More "only in AZ"

I had heard reports that rescue workers were showing up in New Orleans with armed escorts. But I didn't know that they were Phoenix. Courtsey of the Arizona Republic:

FEMA suspends Phoenix team
Armed escorts during hurricane rescues broke rule

Judi Villa
The Arizona Republic
Oct. 4, 2005 12:00 AM

The Phoenix Fire Department's Urban Search and Rescue team has been suspended from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for deploying armed police officers to protect firefighters in violation of the agency's rules.

As a result, Phoenix officials now are threatening to refuse some of the most dangerous deployments in the future or possibly even pull out of the federal agency altogether, unless the rules are changed to allow teams to bring their own security, even if that means police with guns.

FEMA has been the target of widespread criticism for its perceived slow response to Hurricane Katrina. Assistant Phoenix Fire Chief Bob Khan said his department also is questioning the federal agency's ability to manage working conditions, security and communications.

"Our priority has to be the safety of the firefighters we're sending," Khan said.

At issue is a rule in FEMA's Code of Conduct that prohibits Urban Search and Rescue teams from having firearms. Phoenix's team that deployed for Hurricane Katrina relief and again for Hurricane Rita included four police officers deputized as U.S. marshals.

Phoenix police were added to the team about a year ago, and officials say they are essential to protecting firefighters and FEMA's $1.4 million worth of equipment. Firefighters do not carry weapons.

"This is crazy," Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon said Monday. "This is a rule that was designed before the world changed, pre-9/11. You can't stand on bureaucracy if we're going to protect and save lives, and that's what these teams do."

Instability in Gulf Coast

FEMA relies on 28 elite teams like Phoenix's across the country to perform specialized rescue operations immediately after terrorist attacks and natural disasters.

After Hurricane Katrina, firefighters faced deployment to areas plagued by looting and lawlessness. Twice, Phoenix's team was confronted by law enforcement officers who refused to let them pass through their communities and told them to "get out or get shot," Gordon said.

Given the instability in the Gulf Coast region, taking police "was as natural as us calling for backup when we go to a house fire and need traffic control," Khan said.

Phoenix's team was demobilized unexpectedly Sept. 26 after members were seen embarking on a helicopter sortie with a loaded shotgun while assigned to help with the aftermath of Rita.

FEMA officials did not return a call for comment on Monday. But in a letter to Phoenix Fire Chief Alan Brunacini, dated Sept. 29, the agency said Phoenix was placed on "non-deployment status" essentially for including armed police on the team without approval.

The team cannot be reconsidered for deployment until "we receive an official explanation of your sponsoring agency rationale for allowing these infractions, any corrective actions taken, and assurance that these infractions will not occur in the future," the letter said.

Gordon on Monday sent a letter to FEMA officials requesting that the Code of Conduct "be changed from an unrealistic 'No firearms allowed' to a common-sense 'No firearms allowed except for U.S. marshals integrated into the USAR team.' " Gordon also demanded an apology.

"We are not going to send our firefighters and police officers into harm's way if they don't have adequate security," Gordon said in an interview Monday. "We're not going to endanger our people's lives. I'm not going to take that responsibility."

Phoenix's team was credited with plucking more than 400 Hurricane Katrina survivors from rooftops and freeway overpasses in flooded sections of New Orleans.

The team also was the first out-of-state team to respond to the 1995 bombing of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, and members deployed to New York City after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center.

Pulling out of FEMA

If Phoenix pulled out of FEMA entirely, the city would have to return its equipment, which includes medical supplies, communications equipment, tools, and cameras and listening devices that can detect people trapped in rubble.

Khan said that the equipment isn't used in Phoenix on a daily basis and that the city already owns "a lot of the same equipment."

Scott Phelps, Gordon's senior assistant, said the city's stance wasn't to pull out of every FEMA deployment, only to refuse those where the team could be at risk if the "no firearms" rule wasn't changed.

"To apply that sterile rule to the real-life experiences that these men and women were encountering is absurd and really not fair," Phelps said.

"Our question would be: What's the compelling reason not to change the rules? It's not an unreasonable request."

Denial and the loss of an innocent child (follow-up)

The mother who gave birth to two children while being HIV positive gets to keep her surviving child after all. I'm sure the biggest reason was that after losing the daughter to AIDS related complications, the remaining child was tested three times and found to be HIV negative.

However, she was so afraid of doctors insisting on testing for HIV for her children, she apparently didn't see real doctors. Three men who were part of treating the daughter are now under investigation; one for not having a license to practice medicine in California (gee, hate it when that happens).

Story can be found here (no subscription required).

Cause for concern

I've been very concerned with the goings-on at the Supreme Court. I honestly wonder sometimes if Rhenquist stayed on the bench until his dying day because he didn't want two openings on the court, or because he was a workalcholic.

With the upcoming vacancy by Sandra Day O'Connor, it's important to find a strict interpertation of the constitution. Sure, your views of the world will influence the way you interpert, so it's not a perfect system. But I always seemed to believe that O'Connor's views were less politically influenced than others. With her vote often in the crucial 5-4 vote, it's important to replace her with a similar type of person.

Based on what I'm reading, I'm not too sure that Harriet Miers is that person. Here's a summary of some of her involvements:

Miers represented Microsoft and (successfully) argued that Microsoft could charge for an update to repair a flaw in a previous operating system.

Miers and statements about abortion and gay rights.

So, it appears to she is a business conservative and a moral conservative. Perhaps I'll be proven wrong and she'll be an O'Connor. But it sure stinks of cronism.

bye-bye glasses?

I know that glasses fit in with the nerdy scientist look. Screw that! If they finally offer a disposable toric lens, I gotta at least try them.

So I picked up my trial pair. I'm supposed to see how it goes for two weeks. I already know that I'll have to take them out when I take my allergy eye drops, but I can live with an hour a day wearing glasses.

It's very strange having to get used to how you see the world. I've been used to the space between my eyes and glasses which is now gone. And while the lenses feel pretty comfortable, it's hard not to rub my eyes frequently. Every time I do, my vision goes blurry for about a minute while my lenses reposition themselves appropiately.

I've worn lenses in the past, so I hope that things aren't so different that I won't be able to again now. It just takes some getting used to I'm sure.

Only in Arizona?

This is kind of interesting. After serving 17 years in prision for a murder, James Hamm went to Arizona State University for a law degree and passed the bar exam. But that doesn't mean he can practice as an attorney.

So Hamm has to get approval from the Arizona Supreme Court. No resolution yet, but my guess is that he won't be allowed to practice.

I say, let him practice. I don't have a positive view of lawyers period. I think that they're smart crooks who bypass their day of justice by knowing the law. It could be considered a good thing to have a lawyer who admits to being a criminal.

If you want to read further details of this guy, you can click here.

Next time, try a different second job

I know that active duty soldiers don't make a lot of money. But it's sad that an active duty soldier was arrested for attempted bank robbery.

Too bad the McDonalds next door wasn't hiring.

Acceptance

I've worked for my boss for many years. So you can guess that the news of his diagnosis of glioblastoma multiforme hit me kind of hard. Then I spent the next six weeks taking care of his house after work while he was getting treatment.

June was a hard time. His treatment was over with, and started a clinical trial of an investigational medication for his tumor. Until it was confirmed that the medication caused his problems, I thought for sure that he was not going to last too much longer. Once he was off that medication, he did a lot better.

Yet, I quietly suggested that if there was a vacation he wanted to do with his family, he should go now before his daughter started school again. That didn't happen. I figured that since he was doing better, and would do it some other time.

But he announced yesterday that he's in California to watch the Angels play in their playoff game. He's always been a fan, so I'm glad he's doing this. Yet, I wonder if he's doing this as part of his "end of life" experiences.