Update from the
Heartland
No.716
31.8.15 – 6.9.15
Blog version: http://heartlandupdate.blogspot.com/
To all,
This week’s excursion was quite local . . . short ride –
Kansas Aviation Museum in Wichita, Kansas. The museum is housed in the old (retired) Wichita Municipal
Airport terminal building, located on the grounds of McConnell Air Force Base. The first image below is the main
entrance. I was particularly
intrigued by the bas-relief mural above the main entrance (second image) – nice
touch. The museum predominately presents
local aviation industry history with bountiful timelines and artifacts with
names like Beech, Cessna, Stearman, Laird, and the big dog in town,
Boeing. The Boeing-Wichita plant
produced B-29s during the war, so we can all imagine, this was a very busy
place 70+ years ago. The museum
does not have a lot of military aircraft, but it certainly has some unique and
notable examples as offered below.
Kansas Aviation
Museum
[file: Kansas
Aviation Museum 150903.JPG]
The bas-relief mural
above main entrance
[file: bas-relief.JPG]
I could not find a placard for the B-47 image below, so
details are sparse. However, I
think this example of a Sratojet is an E model without the wing pylons
installed. The B-47 was a nuclear
capable heavy bomber with a crew of three: a pilot and co-pilot in a tandem cockpit
under a bubble, fighter-type canopy, and a navigator-bombardier in an
in-fuselage compartment forward of the pilot. The co-pilot doubles as the tail-gunner using a radar directed,
remotely controlled gun system.
Boeing B-47 Stratojet
[file: B-47.JPG]
The dominant display aircraft was a BUFF (= Big Ugly Fat
F**ker . . . in the colloquial jargon of those who flew them) – a B-52D
Stratofortress – with wing shoulder pylons and weapons bay bomb racks not
installed. The aircraft proved to
be highly versatile, operated by a base crew of five: pilot, co-pilot,
navigator (bombardier), navigator, and electronic countermeasures officer. I’ve witnessed B-52 Arclight strikes in
North Vietnam during pre-cursor operations to LINEBACKER II– awesome, to say
the least. And an interesting side
note, this particular aircraft – serial number 55-0094 – is not allowed to be
moved by more than 50 feet under the strategic arms limitation and reduction
treaties.
Boeing B-52D
Stratofortress
[file: B-52D.JPG]
As a point of completion for this little story, construction
of the terminal building, shown above, began in 1929, and was suspended as the
teeth of the Great Depression bit deeply to the bone. With the aid of federal funding under the National
Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA) [PL 73-I-067, 48 Stat. 195], the
terminal building was completed in 1934, and the Wichita Municipal Airport
began commercial flight operations in 1935. The city added a proper runway in 1939, again assisted by
federal funds from the Emergency Relief Appropriation Act of 1935 [PL
74-I-Res.11; 49 Stat. 115] and the Works
Progress Administration [Executive Order 7034]. Understandably, the military dominated the airport as local
industry mobilized for war support.
The last commercial flight took off on 31.March.1954, and the following
day, the newly opened Mid-Continent Airport began commercial operations for the
city. Just as a related FYI PS:
Mid-Continent Airport was renamed the Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National
Airport with a brand-new terminal building and multi-level parking garage (for
those who have flown through Wichita), which began commercial operations on 3.June.2015.
The follow-up news items:
-- Various Press sources reported this week that assembly
numbers from interior components of the recovered B777 flaperon [711] match those associated numbers from
the assembly records of aircraft serial number 28420 (B777-2H6ER) – the
aircraft designated MH370 [638, 691]. I have not yet seen even implied confirmation from any of several
aviation safety networks or from the French BEA – the investigating agency with
custody of the assembly in question.
Until then, I shall withhold my speculation.
The man who shot and killed the deputy sheriff in Houston
may claim mental incapacity as his excuse (defense) for the capital crime. My opinion remains quite simple: if a
mentally ill or deficient person has enough capacity to acquire a
semi-automatic pistol, load a magazine, rack a round, aim and pull the trigger 15
times at another human being, he is mentally competent to suffer the
consequences of his actions . . . especially in Texas. I trust the state judicial system will
do its duty to the appropriate conclusion.
Rowan
County (Kentucky) Clerk Kimberly Davis refused to issue a marriage license to a
same sex couple, citing her claim that doing so would violate her religious
beliefs. She further claimed she
acted under “God’s authority” for her defiance of common and constitutional
law, which places her interpretation of religious dicta over the law. This Grand Republic is not and never has
been a theocracy or even a religious state. We are certainly religious people, and our right to our
individual religious beliefs is protected by the Constitution, but there is no
law, no right, and no entitlement for any of us to impose our religious beliefs
on another citizen. This case
represents precisely the problem with civil rights versus religious liberty.
Republican
presidential candidate Senator Ted Cruz of Texas claimed the government is
persecuting Davis. No, Ted, the
government is simply demanding its employees and the servants of the People
comply with the law.
Republican
presidential candidate Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky says the government is
trying to make Davis approve of same-gender marriage against her religious
convictions. He is wrong in every
way possible. First, the county
clerk issues a license for a couple to marry. She is not the
official conducting (officiating or sanctioning) the marriage. The license simply signifies the couple
has met the requirements of the state to marry, period. That license has absolutely nothing to
do with religious beliefs by the couple involved, the clerk who issues the
license, the newspaper that prints the notice, or the caterer who produces the
wedding cake. The marriage license
is simple and solely about the law and again, it has absolutely nothing to do
with any religion or religious belief.
Ms.
Davis is entitled to her beliefs, whatever they may be, she is NOT entitled to
a job that requires her to serve all citizens equally. This is not fundamentally different
from Quakers refusing to serve in armed services over their religious objections.
Her
choices are to perform her duties or to resign, period, just as my choices were
when I served this Grand Republic as a commissioned officer of Marines. I did not have the right to defy direct
orders because I did not agree with them or I believed God told me to disobey.
Kim
Davis did say one accurate statement with which I agree. “I simply told you all, I’m willing to
face my consequences and you all will face your consequences when it comes time
for judgment.” Precisely. My moral choices in my private life are
between God and me – no one else.
I shall be judged for my choices, just as we all will. It is not her place and she has
absolutely no authority to judge the choices of other citizens. They have complied with the law. She has defied the law!
Some
additional snippets of my words from other related debate threads:
Let's
think about it. Clerk Davis freely
and openly complied with the law prior to 26.June.2015 {Obergefell
v. Hodges [576 U.S. ___ (2015)]} [706,
710]. The law changed on that date in accordance with the
Constitution of the United States of America. Now, after that date, she chooses by her personal interpretation
of “God’s authority” to defy the law.
So, by her reasoning, a person’s personal religious belief trumps the
Constitution and the common law in the public domain. I cannot agree.
Surely, we can see where such reasoning will lead. Further, that is not the foundation
upon which this Grand Republic was founded and endures.
. . . to which
was added:
“. . . the principals / morals have been inverted for the anything
goes crowd.”
. . . and my response:
No. This is NOT moral inversion. This is simply private versus
public. As I have freely and
publicly stated multitudinous times, each and every one of us has a fundamental
right to privacy and should have the freedom to choose her/his individual and
personal “pursuit of Happiness” by whatever process that matters to each of
us. Those rights apply equally to
you, to me, and to Kim Davis.
Where she fails and does NOT have a right is to impose her beliefs on
the private choices of other citizens.
I fully understand, respect and would fight to protect your freedom to
choose your “pursuit of Happiness.”
Kim Davis is wrong; she has chosen the consequences.
This
is NOT an anything goes nation.
This is a nation of laws.
While our ancestors lost their way passing morality laws that apply only
to the private domain, the Founders intended laws to be confined to the public
domain for the common good. What
other citizens do within their marriage is a private matter, period.
Sharee
Stanley converted her religious faith to Islam after she had been employed as a
flight attendant with ExpressJet regional airline. After her conversion, she refused to serve alcohol as it
violated her newfound religious faith.
No one has asked her to consume alcohol. She does not want to take a different job with the airline
that does not require serving alcohol.
She claims she should not have to violate her religious beliefs to
accommodate her employer. Yet,
again, religion does not trump the law or employment practices.
The
immigration / migrant situation in Europe has captured the attention of the
Press and others. Let’s play this
situation out to an end point. The
flood of ‘refugees,’ actually illegal immigrant or worse unauthorized aliens
are overwhelming European capacity.
As noted in France and other countries in the EU, many of these
immigrants CHOOSE NOT TO ASSIMILATE and expect their host countries to change
their culture to suit their personal expectations. The situation in Europe certainly appears to be out of
control and unbounded . . . not particularly different from our southern border
problem, I might add. Any country,
every country, must have some process of filtration and consent to allow
non-citizens to enter their sovereign territory. The Syrian civil war and ISIL rampage have seriously
complicated the refugee situation, but the risks of what is happening now in
Europe are far too great for uncontrolled entry. I do not see good outcomes from all this.
News from the economic
front:
-- The Labor Department reported non-farm payrolls rose a
seasonally adjusted 173,000 in August, lower than the forecast 220,000 increase
in payrolls. The unemployment rate
ticked down to 5.1%.
Comments and contributions from Update no.715:
“I was shocked to read about Chan. I had the pleasure of
flying with him in his plane and also taking him up in a glider back when I was
still flying. I know you were friends. I am sorry for your loss.”
My response:
You
were not alone in being shocked by Chan’s passing. He was an exceptional pilot. There is no discernible cause from the available public
information to date. The
investigators will have to assess physical and mechanical causes, but even the
latter is not very likely. The
PA-25 is a prevalent, widely used airplane, pretty forgiving from what I
understand . . . although I’ve not flown one. A genuine loss for all of us . . . he was a significant
contributor and historical figure in aviation.
My
very best wishes to all. Take care
of yourselves and each other.
Cheers,
Cap :-)
No comments:
Post a Comment