Fidelis Semper

Thanks to Bill for doing what I was planning on doing, standing up for San Francisco to the extent that I can. Or want to.

Most of the people I know actually like the Blue Angels, though I wouldn't be surprised if the number of people of people who didn't dig them were around 50%. The only person I knew who didn't like them was my Spanish teacher in high school, who had been a helicopter pilot in Vietnam.

I've been attending Fleet Week events since they started, back in the mid-80s. I've been on the USS Missouri, USS Constellation, Peleliu, and a variety of cruisers, destroyers, and frigates. I've seen the Blue Angels go from A-4 Skyhawks to Hornets. Fleet Week is an important tradition, because aside from Beale and Travis AFBs, there are NO major military installations in Northern California. Fleet Week keeps the military in the minds of people in this area, especially if they rail against "hateful planes". The separation of civilian and military societies is nowhere more pronounced than in San Francisco, and people need to be reminded and made to consider the role of the military in society.

Chris Daly, like Bill said, is a pretty radical lefty. He's a pampered kid of privilege, who painted himself one of the slackertariat but when it came to buy a house, his parents fronted him a big down payment. He's a hypocrite and a whining crybaby. Unfortunately, his kind is growing on the board of supervisors, and I don't see it getting better, only worse.

I had lunch with one of the Blue Angels when he was in town last year for Fleet Week (I'm good friends with his sister.) He's a fantastic guy and think the world of him. I thought about asking him what he thought of the politics of San Francisco and if he'd read any of the complaints, but then I decided he probably didn't care...and I decided I didn't either.

Update: Chris Daly is apparently no longer going to push for a ban on the Blue Angels. You're still a creep, Chris.

I realy think this country is never going to be put back into the place it once was with people like this in office. There everywhere and there's too many of them comming up with this kind of crap too slow 'em down!
Good thing the Fly Weekend ain't held here in Minnesota cause there would have been a law on the books in days that would make it illegal to fly a jet within 100 yrds of anyone who is offended by the color blue!
At least it looks like the people of S.F. aren't giving up!

June 8,2007
SAN FRANCISCO - A resolution that would call for a permanent halt to the Blue Angels annual Fleet Week flyovers won’t be introduced to the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, according to its potential sponsor.
Supervisor Chris Daly, when asked about the progress of his resolution, told The Examiner on Thursday, “Because of you, I haven’t gotten any work done today, and because of you, I am not going to introduce it on Tuesday.”
Daly was apparently flooded with media inquiries as well as phone calls from residents weighing in on the U.S. Navy Blue Angels on Thursday, after The Examiner reported that he is drafting the resolution with local peace advocacy groups CodePink, Global Exchange and Veterans for Peace, Chapter 69.
The groups are calling for a permanent halt to the Blue Angels due to concerns over noise, the military recruitment that comes along with the event and public safety, pointing to the April crash of a Blue Angels plane during an air show in Beaufort, S.C.
Daly told The Examiner that he continues to work on the resolution and is “going to introduce it some other time.”
On Wednesday, Daly said he is considering a call to halt the flyovers because “they seem dangerous and unnecessary.” A resolution does not have legal weight, but it states a board position.
San Francisco officials have not shied away in the past from taking strong anti-war stances or taking issue with the military.
In 2005, the board voted against having the World War II-era USS Iowa dock as a floating museum at the Port of San Francisco. Last year, The City’s school board voted to phase out the Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program from public schools.
Most recently, the Board of Supervisors approved a resolution that urged the U.S. Congress to secure immediate and safe withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq.
Fleet Week begins on Oct. 4. The six-day event attracts one million visitors and contributes about $4 million to the local economy.
jsabatini@examiner.com

Maybe the homeless of San Francisco complained about the Blue Angels knocking over their cardboard boxes or something.

One of these days that faultline out there will do all of us a big, fat favor...

San Francisco never impressed me during my liberties in the 60's and early 70's. If they have a problem with the "Bues," how much of a problem would they have if the U.S. Navy were no longer a part of their economy. I do feel sorry for the girl who has apparently had a close encounter with her Mom.............the Mom needs the help. S.F. should be very proud to have the Blues perform. Many other cities request their presence and frankly, in light of the recent loss to the team, I am suprised that they are able to be "Good to go" at all.

Dear San Francisco,
Consider yourselves free to secede at any time and form a breakaway People's Republic with Berkeley. Now that we have the secret of Rice-a-Roni we can do just as well without you.

Postscript,
Yeah, seriously, what happened to those kids? When I was a tot I was running outside with my eyes on the clouds every time I heard so much as a Cessna overhead. A-10s and assorted transports are flying over my home every day and my 5 year old has proved to be a chip off the ol' block. How terrible, to have your sense of wonder nipped in the bud.

Regarding the little girl scared by jet noise; have to share this...

I volunteer at an avation museum on Long Island that has been part of the Jones Beach Memeorial Day Airshow for the past 4 years.

The first year the Blue Angels were the headliners, 2004 I think.

During their arrival, they rocketed over one of the local schools attended by a fellow volunteer's daughter, a 4 th. grader.

Out loud her teacher wondered what was the cause of the noise. My buddy's daughter simply told her, "Mrs. Smith, that was the sound of freedom."

It's all about how you're brought up.

4 Days straight of military jet fly-overs
the planes are LOUD
they fly within 100 feet
for 6 hours a day , 24 hours total
its like living on a active aircraft carrier
most other places this is done at an airfield
its like living in Bagdad during Gulf War I
Sonic BOOMS
Buildings & Windows shaking like EARTHQUAKES
Down the narrow high-rise canyons

I live in San Francisco, and I love air shows, and have loved them since I was a kid. However, I think the problem that nobody seems to be mentioning is that the Blue Angels, while fun for those who attend the airshows, spend much of the week prior to the show practicing their flights over the city during normal working hours, and while kids are in school. As a teacher, I can attest that the noise of these planes, (especially when you can't SEE them) is truly frightening to little children. The practice runs on Thursday morning, for example, caused the walls of our school to shake. We are NOWHERE NEAR the Fleet Week area, and for most of the day, it's impossible to teach without dealing with screaming, frightened kids. In a city where Earthquake drills are the NORM, classroom walls shaking repeatedly during the school day is a definite shock to the kids. If they were AT the show, and could see that it's just airplanes, and that it's fun to watch, this would be different. I don't know if there's any solution to this problem, but I just thought I'd throw in my two cents for those who don't live in the city.