Sunday, August 05, 2007
Week Past 07/30-08/05/07
Wed, 08/01 the I 35 W bridge
I can't help but notice and compare how the situation was handled. I did not see any political figure, e.g. the governor or mayor, at the scene the first hours when the tragedy happened. The only government officials I saw were those involved in the emergency rescue and recovery effort. A press conference was called about three hours after the incident.
If this happened in the Philippines (God forbid) like the Guadalupe bridge (built in the 1950's) in Makati rest assured that it would be crawling with politicos faster than you can say "wassup?" From the Mayor to the Barangay Councilmen. The Senator, Congressman, Governor, and Cabinet Secretary. Grandstanding before the cameras, finger pointing here and there and giving their one cent worth of presumption and assumption as to why the bridge collapsed. For good measure they will apppease the public by declaring that they will conduct an investigation and insinuating that "heads will roll". A parody. Meanwhile the rescue recovery effort is hindered because of their presence.
You'll be surprised how our politicians will instantly become experts in bridge structural design by mouthing words and technical terms fed by their consultants or shall I say lackeys. They'll suck every mileage of publicity that they can get.
The date of the collapse is noteworthy:080107 or 08=01+07 or 08-01=07 or it's the first day of August!! Are you convinced??
