It always seems I have random thoughts in the middle of the week, so I felt it time to try naming them. “Words for Wednesday” is my first attempt. We’ll see how that goes…or if I even if I remember as early as next week.
I heard a sad story today about an elderly lady who lost her cat. She looked everywhere, but had no luck, so a young neighbor offered to help by using social media. She posted pictures of the missing cat on Facebook with the woman’s phone number. Before long, the woman received a phone call from someone claiming to have her cat. She invited them to her home, only to be robbed.
The story ended well enough — she got her money back, and her cat did show up eventually. But I bring it up as an example of how the world works at times, especially for the elderly. With the meteoric rise of modern electronic technology (culminating now in the emergence of AI), it all can’t help but be a bit overwhelming. I suspect it will get so bad, it won’t be long before Luddite tourism becomes a thing — a turning back to the times before today’s (and tomorrow’s) technology became so ubiquitous. Not isolated enclaves where people actually live, but rather, attractions where people could go to see what it was like to live before we all became cyborgs.
I’ve been impressed with the East slope of the Wyoming Rockies for years now. That might be the place for me to set such a place up. But here’s the catch: I can’t do it without the tech to make it happen. Makes me feel like the man played by Burgess Meredith in the famous Twilight Zone episode who, in a post-apocolyptic world, rejoices that he finally has time to read all of the books he’s ever wanted only to break his glasses.
We had an interesting episode at the base’s main gate today. It was closed for a bit of this morning’s rush, and, as I rode through to the pedestrian gate, the outbound gate was still locked up. Gathered around it were a crew of people, one with a bolt-cutter trying to cut the lock. It seems someone lost the keys to the base. I kind of got a chuckle out of the predicament, but it does remind me of how far things have fallen in the Air Force over the last decade. I’ve mentioned it here before on occasion, and this seems to be more evidence to support my thoughts. They literally lost the keys to the base and couldn’t come up with a spare set — an odd oversight for people in charge of our security. But this is what you substitute “doing what you think is right” (the words of a Chief who was telling me that the Air Force was trying to get away from so many “Instructions”) for actual established and codified procedures.
The fall has been tremendous in so many ways. Just a couple of days ago, I saw a woman get out of her car to move the “No Parking” sign that had fallen over in the spot she decided was now hers. Then I was treated to an email from a unit leader reminding Airmen to maintain our standards over the holidays. Why? Because during a recent PME (Professional Military Education) class, 17 percent of the attendees could not pass the physical assessment. Back in my day those 17 percent would not even been allowed to attend. On top of that, while seated in the auditorium for a lecture, a third of those attending were wearing uniforms that were obviously too tight, and another third had to unbutton their service jackets to sit down.
In my own office, someone noticed that the air conditioning vents were filthy. When I asked the facility manager if we could get them cleaned, they discovered that the contract to do that had lapsed quite some time ago. Now, I can’t blame the facility managers entirely for this. I chalk it up in part to COVID breaking us. The contract lapsed, people left, and it took this long before anyone noticed that some of the mundane things that needed doing were not being done anymore. It’s kind of a case of not knowing what you don’t know.
But this is why it’s important to have established guidance that is followed and inspected for compliance regularly. We know what happens when no one checks in every so often — things get forgotten. They get skipped or overlooked. Tossed aside for convenience because no one is checking anyway. This isn’t so bad when it comes to cleaning carpets or a/c vents, but what about when it comes to maintaining a jet engine or a fuel tank? What happens then when the bullets start flying?
To leave you on a less sour note, here’s a thoughtful piece of music for you if you’re interested in listening to something a little different. I like Kings Kaleidoscope and have put a couple of their pieces up here over the years. They have such good energy.