Return-Path: X-Scanned-By: RAE MPP/Clamd http://raeinternet.com/mpp X-Scanned-By: This message was scanned by MPP Lite Edition (www.messagepartners.com)! X-Real-To: stagecraftlist [at] theatrical.net Received: by prxy.net (CommuniGate Pro PIPE 4.2.10) with PIPE id 24602637; Tue, 06 Sep 2005 03:00:50 -0700 X-ListServer: CommuniGate Pro LIST 4.2.10 List-Unsubscribe: List-ID: Message-ID: From: "Stagecraft" Sender: "Stagecraft" To: "Stagecraft" Precedence: list Subject: Stagecraft Digest #511 Date: Tue, 06 Sep 2005 03:00:27 -0700 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Disposition: inline X-Spam-Status: No, score=-5.7 required=5.0 tests=ALL_TRUSTED,AWL,BAYES_00 autolearn=ham version=3.0.4 X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.0.4 (2005-06-05) on prxy.net X-Spam-Level: X-TFF-CGPSA-Version: 1.4f2 X-prxy-Spam-Filter: Scanned For info, archives & UNSUBSCRIBE, see --------------------------------------------------- Stagecraft Digest, Issue #511 1. Re: on a serious note by "Paul Schreiner" 2. Re: on a serious note by "Paul Guncheon" 3. From Frank: katrina by "Jon Ares" 4. Re: on a serious note by Howard Ires 5. The shirt by "Paul Guncheon" 6. Re: on a serious note by Jerry Durand 7. Re: Podcasts by "Tom Heemskerk" 8. Re: on a serious note by "Paul Schreiner" 9. Re: The shirt by "Paul Schreiner" 10. Re: on a serious note by "Randy Whitcomb" 11. Re: Podcasts by "C. Dopher" 12. Podcasts by CB 13. Re: on a serious note (and additional comments) by CB 14. Re: on a serious note by Charlie Richmond 15. Re: on a serious note (and additional comments) by Jerry Durand 16. Re: on a serious note (and additional comments) by Richard Bakos 17. Re: on a serious note (and additional comments) by "Jon Ares" 18. Re: on a serious note (and additional comments) by Charlie Richmond 19. Re: on a serious note (and additional comments) by John McKernon 20. Notes from the warehouse (long again! Sorry....) by "Michael Finney" 21. Re: on a serious note (and additional comments) by Charlie Richmond 22. Re: Notes from the warehouse (long again! Sorry....) by Herrick Goldman 23. Re: on a serious note by MissWisc [at] aol.com 24. Re: on a serious note by "Jeffrey E. Salzberg" 25. Fire, Stampede at Egypt Theater Kills 29 by Jennie and Jerry Gorrell 26. LEI-Resources update by Bruce Cooper 27. Re: on a serious note by Tony Miller *** Please update the subject line of your reply to use the subject *** line of the message you are replying to! Please only reply to *** one message subject in each reply. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Subject: RE: on a serious note Date: Mon, 5 Sep 2005 09:16:57 -0400 Message-ID: <6E497ADB607656479C24E6D7BF6B505A0196C902 [at] exchange.rmwc.edu> From: "Paul Schreiner" > ... and I still would like a lucid and logical reason why the=20 > spotted owl should not become extinct if it's time to do so is here. It's a question that doesn't have an easy answer. How does one determine if the spotted owl's time has come naturally? There's a philosophical difference that a lot of people make between "naturally-occuring" extinctions (those without a definite or palpable human component) and those driven by preventable human actions such as deforestation or pollution of the environment with artificially-created chemicals. It's the latter types that are generally focused on by those of an environmentalist bent. When a species is threatened with extinction because of foreseeable and preventable human actions, then (so the theory goes) we should take steps to protect that species. Another consideration in all of this is the fact that we're beginning to understand the immense complexity of the interactions between species in different environments, and learning how the health of one species can affect other species in ways that can be unpredictable. It's a very complex system; the disappearance of a species from a particular environment (even if that disappearance is just because the birds decided to nest somewhere a little cooler this year) can affect the insect and plant and predator populations in ways best described by chaos theories, and throw the whole ball of wax completely outta whack...which can then, in turn, change the environment itself. Unofrtunately, we have just enough knowledge to be dangerous. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 05 Sep 2005 05:26:22 -1000 From: "Paul Guncheon" Subject: Re: on a serious note Message-id: <01bd01c5b22e$2c5b2e20$c6354104 [at] yourxhtr8hvc4p> References: First it's "keep up the good queations"... Then it's "You would be called a 'troll' in the earlier days of the internet, Paul, but that term has become rarer now since trolling has become recognized now as the pointless technique that it is....." I have always been impressed with the incredible general knowledge of the list and in slow times (like this one) occasionally have asked somewhat arcane questions that are in truth off topic. "Why saving near extent flora and fauna is important" was such a question. I realize from the responses that the question so outside the interest of the group and will discussion of the topic. I will exercise more restraint in the future' Laters, Paul ------------------------------ Message-ID: <000601c5b231$011a2740$0600000a [at] BRUTUS> From: "Jon Ares" Subject: From Frank: katrina Date: Mon, 5 Sep 2005 08:46:38 -0700 ----- Original Message ----- From: >I found the following even more interesting... what the press elsewhere > thinks: > > http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4211320.stm > > They think pretty much what I think. > > The hurricane was predicted some days before it struck. OK, its track was > not > exactly predictable, and in fact it passed slightly East of NO. Close > enough, > though, for its likely consequences to be predicted. High winds, > torrential > rain, and a storm surge big enough to overwhelm or breach the levees. > Wholesale > flooding, power failures, severe structural damage. A huge refugee > problem. > > Why were no measures put in place beforehand? The US is accustomed to > hurricanes, and knows what they do. There will be a lot of people whose > homes have > been destroyed, who will need food and shelter. The resources ought to > have been > assembled, as close at hand as was safe, ready to move in as soon as the > worst was over. Instead, it took nearly a week. The international press > got in in > a day. > > If you think it worthwhile, please forward this to the list. Thanks to AOL > 7.0, I cannot post. > > > ------------------------------ Message-ID: <431C6E44.5070001 [at] hillinteractive.net> Date: Mon, 05 Sep 2005 12:11:48 -0400 From: Howard Ires Subject: Re: on a serious note References:

In-Reply-To: Paul Guncheon wrote: > > We have people in Ohio cutting up 6-pack holders so sea turtles won't get > their beaks caught in them. If you ever see any kind of creature trapped in a clear plastic 6 pack holder you'll probably start cutting them up too before you throw them away. It's not just sea turtles that get caught in those things. > There has been a blue recycling container that its in front of my house for > that last two years or so that has never been used. The government can't > quite figure out how to get the process to work. I've never understood the logic of "recycling" either. Most of the manufactured goods of our society come from the ground, I don't have any problem putting them back in the ground unsorted when we're done with them. > > The government added a 5 cent deposit to all cans and bottles here but made > redemption rules so difficult that the government has made around $200 > million dollars so far. The point of the beverage container deposit laws is to keep that stuff off the road and streets because it is an eyesore, and it has succeeded. I don't really think there is any ecological benefit involved. If the gov't has made 200 million off it I'm sure they're pleased about that too. > > Question: It has never been logically explained to me about endangered > species. I've always thought of it as the "canary in the coal mine" thing. Why should the miners care if the canary dies? Because they'll be next. And so we care about the snail darter and all the other species we co-exist with. What makes the earth work is a complex balance of different organisms and environments. We don't know which species is our "canary" so we watch out as best we can for all of them. -----------------h ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 05 Sep 2005 06:19:01 -1000 From: "Paul Guncheon" Subject: The shirt Message-id: <01ed01c5b235$873d27b0$c6354104 [at] yourxhtr8hvc4p> References: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=8325594078&sspagename=ADM E:L:RTQ:US:1 I bought two. Had a little miscommunication with the company about shipping, but the shirts arrived and are quite cool. Mention my name if you order and maybe I'll get some free stuff from them. Like I need more stuff. Laters, Paul "I hope I can still play the guitar," Tom fretted. ------------------------------ In-Reply-To: References:

Message-Id: <53D7A9C1-BA4B-4E29-82C0-D08495FAC342 [at] interstellar.com> From: Jerry Durand Subject: Re: on a serious note Date: Mon, 5 Sep 2005 09:22:23 -0700 On Sep 5, 2005, at 9:11 AM, Howard Ires wrote: > I've never understood the logic of "recycling" either. Most of the > manufactured goods of our society come from the ground, I don't > have any > problem putting them back in the ground unsorted when we're done > with them. > One thing it does is create a lot of jobs. Our local dump had an open house-BBQ (really) to show what a high-tech operation it now is. You also might save some things that are hard to find, like gold in electronic parts. Some recycling/pollution laws DO sound stupid...like a local aquarium that pumps water from the bay, filters it, and runs it through tanks with fish from the bay. After that the water is classed as sewage and can't be dumped back into the bay, even though it's cleaner than when it came out. ------------------------------ Message-ID: <49384.204.244.226.19.1125938908.squirrel [at] 204.244.226.19> In-Reply-To: References: Date: Mon, 5 Sep 2005 09:48:28 -0700 (PDT) Subject: Re: Podcasts From: "Tom Heemskerk" > For info, archives & UNSUBSCRIBE, see > --------------------------------------------------- > > Greetings everyone. > I've discovered PodCasts and was wondering if anyone else has. What > have you found interesting? > I've become a fan of a guy in L.A. named Leo Leporte. He does a > computer tech call-in radio show that he then uploads as a PodCast. He > also has a show called "twit" (This Week in Tech.) > -- Public broadcasters have excellent podcasts. The NPR has a new podcast portal http://www.npr.org/rss/podcast/podcast_directory.php Also check out the BBC and the CBC podcast sites. CBC Radio3 is a popular (and legal) independant-music show that's one of the top music podcasts anywhere. http://www.cbcradio3.com/ There's a lockout at the CBC right now, but the workers are producing podcasts from the picket lines, at cbcunplugged.com My favourite's a CBC science show called Quirks and Quarks which has become a popular podcast. th ------------------------------ Subject: RE: on a serious note Date: Mon, 5 Sep 2005 12:58:43 -0400 Message-ID: <6E497ADB607656479C24E6D7BF6B505A0196C907 [at] exchange.rmwc.edu> From: "Paul Schreiner" > I've never understood the logic of "recycling" either. Most=20 > of the manufactured goods of our society come from the=20 > ground, I don't have any problem putting them back in the=20 > ground unsorted when we're done with them. Depends on the material. For example, glass doesn't decay; throw a bottle in the landfill, and a thousand years from now you can dig it up and it'll still be basically intact. Same goes for most plastics, though progress is being made in the genetic engineering of bacterial species that can eat plastic and get it to decompose. The materials used in circuit boards are one of the most persistent (read: long-lived), though, which is why there's a big push to recycle those as much as possible...well, that and the fact that PCBs in the circuit boards tend to be fairly toxic when they eventually leach out into the groundwater supply. > The point of the beverage container deposit laws is to keep=20 > that stuff off the road and streets because it is an eyesore,=20 > and it has succeeded. I don't really think there is any=20 > ecological benefit involved. If the gov't has made 200=20 > million off it I'm sure they're pleased about that too. Agreed on the original selling point for bottle bills; but glass and plastic containers don't decay and tend to take up an inordinate amount of landfill space. With real estate prices as they are, and the general stigma attached to living near a landfill, there's a big ol' NIMBY mentality for new landfills, the demand for which can be lessened with more recycling of waste rather than dumping of it. For aluminum, remember that for the most part it's not mined straight from the ground, but from bauxite ore...so tossing that back into a landfill isn't exactly replacing what we took out. Additionally, the energy requirements for processing of bauxite are greater (as I understand it) than for recycling of existing "pure" aluminum. ------------------------------ Subject: RE: The shirt Date: Mon, 5 Sep 2005 13:10:49 -0400 Message-ID: <6E497ADB607656479C24E6D7BF6B505A0196C908 [at] exchange.rmwc.edu> From: "Paul Schreiner" > http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3D8325594078& sspagename=3DADM E:L:RTQ:US:1 Or try http://tinyurl.com/8ulla if you have wrapping issues like I did... ------------------------------ Message-ID: <000901c5b248$64a91840$6501a8c0 [at] D4D3R151> From: "Randy Whitcomb" References:

Subject: Re: on a serious note Date: Mon, 5 Sep 2005 12:34:03 -0600 ----- Original Message ----- From: "Howard Ires" > I've never understood the logic of "recycling" either. Most of the > manufactured goods of our society come from the ground, I don't have any > problem putting them back in the ground unsorted when we're done with > them. William Rathje started the Garbage Project in 1971 to study landfills. Here's a link to an excellent article on some of his findings. http://www.plasticsresource.com/s_plasticsresource/doc.asp?TRACKID=&CID=175&DID=487 In short; the stuff we put in landfills today will look pretty much the same in 20 years. As the bumper sticker states:"Throw it away? There is no away." There had been talk awhile back about "mining" landfills to pull out the recyclables, and thereby increase the landfills life span, but it's been determined its too dangerous an undertaking. Recycling: Creates jobs, increases the life of landfills, often times saves energy over creating from scratch, saves scarce raw materials, can lead to the creation of new, better materials. i.e.. recycled wood/plastic boards make very nice decking material which can look and hold up better than traditional wood planks. Randy Whitcomb ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 05 Sep 2005 14:59:39 -0400 Subject: Re: Podcasts From: "C. Dopher" Message-ID: In-Reply-To: <90d9c99805090420442fba77b7 [at] mail.gmail.com> On 9/4/05 11:44 PM, "Scott Parker" wrote: > Greetings everyone. > I've discovered PodCasts and was wondering if anyone else has. What > have you found interesting? I subscribe to three: oneis Podictionary, another is for runners, and a third if the CF Podcast. I am pondering starting my own, in order to fill a particular niche -- that's why I was asking earlier about USB pre-amps and such. Cris Dopher ------------------------------ Message-Id: <3.0.6.32.20050905115439.00ce54c8 [at] pop.west.cox.net> Date: Mon, 05 Sep 2005 11:54:39 From: CB Subject: Podcasts >He >also has a show called "twit" (This Week in Tech.) Let him know that the live, variety/comedy show called "This Week In Tucson" has been using the moniker "TWIT" for two decades. There may be a bit of a conflict in the intellectual property arena. Chris "Chris" Babbie Location Sound MON AZ Delete key training and post trimming done by appointment. Rates negotiable, will trade for typing lessons/ADD treatment... ------------------------------ Message-Id: <3.0.6.32.20050905120113.00ce1b28 [at] pop.west.cox.net> Date: Mon, 05 Sep 2005 12:01:13 From: CB Subject: RE: on a serious note (and additional comments) >Is what you are saying: lack of professional planning, knowing all the facts >they had, and lots of history. I'm not sure if this is a question or not. Basicaly what I was saying is that moving a hospital ship takes a lot of logistiacal planning, and while they may have started as soon as they thought that there might ba an emergency, that still down't mean that the ship would have been there by the time it was actully needed. I'm not defending anyone, or pointing fingers. I, too, think that things couldhave been handled better, but its just a feeling. The only thing I'd feel sure about commenting on with any authority is the way the sound was handled. So far, so good. Randy, you quoted what I quoted, and all of my post. I'm not sure, therefore, whose comments you were trying to address, and which of mine, if in fact it was mine you were referring to, you were addressing. Chris "Chris" Babbie Location Sound MON AZ Delete key training and post trimming done by appointment. Rates negotiable, will trade for typing lessons/ADD treatment... ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 5 Sep 2005 20:27:22 +0100 (BST) From: Charlie Richmond Subject: Re: on a serious note In-Reply-To: Message-ID: References:

On Mon, 5 Sep 2005, Paul Guncheon wrote: > First it's "keep up the good queations"... Yep. Please keep asking the good questions (and not the ones that really don't have answers such as "exactly how many species become endangered every year?") > Then it's "You would be called a 'troll' in the earlier days of the > internet, Paul, but that term has become rarer now since trolling has become > recognized now as the pointless technique that it is....." Trolls goad people into pointless arguments about things like the exact number of species that become endangered every year. And they do it specifically to avoid discussing the really important issues such as the other good questions you asked at the same time ;-) > I have always been impressed with the incredible general knowledge of the > list and in slow times (like this one) occasionally have asked somewhat > arcane questions that are in truth off topic. Agreed. > "Why saving near extent flora and fauna is important" was such a question. > I realize from the responses that the question so outside the interest of > the group and will discussion of the topic. I will exercise more restraint > in the future' That was indeed a good question (as were others you asked) and has now received some very good answers and well as having some good answers on some of the web pages referred to.... Apologies for being too severe. Charlie ------------------------------ Message-Id: <6.2.3.4.0.20050905121652.02a0e2f8 [at] 192.168.0.13> Date: Mon, 05 Sep 2005 12:30:37 -0700 From: Jerry Durand Subject: Re: on a serious note (and additional comments) In-Reply-To: References: At 05:01 AM 9/5/2005, you wrote: >I'm not sure if this is a question or not. Basicaly what I was saying is >that moving a hospital ship takes a lot of logistiacal planning, and while >they may have started as soon as they thought that there might ba an >emergency, that still down't mean that the ship would have been there by >the time it was actully needed. What I've heard lately that's disturbing is the number of rescue personnel that appear to have been prevented from helping. It seems a hundred doctors started packing up the Homeland Security mobile hospital before the hurricane hit and were there right away with full staff and supplies, but they didn't have the proper permissions so the hospital and doctors are still sitting there in the area unused. There's also supposed to be a Navy ship in the gulf with full medical facilities still sitting there, unused. And 300 ambulances from Florida were turned down. It all sounds like a paperwork problem, "you can't rescue anyone until you fill out these forms and the guy who approves them is back from vacation". NOVA had a program about this happening in Operation WMD (or whatever the name is this week) in Iraq. They followed two MASH-type units for a while. One was overworked in N. Iraq with something like 30,000 civilians that were injured by Coalition fire* while the other unit sat packed up just outside of Iraq with full staff but was never put into use. Not a single patient, the staff read a LOT of books. ... *No civilians are treated unless they can PROVE they were injured by Coalition fire (but it doesn't matter which side they are on). So, you'd better get a serial number off that bullet. -- Jerry Durand Durand Interstellar, Inc. 219 Oak Wood Way Los Gatos, California 95032-2523 USA tel: +1 408 356-3886, USA toll free: 1 866 356-3886 web: www.interstellar.com ------------------------------ Message-ID: <431C9EA7.30200 [at] StudioOneSB.com> Date: Mon, 05 Sep 2005 14:38:15 -0500 From: Richard Bakos Organization: Studio One Inc. Subject: Re: on a serious note (and additional comments) References: In-Reply-To: Was watching the news this afternoon and they were saying that the Navy SeaBees were now on the ground in New Orleans. I spoke with a relative who was in the Seabees until a couple of years ago and he said that is his unit which was an advance unit could be on the ground anywhere in the world in 48 hours to set up for the main force which would follow in an additional 48 hours. Why did it take 7 days for them to be deployed to the gulf? It doesn't help that the east cost base for the units is in the storm area. -- Richard Bakos South Bend, In 46619-4736 ------------------------------ Message-ID: <001b01c5b251$495799a0$0600000a [at] BRUTUS> From: "Jon Ares" References:

Subject: Re: on a serious note (and additional comments) Date: Mon, 5 Sep 2005 12:37:44 -0700 > What I've heard lately that's disturbing is the number of rescue personnel > that appear to have been prevented from helping. There was a story recently about how former VP Al Gore, using private funds and private aircraft, was trying to get patients and doctors out of some of the afflicted hospitals, but couldn't get through the proper channels of FEMA - kept getting shut down. Pundits and experts are questioning the wisdom of scooping up every form of quasi-independent program/department and putting them under the management of the new Dept. of Homeland Security. Many (as do I) think the too-much-management system slowed everything down. Both Army Corps of Engineers and FEMA have said they could have moved quicker, before being re-organized into DHS. - Jon Ares www.hevanet.com/acreative ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 5 Sep 2005 20:44:18 +0100 (BST) From: Charlie Richmond Subject: Re: on a serious note (and additional comments) In-Reply-To: Message-ID: References:

On Mon, 5 Sep 2005, Jerry Durand wrote: > What I've heard lately that's disturbing is the number of rescue personnel > that appear to have been prevented from helping. It seems a hundred doctors Cuba also offered to send 1100 doctors and 26 tons of medicine last week but got no response one way or another. They are were able to send them immediately they said and reiterated the offer several days later.... Charlie ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 05 Sep 2005 15:44:16 -0400 Subject: Re: on a serious note (and additional comments) From: John McKernon Message-ID: In-Reply-To: > What I've heard lately that's disturbing is the number of rescue > personnel that appear to have been prevented from helping. For a good example of bureaucratic bungling, look at this from today's New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/05/national/nationalspecial/05medical.html (You might need to register to see it, which is free). The headline is "Medical Team From Georgia, Trying to Provide Help, Hits Roadblocks Along the Way". They may as well have put the word "Bureaucratic" in front of the word "Roadblocks", and any theatrical production manager could do better. - John ------------------------------ Subject: Notes from the warehouse (long again! Sorry....) Date: Mon, 5 Sep 2005 12:49:13 -0700 Message-ID: From: "Michael Finney" Hey there, boys and girls - ok, so we're empty here in the warehouse (1,000,000 pounds of supplies moved, crews in Mississippi and Louisianna)(and reports are that our first shipments were actually on-site Thursday morning), and I'm gong to get a nap before I drive home...and I have just about enough bad coffee to insure *that* won't happen right away! Sooooooooo: First of all, thanks to you all for letting me rant last week - valuable therapy. Secondly - thanks for the kind words you all sent (I shared them with our crew). The folks who really deserve the pats on the back are the crews in the field...we're in a nice, dry warehouse and didn't miss anything but some sleep. And the guys from some of our crew's firehouses (this was a scratch crew with a lot of Heavy Urban Rescue guys on it) kept stopping in to check on us...and we were *not* shy about press ganging them into helping (especially with the hand loading...which can add 2-5% to a total load as it fills up those voids better). So, as we got more tired, we actually had to do less physically. The only injury was a badly sprained thumb (keep you thumbs out of the spokes of the steering wheel if the wheels are going to get knocked around)...and, with (I swear to god!) 5 EMT's and 3 paramedics in the room at the time, treatment wasn't a problem! A few of the folks who really deserve applause (and I suspect will get little notice): The Salvation Army...it looks like *none* of their people within NO left. And I suspect that after-action reports will show that their work in the 9th Ward (the poorest and hardest hit) saved a lot of lives. Simple stuff...filled up any container they could find with water before the municipal system went down, knew where the local residents were most likely to be trapped, kept information flowing, etc. It's something of a "given" in disaster response that the best response is immediate and intensely local...and the Salvation Army did that. The Coast Guard rescue swimmer and choppers. They're coming off of intense operations for Ivan, and still made this evolution. And they're operating at well above 200% of their recommended operational levels. That means that they're having to pretty much drag pilots and crews out of the birds and *make* them sleep. I finally caught some news footage on Sunday, and I was seeing some amazing picks by these guys (from a balcony, in the city, in a hover below the surrounding buildings...that's ASTOUNDING...it increased my pucker factor just watching)(of course, I also wanted to smack the news chopper guy who was getting the shot...nothing like having another rotary wing aircraft in the area to make things more "interesting"...). Same thing for the ANG guys....and a lot of them are doing this (rescue operations) for the first time, which makes it even more amazing. And, if you'll look at some of the people being dropped in the slings, you'll see that they're female crew members. As far as I know, this is the first time we've seen commanders in the ANG allow this (it's been considered a "combat duty", and most commanders are, shall we say, hesitant to risk the bad publicity of losing a female crew member this way)(trust me, none of us would *ever* suggest that to the women on our teams...they deploy with us and fill every duty slot that's available). Anyway - well done and I hope it doesn't change in the future. The air crew mechanics - they're turning these choppers in incredible times. They're doing maintenance on engines that have just been operated at 80% of maximum for hours on end, and *aren't* waiting for them to cool before they start work. YIKES! General Honore - he's the commander of the "regular" military troops who are deployed. What's not being said is that he's allowing his commanders to work with (or under, which is unheard of) Guard commanders, and has given his people tremendous latitude in making field decisions while he deals with distractions. His appearance at the press conference was a model of reason (even though he obviously was mentally adding "you idiot" to some of his answers). His staff are the people who located the leftover stores from the Hurricane Ivan response and got them released (apparently the governors of Mississippi and Louisiana didn't know that they were there and then didn't know that they needed to *request* them...the lack of knowledge of procedures by the governors and mayors is going to be a BIG issue in the after-action evaluation...somebody seriously screwed the pooch when these guys were briefed after taking office. My bet is that it's part of the transfer of FEMA from a stand alone agency to part of Homeland Security...I bet the briefer from HS wasn't part of the emergency response community and never thought to brief them in on their responsibilities in requesting response). The folks at the shelters being used for relocation of the Superdome and Convention Center evacuees. Especially the folks in Houston. You want to see how you set up and manage an emergency shelter in no time, look at them. Special kudos to the local Houston physician who was interviewed while volunteering at the Astrodome and basically asked where the hell the other physicians in town were and why they weren't down there with him. The clinics were full staffed within hours. I want this guy on *my* response team! I got a couple of questions about what I was doing and how I got involved in this. I volunteer with the Urban Search and Rescue teams and FEMA disaster response here in southern California. I stared volunteering in mountain and wilderness SAR when I was in college and stayed peripherally involved (it's tough to do that while working in our industry). When friends of mine from that part of the first response community moved to LA, they sucked me into USAR...and, since a lot of my career has involved construction and heavy lift, I naturally got drug further into Heavy Lift (and confined space, and building collapse). After 9/11, we started paying more attention to the logistics of moving our resources around to other events...and I discovered that time spent doing rock and roll tours translates pretty well to dealing with the logistics of moving lots of material, supplies, and people around. As a result, I do that more than anything else these days. All of which actually leads me to something: You know, you can learn to do a lot of this too. People from our industry have a skill set that translates well to the disaster response community. Think about it - we're mostly people with multiple skills, including a lot of things like basic carpentry skills, basic electrical skills, experience operating material handling equipment (like forklifts and trucks). We're mostly used to building teams and/or supervising teams of people we didn't even know 8 hours ago. We know how to maintain focus in chaotic situations. We're used to improvising if the "right" thing isn't available. All of those are skills that are incredibly valuable in any kind of disaster response. And it doesn't have to be a huge time commitment...a basic "get acquainted" first aid course from your local Red Cross chapter shouldn't take more than a weekend day (and it's valuable on the job anyway). Other courses can take more time, but they're well worth it...and I'd really, really suggest that any PM's, PSM's, SM's, or Tour Managers out there try to get a Red Cross "Shelter Management" course and volunteer...this Spring has shown that there just aren't enough folks out there to support all the shelter management work that has shown up.....and the skill set of a PM, PSM, SM, Tour Manager, etc works *great* in shelter management. If you want to go deeper into it, the full FEMA Civilian Emergency Response Team training program is (I think) 21 hours spread over a couple of months. That one usually ends in a realistic exercise, which is an amazing thing to participate in. That's also a good way to meet some of the other people in the disaster response community and see if it's something you want to pursue. Heck, they have even more jargon and slang that the theatre world! (my wife's favourite that she heard when she came in to visit: "he Finn - T4's DMAT Six wants to know if we can chop him a full flat of FRP's?" Translation: "The commander of Texas Task Force 4's Disaster Medical Assistance Team is requesting that we ship him a complete flat car load of First Response Packs from our stores")(T4, for the record was on-site at Louis Armstrong International Airport well in advance of their anticipated response time...and are now being relocated to even more hard hit areas...no rest, no break, right back into the field...yes, *with* a full flat car of FRP's (and a couple of cases of beer...and HandiWipes and baby powder and Oreos and Fig Newtons, and all the other things that make life worth living!) Two last things (I swear!): =20 Big tip of the hat to Bruce Cooper for taking the initiative to get that particular ball rolling! Very, very well done! And Brother Herrick, we can *alternate* buying each other beer at LDI! Your recounts of getting the Law and Order stages converted over to support centers after 9/11 were a huge help at that time, and have been shared around the community out here. In point of fact, sound stages have begun to factor into some of our "second tier" planning, which they weren't before (high on the "DOH!" scale for us out here, actually).... Off to grab a beer and a nap. Beer good....nap better! =20 Michael Finney Thinkwell Design & Production mfinney [at] thinkwelldesign.com www.thinkwelldesign.com =20 =20 ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 5 Sep 2005 21:43:11 +0100 (BST) From: Charlie Richmond Subject: Re: on a serious note (and additional comments) In-Reply-To: Message-ID: References:

On Mon, 5 Sep 2005, Jerry Durand wrote: > What I've heard lately that's disturbing is the number of rescue personnel > that appear to have been prevented from helping. It seems a hundred doctors And yet another perspective on the situation: http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article10118.htm Charlie ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 05 Sep 2005 16:48:26 -0400 Subject: Re: Notes from the warehouse (long again! Sorry....) From: Herrick Goldman Message-ID: In-Reply-To: Thanks again Finney. And for the record I was just in the right place at the right time. You actually go out and seek this stuff and We appreciate it! Heck I don't even have time for a dog or to keep my EMT certs up. -H -- Herrick Goldman Lighting Designer, NYC www.HGLightingDesign.com 917-797-3624 "To the scores of silent alchemists who wreak their joy in darkness and in light bringing magic to life, we bow most humbly. "-CDS ------------------------------ From: MissWisc [at] aol.com Message-ID: <87.2f46423b.304e0936 [at] aol.com> Date: Mon, 5 Sep 2005 16:48:54 EDT Subject: RE: on a serious note Put a mom in charge instead of a politician and NOLA would have gotten help sooner and better. And yes, I am willing to take the job. It's simple -- in times of crisis, do whatever is necessary to meet the needs of the people affected safely and quickly. PERIOD. Screw "procedure" "policy" "politics" "I might get sued" "The boss said" "we didn't do it that way before" and all that mumbo jumbo that stands in the way of getting it done. Match the need with the person or thing that will fill it. Then go on to the next task. Where is our "war room" for when things happen internally? Then... tell the reporters that of they want to report from te scene, they need to be part of the solution, and I'm not talking about Geraldo shoving a soldier out of the way for a photo op. If you're going to drive in, you're taking supplies in and people out. Else, you don't get to get to go in. You don't play nice then you can go play alone, momma says. I'm never surprised at the generosity of the American public. Collectively, we know we are rich and we are very generous. It's just a matter of getting the help to the people OR getting the people to the help. And when someone volunteers to help you don't insult them by saying no and then go looking for the same someone else. Momma taught the to share. I keep thinking back to when 9/11 happened and Herrick went to a triage center to help. When he noticed they needed better lighting, he got a TV rig that he knew of. He didn't call the production company to see if they would mind if he borrowed it - he just made it happen knowing that the need is obvious and the right thing to do is to fill it. I wonder how many people are alive today because he "just did it". Momma likes folks with initative. Michael Finney mentioned in a private email that he was going to post this and I hope he doesn't mind my repeating... We stagecraft folks make good EMT, Red-Cross, first aid type people. We're able to keep focus when things are going to hell around us, we have excellent small motor skills and are good at calming nervous people. We know a lot about electricity, structrure, chemicals, tools, We learn quickly, are able to react with split second timing, and have the camaraderie to grab a beverage and debrief to lessen stress at the end of the day. Add to that we are able to function around the clock and are excellent at using every day items in untraditional ways. Once you have that knowledge, no one can take it from you. First Aid procedures do change. (E.g., you always give a diabetic fast carbs if they are able to eat, no longer have to determine if they have too much insulin or too much sugar. Easier to deal with too much sugar than too much insulin.) So get certified, take a refresher, teach what you know. Momma says so. :) Kristi ------------------------------ Reply-To: From: "Jeffrey E. Salzberg" Subject: RE: on a serious note Date: Mon, 5 Sep 2005 16:52:39 -0400 Message-ID: <000001c5b25b$c4440f90$6601a8c0 [at] Dell> In-reply-to: > Put a mom in charge instead of a politician and NOLA would > have gotten help > sooner and better. And yes, I am willing to take the job. That's it. The ticket for 2008: Kristi for President of the US/Bill Sapsis for President of Vice ------------------------------ Message-Id: <6.2.3.4.2.20050905200317.020d8b40 [at] mail.earthlink.net> Date: Mon, 05 Sep 2005 20:05:04 -0700 From: Jennie and Jerry Gorrell Subject: Fire, Stampede at Egypt Theater Kills 29 saw this tonight Fire, Stampede at Egypt Theater Kills 29 September 05, 2005 9:44 PM EDT CAIRO, Egypt - Fire raced through an Egyptian theater during a crowded performance late Monday, causing hundreds of audience members to flee the building in panic, officials said. At least 29 people were killed and 60 injured by the flames and ensuing stampede. About 1,000 people were watching the play in the center run by Egypt's Culture Ministry when the fire broke out about 11:45 p.m., a police official said. The fire may have started when lit candles held by girls taking part in the play touched off theater curtains, said the official, who declined to be identified as he was unauthorized to speak to the media. The blaze sparked panic in the packed audience, with hundreds trying to flee the burning theater as thick black smoke poured out, witnesses said in Beni Suef, a city on the Nile about 60 miles south of Cairo. "There were so many people screaming and crying, falling over each other trying to get out," a police lieutenant who was at the scene during the fire told The Associated Press. He said he went into the building after firefighters got the fire under control within about 45 minutes. "I saw bodies everywhere. It was a great shock to see so many dead people," said the lieutenant, who also spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to reporters. The cultural center building was left a burned-out concrete husk with blackened walls. The center is used for numerous events, including exhibitions and plays. The lieutenant said many teenagers and children were among Monday night's audience, although the nature of the production was not immediately clear. The bodies of at least 29 people were taken to the main morgue in Beni Suef, with the victims dying either from burn-related injuries, suffocation or being trampled to death in the stampede to flee the theater, the official added. It was the deadliest fire in Egypt since a blaze tore through a crowded passenger train on Feb. 20, 2002, south of Cairo killing 370 people. --- Associated Press writer Nadia Abou el-Magd contributed to this report from Cairo, Egypt Jerry Gorrell ------------------------------ Message-ID: <1125983168.431d23c0b6eb1 [at] email.ixwebhosting.com> Date: Tue, 6 Sep 2005 00:06:08 -0500 From: Bruce Cooper Subject: LEI-Resources update Ladies/Gents: Forgive one more time the intrusion, but I just wanted to let you know, SWERN/NERR has begun posting the Most Needed List for members. I'll keep a page updated with the headings and breakouts on the server with specifics for those who are curious. katrina-resources [at] ledworklights.com is the e-mail http://ledworklights.com/LEI-Resources/MostNeeded.html is the Most Needed List. I'll update as SWERN does. Thanks for your time. :Bruce Cooper -- 847-445-2668 ------------------------------ Message-ID: Date: Tue, 6 Sep 2005 09:52:37 +0100 From: Tony Miller Subject: Re: on a serious note In-Reply-To: References:

Just to avoid these stories of raping babies and bodies lying in the superdome please read this article to put a bit of perspective on the thing. http://www.guardian.co.uk/katrina/story/0,16441,1563532,00.html Tony. On 02/09/05, Tony Deeming wrote: > For info, archives & UNSUBSCRIBE, see > --------------------------------------------------- >=20 >=20 >=20 >=20 > > > > I wish I could believe the looters taking guns, ammo and drugs > > are intending > > to re-sell for bread and water. > > > > - Jon Ares >=20 > Not to mention those poor styarving souls taking pot shots with sniper > rifles outside the hospitals.....??? >=20 > TD > ------------------------------ End of Stagecraft Digest #511 *****************************