Disqus - Latest Comments for BGSchneider

Re: Daily Home - High numbers of Sylacauga students reporting illnesses

BGSchneider — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 10:43:43 -0000

Several years ago, I had the opportunity to attend a seminar cohosted by Regions Bank and the Birmingham chapter of a national Business Continuance organization. The purpose of the seminar was to educate area IT professionals as to what to expect when, not if, the next flu pandemic hit. At the time the focus was on the Avian flu, but Swine flu poses the same challenges. Seminar speakers included Jefferson & Shelby County Police and EMS, local area Police & EMS, an avian expert from Auburn, a virologist from UAB, the head of North Alabama FBI, and a representative of Homeland Security.

What I learned was quite disturbing. Expectations are that 40% of the workforce will not be at work. They will either be sick, caring for the sick, or quarantined. Many IT organizations are shrugging this off and saying no problem, they'll just let folks work from home, but the people maintaining the internet will be in the same position as the rest of us. Not to mention that the internet is not prepared for such an increase in utilization.

There will be at least three waves, each separated by a 4-6 week lull. As hospitals fill up, there will quickly be a shortage of respirators. Doctors will be forced to make challenging moral decisions regarding life or death. These decisions will factor in the patient's ability to contribute to society once they are well. There then comes the problem of dealing with those that have passed. The shere volume alone will be overwhelming.

The economic impact of a pandemic is also very disturbing. Estimates are that 2 out of every 5 small businesses will go under in the first 12 months, with a 3rd folding in the first 24 months. Businesses which rely on IT for revenue generation and collection are going to be impacted inversely to the amount of planning they have done for such an outage. Unfortuantely, most businesses have prepared little and poorly, if at all.

Swine flu symptoms include fever, lethargy, lack of appetite and coughing, runny nose, sore throat, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. With these symptoms, Ms. McGrady's comment regarding her focus on a stomach virus should not be interpreted to NOT be the Swine flu, only that those are the symptoms with which she is most troubled at this time. The recommendations listed to help stop the spread of the virus are those listed by the CDC. The CDC also provides additional information for individuals, businesses, businesses with key personnel, etc. regarding things they can do, and things they need to purchase, to prepare for a pandemic.

For additional information, research www.cdc.gov as well as Googling words such as pandemic, disaster recovery, business continuity, impact, economy, etc. There's plenty of information available.

The bottom line here is that a pandemic, which I believe has been declared with H1N1, strikes much deeper than just people getting sick and staying home for a little while. The situation in the Sylacauga school system must be taken seriously. I hope that local and county agencies and officials will soon publish more information on what to expect and how to prepare for the long term. Keep in mind that we are already dealing with a high unemployment rate and a struggling economy. Should projections come true, we are going to be in a world of hurt.

Re: Daily Home - Atlanta company pruchases Sylacauga Food World property

BGSchneider — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 22:10:41 -0000

Sounds like a good place for a sidewalk prefab factory

Re: Daily Home - Schools ready for swine flu

BGSchneider — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 21:19:44 -0000

Shhhhhhhh - be berry berry quiet, darryl_davis is twying to twap a wabbit.

Re: Daily Home - Mayor authorized to apply for more than $1 million to improve airport

BGSchneider — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 22:05:29 -0000

sidtank - if what you say is true, then you may have won a debate point with me. What are the particulars on the company that decided to not locate here? Did the city engage and try to meet their requirements? Were their requirements valid or something they pulled out of the sky? I'd like to know more.

Re: Daily Home - Schools ready for swine flu

BGSchneider — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 21:55:47 -0000

What rock did you crawl out from under? d_d appears to be writing a script for Oliver Stone. Either that or he left his tin foil cone hat at Bryce's.

What the hell does my comment aimed at him have to do with people in Alabama and women?

Re: Daily Home - Sylacauga school supply drive success

BGSchneider — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 21:48:11 -0000

Thank God for concerned citizens. Sam and his band of misfits are too busy trying to build sidewalks and add to the airport to care about our youth. That's right Sam. I'm like a piece of tape stuck on your finger. Shake as hard as you want, but I won't let go.

Re: Daily Home - Students hear about dangers in the cyber world

BGSchneider — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 21:41:46 -0000

Good, but could be better. Add the dangers of REEF and the dangers of elected politicians who could care less. The cyber-problems become pretty much insignificant after that.

Re: Daily Home - Mayor authorized to apply for more than $1 million to improve airport

BGSchneider — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 21:33:11 -0000

Are you saying that you couldn't use your airplane for business purposes if it wasn't stored in a hanger? If I had a plane I would want to store it in a hanger, but that's not a necessity. I have several cars but I don't have a garage to store them in. They're under a carport. My tractor is out in the terrible elements.

But let's steer this discussion back in the right direction. What's more important, hangers for airplanes or soap and supplies for the school system? Hangers for airplanes or sidewalks in Drew Court. It's all about decisions made by leaders or, better stated, our elected officials not making leadership decisions. Many years ago, I flew. I loved it and still do. And while I would personally prefer a hanger if I had a plane, I have to realize there is only a certain amount of money going around. And there are many other priorities that should be considered before spending the money on the airport.

Re: Daily Home - Schools ready for swine flu

BGSchneider — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 21:17:28 -0000

Dude, you ain't right!

Re: Daily Home - Mayor authorized to apply for more than $1 million to improve airport

BGSchneider — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 22:20:52 -0000

sidtank - How will building more hangers for people like you who own a plane help Sylacauga?

Re: Daily Home - Rogers discusses healthcare

BGSchneider — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 22:31:27 -0000

Accountant, Concerned Citizen, and Hallooney all voice criticism of Mike Rogers statements and I have to assume from the article and replies, the respondents support Obama.

I don't support the plan, but let's ask Mike another question (which I did a number of months ago). With growing numbers of citizens out of work, did he accept the automatic pay raise congress received. His lack of response confirmed that he did accept the pay increase. Why, Mike, did you do so? Why don't you just resign and make things easier.

Re: Daily Home - Nearly 5 years of work ends in murder indictment

BGSchneider — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 22:17:33 -0000

Here, here Confederate American!

There is so much more that goes on in this small community called Sylacauga that the public is not aware of. If they were, they'd be raising hell about the city planning on spending money on sidewalks and unneeded airport improvements as opposed to properly compensating the officers who risk their lives every day to protect us. And these officers do so in lieu of the incompetent and immoral leadershtip we have at the local, county, state, and federal levels.

Our locally elected officials are concerned only with projecting a positive image of themselves, and have absolutely no dedication to the position for which each was elected. We can fight the local, county and state morons with general ease but the feds pose a significant problem. I'll exercise my rights at the next election.

In the meantime, God speed to all of our dedicated police offices and my you be safe in your daily journey.

Re: Daily Home - Mayor authorized to apply for more than $1 million to improve airport

BGSchneider — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 22:00:38 -0000

There are none!

Re: Daily Home - Mayor authorized to apply for more than $1 million to improve airport

BGSchneider — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 22:00:03 -0000

Stacy - Do you have any idea how long the runway is at the Sylacauga airport? I'll give you a hint, you can land a 747 on it. The minimum distance for a 747 is around 4200' and the runway at the airport is over 5000' and has been since the early 1970's, so landing corporate jets is not an issue. There is also plenty of room to park and store aircraft at the facility. This money, should it be accepted, must be closely tied to actually bringing new businesses into Sylacauga, not "improving" an already sufficient airport in attempts to entice new busisness.

AND there's plenty of room all aound to park/store corporate jets.

Re: Daily Home - Mayor authorized to apply for more than $1 million to improve airport

BGSchneider — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 21:52:05 -0000

Because where the money will be spent is not where it needs to be spent and with the Federal Government involved, I venture to say there's a very high probability that the strings attached to the funds will run deep into the city for many years to come. Idiot.

Re: Daily Home - Mayor authorized to apply for more than $1 million to improve airport

BGSchneider — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 21:47:50 -0000

sidtank - I'm worried about any council that takes money under the so called stimulus plan and applies it to sidewalks and "airport improvements, then tries to sell their story to the public. Drew Court doesn't need sidewalks and the airport doesn't need an "apron expansion, a taxiway connector and the rehabilitation of the T-Hangar Paving Area". What is needed is for the city to pursue funds and legal actions to remove REEF. That makes sense. The rest doesn't.

Re: Daily Home - Cash for Clunkers needs continuing

BGSchneider — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 05:26:41 -0000

In 1969, we put a man on the moon. Or, as many say, we put a man in Arizona. Either way, we had the technology then to build a vehicle that got better gas mileage than vehicles of today. In a market where virtually all products have increased in performance and options at a reduced cost, automobiles have been the main exception. This program is simply another way to take advantage of the tax payers.

Re: Daily Home - Shop sales tax free in area this weekend

BGSchneider — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 21:57:57 -0000

I couldn't agree with you more, d_d

Taxation, while as out of control as it has become, is pale compared to the destruction Obama and the democrats have done to the U.S. Constitution in his short tenure. Until the election, I believed the worst thing that could happen to this country was to elect Hillary Clinton as president. If she ran today against Obama, I, as a devout conservative, would vote for her in a heartbeat. In fact, she may turn out to be more conservative than any of the Republican idiots in office.

Our rights are being diminished on a daily basis and people just don’t seem to care. The Republicans lack the morals and backbone to stand up and do what’s right. The entire system is so full of corruption that no representative can be trusted to serve the people. Congressional term limits would help, but I don’t believe they would solve the problem. However, there appears to be one, and only one, issue that has folks at odds with Barry and that’s health care.

Yesterday, AARP walked out on a number of their members who questioned the organization’s support of the proposal. I cancelled my AARP subscription yesterday. The young lady, who appeared weary, didn’t even ask me why. I have a feeling they’re getting hammered.

Tampa’s town hall was outstanding. Something has to get under the skin of the fence sitters so they take a stand. Maybe this is it. I have to believe that even as liberal as many Americans have become, when their freedoms are taken from them, when their money is squandered through taxation such that they can’t put food on the table for their family and working more hours or more than one job increases their tax contribution rather than decreasing it, they will have an awakening. Margaret Thatcher said it best. Socialism is good until you run out of other people’s money. This will happen.

May God bless the revolution.

Re: Daily Home - Fatal wreck on U.S. 77

BGSchneider — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 23:07:25 -0000

Jlk3y2 & LC Vick - To my knowledge, fault has yet to be officially determined and published. Are you suggesting that law enforcement need not follow protocol? I don't believe they're going to override procedure based on your opinions. The Rev has asked some direct questions, the answers of which should be made public as soon as possible.

As much as it pains me (yet again), I must say that the responses to the Rev's questions, such as those above by Jlk3y2, neither console the loved ones nor create a path for greater safety.

Rev - You're killing me. Will you please write something I can argue with you about. My reputation has deteriorated so bad my dog won't have anything to do with me. I should have never taught him how to read.....

Re: Daily Home - Georgia needs to talk over water

BGSchneider — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 22:49:12 -0000

DH - You said the water sources originate in Georgia, but imply that Lake Lanier is a source for Alabama, Florida, and Georgia. Where is Lake Lanier located? Alabama, Florida, or Georgia, or bordering one or more of the three states?

You state that for the last 2 decades Georgia officials have claimed more and more of the water to supply the uncontrolled urban sprawl around Atlanta. If Lake Lanier is physically located in Georgia, on what grounds do Alabama and Florida have to complain? Reminds me of this administration's take on ownership and wealth. If you have it, let's tax it until you don't want it anymore, have had it taken away by the government, or given to those that want it but are too lazy to work for it and the government feels so sorry that they're disadvantaged and gives it to them thus taking your hard earned possessions.

I don't think Sylacauga has anything to worry about. The city was given the deep wells from Avondale and their output matchs the capacity of Lake Howard. Maybe when Sam Wright and John Carter finish their campaign for Sylacauga growth we might have to tap into Crooked Creek, but I think that's a far off venture.

Re: Daily Home - Fatal wreck on U.S. 77

BGSchneider — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 21:45:26 -0000

blkwidowbowler - As one who has challenged the Rev on several occasions recently, I do not believe his intent here is with malice. The Rev's questions actually are related to a previous commentary in which he and I (which is highly unusual) agree that there are many more things local law enforcement can be doing besides setting speed traps (re a recent DH article about increased police presence). That article came on the heels of the lady and her daughter who were killed on I-20 near Lincoln a few weeks ago. There was an onslaught of opinions suggesting that accident was due to speeding, thus supporting the law enforcement effort and opposing the opinions of the Rev and myself that there are much more important things they could be doing. To my knowledge, the cause of this accident has yet to be released.

I'm terribly sorry for your loss. As one whose work has caused many miles behind the wheel, predicting and compensating for hydroplaning is difficult if not impossible.

Re: Daily Home - Town hall meeting to duscuss future of school

BGSchneider — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 19:17:55 -0000

ConAm - I'd have to guess simply by proximity that the residents and visitors to Drew Court are the ones committing the crimes. I'll leave it to the authorities to provide statistics if they wish. As to why we allow them to commit crimes, I have no idea. But it sure does boggle my mind that nothing is being done in that area yet we have all the resources we would ever want out on the roads catching speeders. I guess one activity pays while the other activity costs.

Re: Daily Home - Town hall meeting to duscuss future of school

BGSchneider — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 23:05:39 -0000

donal - the area around it HAS been a crime haven for years. My grandchildren went there in the early 1990's. When events were held at night, there were police escourts to ensure safe passage. Understand this is damned near 20 years ago. This is not a difficult decision. If the building was in supreme shape, I'd only endorse renovation if the Sylacauga Police Department were to move there. The building needs to come down. Any suggestion of spending taxpayer money on it is simply insane.

Re: Daily Home - Law enforcement crack down on unsafe drivers

BGSchneider — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 22:56:14 -0000

Rev - if you keep this up you're going to ruin my reputation. Again, I whole heartedly agree with you. With freedom comes responsibility. There are no excuses for driving an automobile and not having insurance, letting the insurance lapse, or letting a drivers license expire. Driving is a privilege, not a right. Unfortunately, we live in an age where accountability is a word that's not discussed, much less understood. The better part of the population feels they are due certain things that most of us had to work really hard to get a few decades ago. As you say, I too am tired of paying for other people's stupidity. And to quote Ron White of Blue Collar Comedy, "you can't fix stupid". So the only logical action I can see is to deprive the offenders of the privilege they abuse and help them understand there are ramifications to their actions.

Re: Daily Home - Town hall meeting good for planning

BGSchneider — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 22:37:30 -0000

I'd like to know what prompted Sam to come up with this brilliant idea of a town hall meeting that encourages public discussion. Could it be that he keeps getting his backside slammed when he continues business as usual?

If the town hall is genuine, and the intentions are genuine as well, I applaud you Sam. I'll wait to see how this comes out before passing final judgement.