It makes me laugh.

People complain and complain they need a government that understands their needs, reacts to them and delivers services for the taxes they paid.

Well?

Isn't that what occurred?

Maybe folks can't believe it, but, through all the Middle Class struggle to have leadership reflecting their hopes; they finally have it.

It is up to them to keep it now. The oppressors are many. The struggle is not over, but, stop speculating on suspicions this is not what it is.

What happened here? Why not animosity?

How could these two men get along so well?

You have got to be joking. Both these men have lived their lives for the moment they were sincerely needed.

Neither were born with silver spoons in the mouths. They grew up 'making life' happen the way their ambitions lead and it put two MIDDLE CLASS leaders in the very moment in time they have aspired their careers.

They were the PERFECT LEADERS for this moment in history. They found themselves among the Middle Class with their lives in destruction and disruption. No two other men could have done this together.

Why did they get along so well? That is not the question. That is not the question at all. The question is, why wouldn't they?

Sandy's devastated areas need diplomatic delegations.

That statement is not meant to be humorous. There are some very old cities in these areas. The populations are stable and frequently the Middle Class or impoverished. This devastation is more than a matter of rebuilding to them. This is a return to LOSS.

When people have little in life, there is that much more loss realized when all comforts are gone.

Some of what occurred in these communities was due to the age of the towns and buildings themselves.

But, rationalizing the loss isn't comforting. There is nothing the government can do to bring back what was and make the tragedy go away. Community after community need their local leaders to be strong and examples of what is possible. They need to lead. The President nor the Governor can make visits to every doorstep to bring help. This is the role of the local leadership.

Everyone in these circumstances are facing devastating events in their lives, but, they have to be motivated to move away from their loss. There are shelters everywhere. There is no reason for exposure to contaminated water and air with burgeoning health problems.

It will not be long before molds and fungus will begin to build in these areas. That will cause hideous disease requiring medical treatment almost as bad as the disease itself.

It is not realistic for citizens to remain in their homes. No matter how difficult it is to leave there are many, many reasons to do so.

People have to understand they have to return to their lives as they exist now while in a zone of safety provided for them by their government in recognition of the importance of their lives. The devotion of the state, federal and local governments in this disaster has been more than remarkable. They acted in protection of their citizens and to defeat that now is a matter of denial of reality as it exists at this moment.

There are shelters where space, food, warmth and other community members are to find their lives moving into the future. There is support at the shelters. 

None of this is easy, but, families are not about suffering so much as coping, growing, loving each other through such tragedy and looking forward to a future.

A remarkable number of people are alive. Let's keep it that way.

Superstorm Sandy: The north-east begins long struggle to recovery (click here)
Death toll at 58 and millions still without power as recovery begins from devastating storm that cost billions of damage
Paul Harris, Karen McVeigh and Gizelle Lugo in New York
Thursday, November 1, 2012

America's devastated north-east began to struggle to life in the wake of superstorm Sandy even as millions of people remained without power and the US military continued to launch rescue missions to people trapped by floodwaters.

The historic storm killed at least 58 people in the US and has left more than 8 million people without power. New Jersey bore the brunt of the storm and in the city of Hoboken – just across the Hudson river from New York – the US National Guard arrived to help evacuate up to 20,000 people stuck in their homes.

Sandy is now thought to have caused tens of billions of dollars of damage with a unique combination of high winds, a massive flood surge and even a blizzard in mountainous areas. Its cone of impact stretched from North Carolina to Canada and it has been described by many as the worst ever to hit the region....

Look, if people insist on being exposed to petroleum tainted water there will be....THAT WAS WILL BE....an increase in cancers in 20 years and less. The people have to be moved to safety until it is safe to return.

The City of Hoboken is facing desperate circumstances.

National Guard Evacuating Flooded Hoboken, Bringing in Supplies (click here)

Sandy flooded roughly half the town of 50,000 people

By SAMANTHA HENRY

Thursday, Nov 1, 2012

Updated 12:22 AM EDT

...Tooke said the estimated 20,000 people still stranded in their homes were being encouraged to shelter in place, and that high-water vehicles would get supplies to them. He said people with medical and other special needs were being taken out by trucks. Two churches were serving as shelters.

Public housing, senior projects and private residences were all affected. Mayor Dawn Zimmer said senior citizens were the most distressed and eager to get more supplies.

National Guard troops in 12 trucks arrived Tuesday night, officials said. On Wednesday the city appealed for additional aid, including boats and generators. Zimmer asked local businesses to get water and nonperishable goods to City Hall....

The remnants of Sandy is headed to Canada.

October 31, 2012
1930:15z
UNISYS Enhanced Infrared GOES East Satellite

What a nightmare this storm has been.

Can we please not repeat this mistake.

A view of debris following a large fire which destroyed 100 homes in Breezy Point.

There are only a few things that could have started these fires. Either live overhead electric wires or a natural gas explosion. There is only one kind of flame that burns through water and that is a natural gas explosion. Once ignited the wind did the rest.

With homes built so close together there has to be special considerations to these tragedies. 

To begin, electric wires belong underground and not overhead. Electric sources have to be cut off when such problems manifest. This is very near the water so it will happen again.

This is an opportunity to get it right and make people more safe. If there was natural gas lines in the housing development it needs to be rethought. Realizing these homes are near each other, it is imprudent to put natural gas lines under these streets and homes.

My vision are houses fashionably on stilts as any beach community is designed with break away under-structures if hit with floods. They need to be state of the art solar homes with underground electric lines as a supplement to the home. 

Breezy Point was lucky this time. No one died.

Residents (click here) of the tight knit beach enclave of Breezy Point, Queens, sometimes known as the "Irish Riviera" for its overwhelming ethnic makeup, picked through the ashes of more than 100 homes destroyed by fire Monday night and contemplated the future of the once-placid getaway ravished by Sandy.

Hundreds more homes suffered flood damage and dozens of houses were swept off their foundations, officials said.

At the same time, stories of neighbor helping neighbor abounded amid flooded streets, pancaked beach houses that lined a battered promenade and the entire cluster of dozens of homes known as "the wedge" leveled by the fire that was still smoldering Tuesday....

There are legitimate reasons why Governor Christy wanted people out of Atlantic City.

...At 2:00 p.m. EDT (click here) on October 29, the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) reported that Sandy was located about 110 miles (180 kilometers) southeast of Atlantic City, New Jersey, and about 175 miles (285 kilometers) south-southeast of New York City. The storm had maximum sustained winds of 90 miles (150 kilometers) per hour. The storm was moving toward the northwest at about 28 miles (44 kilometers) per hour. The NHC stated that Sandy could transition into a wintertime low-pressure system later in the day, but cautioned that this would not weaken the storm prior to landfall....

Mr. Romney never had experience with the Red Cross or was it just a feel good moment for the constituents.

Sandy is still alive and well. North Caroline is still receiving rain.

October 30, 2012
1230:18z
UNISYS Infrared USA Satellite (click here for 12 hour loop)

In NC this is day six. It is now raining as far west as Wisconsin and Illinois.

Very odd, UNISYS stopped posting the central pressures of Sandy.

I guess it doesn't exist anymore.

  29  37.50  -71.50 10/29/15Z   80   943 HURRICANE-1
29A  38.30  -73.10 10/29/18Z   80   940 HURRICANE-1
  30  38.80  -74.40 10/29/21Z   80   940 HURRICANE-1
+12  39.80  -76.60 10/30/06Z   65     - HURRICArtNE-1

Sandy is still part of a larger system. It what keeps it going. It still has an ocean component. The President and Governors needed to be commended. They did an incredible job with a very deadly storm. It is amazing. It could have been 1000 times worse without evacuations. I could not believe rail cars were on the NJ Turnpike. That is the velocity of sustained winds. It rocks huge things into submission. There is no way to project from that. The point is this storm is still persistent. Was is even more strange is its inverted shape. It is actually connected to water vapor from the Canada and the Arctic Circle while receiving heat energy from a warmer ocean.

It is a crazy storm.

October 30, 2012

1330:18z

UNISYS Water Vapor GOES East Satellite (click here for 12 hour loop)

The First Responders have done their job well and saved lives. Those safe should be considered grateful. The First Responders are still at risk and carry significant risk since this storm is not giving anyone a break.

Additionally, a storm is also coming into the west coast.

A hurricane's speed and path (click here) depend on complex ocean and atmospheric interactions, including the presence or absence of other weather patterns. This complexity of the flow makes it very difficult to predict the speed and direction of a hurricane.

In listening to Governor Christy there should be far more people dead. He did a truly remarkable job. He needs to take care of himself as well.

October 30, 2012

1310 gmt

The Weather Channel North Pole Satellite

Hurricane Sandy can be noted on the east one third of the USA. Its origins of water vapor is directly connected to the Arctic Circle border and Greenland.  It is also connected with a heat source in the Atlantic. There is a huge votex in the Atlantic and a heat transfer system bring adverse weather to the west coast of North America.

People's lives will be effected by this storm. If they rely on public transit to maintain their ability to work, they will be seeking support elsewhere to see them through. I know what a strange political environment this is in the USA, but, in all honesty for those effected by the loss of transportation to work should be considered a candidate for unemployment and relocation in the work force if employment is lost. This storm can't simply strand them economically.

I am sure President Obama will be putting forth a relief package before Congress to assist the states to return function to their infrastructure. We did with Katrina. Governor Christy saved lives, but, the future of his state and that of New York City will depend on clean up and rebuilding. One thing that can cut down on costs to the coastal areas is the removal of sand from the streets. It can be stored, cleaned and used for beach restoration, too. Just a suggestion.

New York and New Jersey have a lot of reconstruction to do.

The USA is a huge country and it doesn't stop. These events only prove how the tax structure requires improvement to bring all this under control. To think otherwise is purely hideous. There was economic stranding today and it includes the populous state in the union.

AP/ October 30, 2012, 9:07 AM

Superstorm Sandy: State-by-state snapshot (click here)

Carolinas

North Carolina Gov. Beverly Perdue expanded a state of emergency to western North Carolina, which could see a foot of snow.

A woman who was pulled from the Atlantic after abandoning a tall ship died. Power outages: 6,600....

Everytime I hear this ad in Michigan I think how angry this makes the international community.

Countries pay attention to their image with others. That is especially true of China. It is very vigilant to its image with The West. 

This ad is racist, full of lies and has no real indication of the relationship between China and the USA.

No one needs this. I don't believe it is effective at all. It can raise hatred with Chinese Americans and others. Lies leading to racism should never be tolerated.

Emergency lighting only. No connections to major power source yet,

That is sometimes the benefit of severe storms; they cut off electricity to places where major flooding occurs. It is not always a bad thing. It is a mean thing to say, but, storms sometimes protect the unwitting.

A few thoughts.

The crane is too damaged to venture into a large scale rescue of the crane. The structure is to unreliable. It is going to be a dangerous operation because the steel is under stress it was not intended to be. So, when further disturbed there is a lot of tension that will be relieved when it is manipulated. The stress on the steel when relieved can kill people.

That is to begin with.

I see this structure as a toppled tree. The safest way to remove this is through removal of small sections. I am talking about 8 to 10 foot sections. That means cutting through the steel to remove the dangling structure.

I see the dangling section of the crane as scrap metal. I don't think there is much choice. If there is a city that understands collapsed structures it is New York City with the dismantling of the twin towers. However, the structures in Lower Manhattan were crashed to the ground and mostly without unpredictable stress on steel.

In thinking about the subways, there are so many electrical structures involved it will be like working in a mine until the flood waters are gone and the structures dry out. Electricity is water loving and it will travel a long distance if released. Electricity is fluid as water is. It will travel along the waters and can cause deaths through the entire length.

This is a horrible example, but, it will work to illustrate what I mean.

A friend has a house on a pond nearby. A severe storm, called a 'blue lightning event' occurred. One stroke of lightning hit the pond. He was at his dinner table when it occurred. He stated the water lit up briefly and what followed next was out of The Twilight Zone. Every duck, goose and swan on the water was thrown into the air. The next morning after the storm passed and the electricity was knocked out to the entire community, which wasn't repaired for five day; the wildlife folks were dispatched to remove all the dead birds.

Electricity and water cannot be mixed without disastrous effect. That is the reality New York City has to work with.

Additionally, while animals such as rats won't necessarily survive the flood, there are others that love water including poisonous snakes. Some may have been pets, especially large Boas, etc. It will be best to have workers be aware of this possibility and wear dense protective rubber suits if venturing into water. However, suits can tear if caught on something unseen, too.

To say this is a difficult situation is an understatement.

Post Tropical Storm Sandy just before landfall.

24 31.90 -73.30 10/28/09Z 65 960 HURRICANE-1
24A 32.10 -73.10 10/28/12Z 65 951 HURRICANE-1
25 32.50 -72.60 10/28/15Z 65 951 HURRICANE-1
25A 32.80 -71.90 10/28/18Z 65 951 HURRICANE-1
26 33.40 -71.30 10/28/21Z 65 952 HURRICANE-1
26A 34.00 -70.90 10/29/00Z 65 950 HURRICANE-1
27 34.50 -70.50 10/29/03Z 65 950 HURRICANE-1
27A 35.20 -70.50 10/29/06Z 65 950 HURRICANE-1
28 35.90 -70.50 10/29/09Z 75 946 HURRICANE-1
28A 36.80 -71.10 10/29/12Z 75 946 HURRICANE-1
29 37.50 -71.50 10/29/15Z 80 943 HURRICANE-1
29A 38.30 -73.10 10/29/18Z 80 940 HURRICANE-1
30 38.80 -74.40 10/29/21Z 80 940 HURRICANE-1

I think land fall was at 6 PM to 7PM. I have to check to be sure. 

21Z would be 4PM.

Next reading is at 00Z on October 30. That will be 7PM at landfall or shortly after. I hope this storm diminishes.

I am fairly certain there is 5 hours difference between Z Time and EST.

Was anyone injured?

A New York camera operator (click here) has filmed a transformer erupting in a huge ball of blue light in downtown Manhattan after Hurricane Sandy made landfall.
Shot from across the East River in Brooklyn, the video posted online shows a series of bright blue flashes illuminating the sky from explosions at the Con Ed (Consolidated Edison) power plant.
Con Ed has announced that it has already shut off power to customers to part of Lower Manhattan so it can be restored faster after the storm passes.
Much of Manhattan is now without power, with millions of homes elsewhere also facing blackouts.
Water levels are now at record highs in the city, with the Fire Department of New York headquarters evacuated by boat...

Nuclear power plants prepare to shut down if storm sends water, wind levels too high (click here)

By Associated Press,

WASHINGTON — Federal regulators and safety officials at nuclear power plants along the Eastern Seaboard were keeping a watchful eye on wind and water levels, preparing to shut plants down should Hurricane Sandy send levels surging.

Still, by late afternoon Monday, with the superstorm dashing toward New Jersey with winds at 90 mph, no plants had been taken offline....

The Jeep Cherokee is one of the most dependable SUVs manufactured today.

Mr. Romney needs to get over his lies about this very successful vehicle before the company is adversely effected.

Mr. Romney is going to hurt this company. He is determined to do that if it means he will win the presidency. He is ruthless. You know, "Those people are not my job."

...In their original incarnation, (click here) SUVs were chiefly owned by folks who valued "utility" above "sport." A four-wheel-drive, station wagon-like vehicle was just the thing to transport five (or more) adults to remote areas, handle bad-weather driving or pull heavy trailers.

Trouble was, they required the skill of a limo driver to park in the city and a gas card with a generous limit to keep them moving. Consumers who wanted something more reasonable in terms of size and fuel usage were out of luck.

That changed with the 1984 arrival of the Jeep Cherokee. Though there was a trim level of the '70s-era full-size Wagoneer called Cherokee, this new model was completely different. Its compact dimensions, unibody (as opposed to heavier body-on-frame) architecture and classic styling made this junior Jeep an immediate success....

Mr. Romney needs to stop his tirade because it will hurt this company if he continues.

I have to agree with Governor Christy until an investigation reveals otherwise.

I also believe an investigation is in order. People's lives are in the  balance. I remind Governor Christy that a populous that may be poor in Atlantic City might not have been able to leave the city with ease.

There have been ongoing tensions between the Mayor and Governor. 

Posted: Friday, October 19, 2012 12:20 am | Updated: 7:56 am, Fri Oct 19, 2012.
By LYNDA COHEN, Staff Writer

...“I will not cower (click here) or simply roll with the punches,” Langford replied in a letter faxed Thursday to the Governor’s Office.

The governor talked about Atlantic City’s problems after the city reached 15 homicides for the year last month. In his response, Langford said if he is to be judged by that number, then Christie should be held accountable for the number of homicides in the state.

“For the record, New Jersey is now home to ‘the most violent city in America,’” Langford writes of Camden. “This was not always the case. In fact, prior to you becoming governor, we never had this distinction.”

The mayor goes on to say that the plague of violence and murder on urban cities can be traced to the manufacture and distribution of handguns.

“As governor, you have failed miserably to abate this problem,” the mayor writes....

I hope the decision by he Mayor was simply not in defiance of the Governor for political reasons. I could get into the politics of all this, but, it is not the venue and certainly not the time.

Perhaps this is one of those moments President Obama needs to be aware of a serious circumstance that could get out of control. I am not going to speculate on motives by anyone, but, everyone's life was taken into consideration by Governor Christy.

I don't find this a prudent decision at this point by Mayor Langford. This is a serious storm. It sounded to me as if Governor Christy was willing to move mountains to keep people safe. I hope nothing serious occurs to lives in the care of their government. No one wants another Katrina.

By Christopher Baxter/Statehouse Bureau 
on October 29, 2012 at 5:59 PM, updated October 29, 2012 at 7:56 PM

WEST TRENTON — Gov. Chris Christie (click here) this evening issued an angry rebuke to Atlantic City Mayor Lorenzo Langford for allowing people to shelter at schools in that community rather than evacuate. Christie said one school is now flooded.

“For those elected officials who decided to ignore my admonition, this is now your responsibility,” Christie said at a news conference at the State Police Regional Operations Intelligence Center, the location of the emergency operations command center....

Thank you, Mr. President.

Working with every Governor regardless of party to save lives. No Katrina. Not this time. Thank you.

There is some fallout from the storm already. A crane in New York City is dangling precariously from a high rise. It was not just the 20 mph winds, it was not just the 40 mph gusts. It is the sustained 20 mph with gusts rising to 40 mph. 

In all reasonable thought 20 mph winds are not suppose to effect this type of crane, but, that crane has had to withstand a PUSH of 20 mph winds for days now. It was going to happen and the 40 mph gusts finish the job.

If a person thinks about being shoved by someone; normally it would never knock a healthy person over. But, if a constant push without relenting is matched by an additional shove it will knock a person over. That is what is occurring with the crane in NYC. It is a stubborn push in one direction from wind accompanied by gusts that is acting on that crane.

It is important for everyone to be vigilant. It is difficult to say what will give way and what won't.

Thank you for signing pre-landfall emergency orders and dispatching FEMA and emergency supplies early. The supplies would never have arrived after the storm if the flooding was prohibitive. 

We are doing better now. Our emergency management is actually management now and not a late response that actually strands people in hopeless circumstances. 

Thank you. I am quite confident your early response saved lives. I congratulate you and Governors that found a way to make a difference together.

By KEVIN DOLAK (@kdolak) and TRACEY MARX
'Oct. 29, 2012/
Hurricane Sandy (click here)  may have claimed its first American victims today as it sank a tall ship and washed away two crew members as they tried to board a life boat.
Fourteen people were rescued from the floundering HMS Bounty early this morning and an urgent search is on in the churning seas for the two missing sailors.
The Bounty, a three masted ship, was 90 miles southeast of Hatteras, N.C., when the owner called saying she'd lost contact with the crew Sunday night, The AP reported. The Bounty is a 180-foot replica of the ship featured in the film "Mutiny on the Bounty.

"There have been 14 people rescued and there are two that are still unaccounted for," Jordan Campbell, Petty Officer, First Class told ABCNews.com....

The HMS Bounty, a replica used in the Marlon Brando movie "Mutiny on the Bounty," sails past the Chicago skyline in this image from July 2003.

What were they thinking? A sailing ship. A three mast ship is on the sea in sustained hurricane winds. What did they think was going to happen? Two lives probably lost and US Coast Guard risking their lives besides. What do people think about? This is just foolishness. A captain had to know better than this and he is one of the people missing.

Sandy's velocity has picked up.

  24  31.90  -73.30 10/28/09Z   65   960 HURRICANE-1
24A  32.10  -73.10 10/28/12Z   65   951 HURRICANE-1
  25  32.50  -72.60 10/28/15Z   65   951 HURRICANE-1
25A  32.80  -71.90 10/28/18Z   65   951 HURRICANE-1
  26  33.40  -71.30 10/28/21Z   65   952 HURRICANE-1
26A  34.00  -70.90 10/29/00Z   65   950 HURRICANE-1
  27  34.50  -70.50 10/29/03Z   65   950 HURRICANE-1
27A  35.20  -70.50 10/29/06Z   65   950 HURRICANE-1
  28  35.90  -70.50 10/29/09Z   75   946 HURRICANE-1

The storm has been oscillating since the large drop in central pressure from 960 to 951. The change in the last three hours seals the deal. It dropped from an oscillation and reorganized. That was what I was worried about. It not only dropped in central pressure by 4 millibars, Sandy has increased its speed. That is a strong storm.

Sandy has been over a warm ocean for a long time now and it fortified its strength. I can wish and hope the storm will change its dynamics to be less powerful, but, physics are physics. The storm being over the ocean was destined to reorganize and become stronger.

How does this interpret? Higher storm surge. With it lingering over the ocean it may still increase in velocity again. 

Also higher winds for a sustained time.

Kindly pay attention to river gauges. Thank you.

USGS River Gauges (click here)

This is a continuous reading of the river levels. The red dots indicate the river is rising.

The gauge below is for Morristown, New Jersey. No one would expect Morristown to have problems, but, the rivers are being rained into and not just contained along the shorelines. 

The gauge below shows spikes in the levels and then quickly falls off. The reason the level falls off is because there is good drainage to that area. 

Rivers also receive rain and then will drain of the water and add to the levels of rivers below.

North Carolina has already been experiencing river rise.

Below is a river gauge for a creek in Hoffman, North Carolina. It receives rain and rises, but, then drains quickly afterward. 

One of the biggest dangers with these creeks and rivers is flash flooding.

Daily Streamflow Conditions for the country (click here)

The hurricane is somewhat unexpectedly volite.

  23  30.90  -74.30 10/28/03Z   65   960 HURRICANE-1
23A  31.50  -73.70 10/28/06Z   65   960 HURRICANE-1
 24  31.90  -73.30 10/28/09Z   65   960 HURRICANE-1
24A  32.10  -73.10 10/28/12Z   65   951 HURRICANE-1
  25  32.50  -72.60 10/28/15Z   65   951 HURRICANE-1
25A  32.80  -71.90 10/28/18Z   65   951 HURRICANE-1
  26  33.40  -71.30 10/28/21Z   65   952 HURRICANE-1

There was a drop in central pressure of 9 millibars in three hours. In the past three hours the central pressure has come up by one millibar. It is over the ocean. It is being fueled by water vapor.

The speed of 65 knots per hour is stable because of the size of the storm.

When I look at the eye of the storm it has loft, but, it is somewhat less tight within the past three hours. It might be a slowing of the storm or it might be reorganizing and the eye could tighten again with potential for higher winds and lower central pressures.

Hopefully it is weakening. That does not change the rain volume though. It just means the winds will be less intense for a long period of time.

Well done, Governor. Thank you. There are places for people to seek shelter. Well done, sir. The flooding is dangerous.