Airports

I have previously commented, in different forums, on the advantages and disadvantages of major airports so if you have seen this before, just let it pass.

I recently flew from Newark to Detroit, a trip I have taken many times and which is usually a non-event. Newark is a pretty comfortable airport and one whose quirks and layout are very familiar to me, especially those of Continental's main terminal C. Newark doesn't win five stars from me but it is certainly in the four star category, designed to current standards of passenger comfort, ease of navigation and handicap access.

My current trip started out with the plane being delayed from Buffalo by about half an hour which is not cause for concern. It soon became apparent that the airline personnel were up to their old habits of not being truthful and that the plane was going to be arriving considerably later than they were reporting. At the time we were supposed to leave, it was announced that there had been a gate change and in order to avoid having to go through security again, a bus would take us around the building to the other gate. When we got there there was another gate change but only one gate over, but still the plane hadn't arrived. When it did, the mechanics had to check something and we finally took off about 2 hours late. I discovered something I didn't know about terminal A and that is that the busses are a regular feature of the terminal shuttling passengers and employees from one set of gates to another, because, apparently, there is no corridor leading from one concourse to another inside the security cordon sanitaire.

So much for Newark. Detroit is another matter altogether. If I were to rate it, I would have to award it four black holes. (How do you graphically portray a black hole?) Admittedly, not every part of the airport is as bad as the worst part. The main terminal has a train running through it and it only requires one escalator to get to the shuttle level. from there you go down to the main concourse, take an escalator or elevator up to some mezzanine level only to have to go back down again to get to baggage claim and the outside. The terminal we arrived in requires some walking, then several levels down, a long level corridor with moving walkways, up several levels and then down to baggage claim. I am not sure why they didn't install a roller coaster. At least the McNamara terminal, as dingy as it was, used a logical design plan. The old main terminal was actually no better in traffic flow than the new one is so I suspect that Detroiters have a strange view of the world.

How about other airports?

My all around best five star large airport is Atlanta, GA. The plan is simple. There are two terminals, North and South each a large square containing baggage claim and ticketing on one level. Then there are five parallel, rectangular, concourses progressing from east to west connected only by an underground viaduct where you have a choice of walking, using a moving walkway or taking the tram. It makes for a very quick sprint from plane to baggage claim or from ticketing to plane.

Besides Detroit My black hole airports are Miami, the new Fort Lauderdale airport and Toronto's Lester Pearson airport, terminal one, which is a multi story building which requires the use of elevators that don't hold too many people or bags. San Francisco is another up and down nightmare but I only used it once and that was enough. Maybe it has some hidden redeeming qualities.

Airports I like: Newark, Aberdeen SD, Lynchburg, VA. For no particular reason except that I am used to them and have spent a lot of time enjoying their facilities. I feel like I've lived there.

Let's hear your favorites and least liked.

Does Excuse me Exist in Brooklyn?

I hate Brooklyn. Well, not actually the place, but the people sure do leave a lot to be desired. I was doing some holiday shopping for Lovey when I finished and got on line. I picked one that had one woman at the register, with what looked like 2 not very full wagons, a single girl behind her with a bit of stuff, and then me. You'd think I'd be out pretty quick. So did I. I didn't even pull out the berry.

Well, there was all kinds of commotion going on at the head of the line, boxes being set up, tape ripping, etc, so I patiently waited, while avoiding those attemping to get past me through my toes.

Then I realized that I have been standing in the same spot, (with numb toes by now) for quite some time, so I looked up and saw that there was still a wagon from the first woman at the register, with a little girl (around 7) standing next to it, without the woman. I asked the checkout girl where the woman went, and she had no idea. She asked the girl where her mother went, and we were all informed that she was filling up another wagon somewhere in the store.

So the checkout girl told the little girl ( keep up here folks) that she should get her mother, because she was holding up the line, which she did ( the little girl, not the checkout girl).

So then this woman comes waltzing back, pushing a FULL WAGON, with a flippant, in her hard bitten Brooklyn accent, " Sorry everybody". ( I don't think she really meant it, though). Now she didn't forget one or two items, this woman got on line to check out, watched most of the checking out process and then JUST LEFT TO CONTINUE SHOPPING.

I try very hard to keep of family friendly and PC here, but WHAT THE HELL WAS SHE THINKING???? I've seen people get on line and wait for someone else to come with another full wagon, that I can understand, however rude it is, but I have no idea on what planet these people operate where it is acceptable to just leave a line and continue to shop.

And then we wonder why our kids have no manners.

Quick Takes

We're starting something new here at Dr. G. This is the first issue of this eponymous blog. In the interest of brevity, we will comment on the world situation in three sentences or less on any one subject. Lest you fear that it will detract from the purple prose you have come to expect of our posts I can assure you that we will continue to bring you the excellent entertainment you have come to expect of this site. Quick Takes will be in addition to the thoughtful pieces, affording our audience the benefit of our wisdom without an undue strain on the writers' time.

Quick Takes: February 23, 2009

Citibank and BofA have cut their dividend to very small amounts. Any company that loses money should pay zero dividends. If a stockholder wants a return of his capital, he should sell his stock.

If AIG is bleeding money because it is paying the bank for toxic mortgages they insured, why are the banks also losing money on the same mortgages?

Don't give it away!

Very often, especially among some of my close relatives, when I mention a book or movie and begin a very compact synopsis of the plot, I am exhorted not to "give it away." Most plots are not so intricate or surprising that there is anything to "give away." I can think of some plots that would be ruined for the audience if they knew some important detail in advance. "The Murder of Roger Akroyd," Agatha Christie's first novel, as well as the movie "The Crying Game," and the play "Sleuth" come to mind as examples of surprise endings, but most similar entertainments can't really be given away.

I am currently reading some books on the great stock market crash of 1929. The whole world knows what happened that blighted October. And yet, as I get to the part describing the events of the week of October 21, my heart starts to pound and my hands tingle in anticipation of what will happen next. Will the market crash? Similarly, will Gavrillo Princip get in his shot, will the Austrians attack Serbia, will the Japs send their planes over a peaceful Sunday morning on Oahu? I, as well as millions of people around the globe know the outcomes. I still enjoy reading about these events even though you can't give it away.

The Doctor is ( back) in

Well, I've been gone for a while, but I am finally back ( I shall now pause for the applause and accolades......., please, that's enough).

For those of you who may not know, I was abroad visiting Bug. I had a lovely time, and got to share the adventure with Lovey, even though we went separately. Travelling separately is something I recommend if you travel like me, which is with a very short fuse, and lots of grumpiness. This way, we got to enjoy the vacation part of the vacation, and not start and end it with me just screaming like a maniac. This is even with the new me, who makes an appearance from time to time, but not really when I travel.

I have to say that the trip was interesting, as my whole focal point changed, since I was going to visit a child, and my usual place of abode had been sold out from under me. I also had a car, which is definitely an adventure in Israel, as they drive worse that the Brooklynites, with a GPS that decided I should really really be somewhere in Netanya most of the time, and the rest of the time I should just turn around for the hell of it.

Spent the weekend with all the relatives who are inhabiting the land, and it was nice to catch up with them or see them in their element ( and own homes) people sure are different when they are settled.

Thanks to those who helped out for the trip, with rides, room and board for the kids, and cousins of said kids who shared their space.

Well, that's it for now, I think I better read what has been written, since I have been moderating comments for soupeater, but haven't had much chance to read anything. I took the laptop, but mostly used it to charge my blackberry since I left the charger at home.

Shalom

Afghanistan

The BBC, with the largest news organization in the world routinely reports on the world's trouble spots. Armed clashes, revolts, dictatorships and the like.

These are all of prime concern to the United States since any instability in the world will eventually affect our nation, its business and its citizens abroad. Aside from North Korea, Sudan, Burma, and Iran the top pick for American concern (according to the newsmedia) is Afghanistan. It is increasingly identified as the main problem spot for the US, probably because we are heavily involved there and are about to become even more so.

So maybe we ought to sit back and try to determine our purpose in Afghanistan. The Taliban was reprehensible to us because they gave comfort and shelter to our enemy, Al-Queda. We then worked ourselves into a fit based on their tough enforcement of sharia law and what we perceived to be unfair treatment of their women and those more lax about their religion. Imperceptibly, this became our main reason for opposing the Taliban and its return to power even after their commitment to Al-Queda became doubtful.

At present, Obama is considering increasing the forces we will commit to that forsaken land. He sees the need to strengthen the central government, but right now it is weak and corrupt. It is doubtful whether more troops are going to solve the problem. The people resent the idea of foreign troops trying to reorganize their lives. Among our policy makers, there seems to be an ignorance of Afghanistan's past history. Afghanistan needs a king, elected by local and tribal leaders who have the trust of their people. Even in a nation as small as Afghanistan, there are bound to be people who rebel against their religion and culture, but they do not, by a long shot, represent even a tiny minority of the nation's opinion. The west amplifies the importance of advocates for democracy and free expression because they mirror our view of the world, not because they have much to contribute to the society they live in. The idea that everyone, man woman and child should have a say in selecting their government, is, in that part of the world, nonsense. Much as we would like to see the whole world governed as we are with universal suffrage as the method of choosing our leaders, it isn't going to work over there. It's a foreign idea which is so out of keeping with their culture and religion that it cannot work.


Our role in Afghanistan should be to patrol their borders to prevent foreign adventurers from entering the country but otherwise to leave the people to be governed by traditional means. As abhorrent as some of the muslim practices are to our western sensibilities, veiling women, barbaric punishments for crimes, and savage religious practices they are prefectly acceptable to most who profess the religion of Mohammed. Believe it or not, people in the muslim world are offended by our public expressions of atheism, nudity, and lax moral standards.

We should not have to sacrifice our young men and women for the ideal of universal democracy. Our real enemy is Islam. Either fight them all or stay out of it.

Yellow Journalism

Why are we all getting the feeling that the current downturn in economic activity is somehow worse than other downturns we have experienced in the past? There was 1975, 1980, 1990, 2001. Some of them were pretty rough, but we were not beset by panic and no one thought, "this is 1929 all over again."

True, most the others were not preceded by a stock market crash and the one really serous one did not develop a major long-term recession. 2001 experienced a crash of sorts but it was mainly in one sector and was a long decline rather than a sudden
crash. The bank situation has been the most frightening, but I think we will weather it.

We've been in recession since mid 2007 and the real estate market has also turned down since the beginning of that year. The sub-prime borrowers became front page news long ago and the lenders have been reporting losses for several quarters now.

So what has now caused the panic? The media!

Check the constantly appearing stories on the economy. Each one points out the desperate situation of one or another family or business that has hit a particularly rough patch. Our hearts go out to them, and the lesson to be learned from this is that everyone is in the same boat and that you are next. The fear this generates paralyzes everyone.

We all know someone who has lost his job or whose job is teetering on the brink. We all know someone whose house is in or close to foreclosure. We all know a business that has experienced a large drop in sales. But I can't help thinking that if the media were not putting gasoline on the fire, we might all become a bit more optimistic and start spending some money.

Once Again

George Will says it much better than I do. So read this . Everything I have been writing, rolled into one

They Should Be In Jail

I just watched the house committee hearing on the Bernard Madoff case. The SEC sent in a panel of high level directors, mostly lawyers by profession, who clearly resented being questioned by congressmen and in fact, hardly answered any of their questions.

Oh, they talked a lot. They talked a blue streak. They kept talking and mouthing their banalities and irrelevancies which was frustrating to the congressmen. The arrogance of the SEC panel was a sight to see. In the face of allegations of total incompetence and ineptness, they showed no regret or remorse and did not even acknowledge that they had anything to apologize for. It seems incredible to me that they could baldly state that they did everything right in the face of an obvious fraud of massive proportions perpetrated right under their noses when it was their job to discover it and prevent it from continuing.

Congressman Ackerman told them that they were so incompetent that they "couldn't find your backside with two hands with the light on."

I think the SEC did a lot worse. They couldn't have missed this. It must have been deliberate.

The Shape of Things to Come

Notwithstanding some very good reasons why the people of the United States should hate muslims and islam, surprisingly, even in the face of 9/11, very little anti-muslim sentiment is evident in any public or even private pronouncement. Even George Bush and the federal government refrained from demonizing the religion and its adherents.

So why are the arabs so skeptical about Obama's interview will al-arabia television, where he tried to curry arab favor by iterating a family relationship with muslims?

We can't make them happy till all of us are either muslim or dead.