Folks, I am not a spammer by trade or by choice in normal
circumstances, but I BEG of you to please read this.
If you are even a SMALL enthusiast of Aviation, Aerospace or anything
related to breaking the surly bonds of earth and reaching skyward,
PLEASE take a moment, I beg of you.
To my friends and members of:
Boulder, CO Linux Users Group
Colorado Linux Users and Enthusiasts
Rocky Mountain VHF+ Amateur Radio Group
Colorado D-STAR Association
Grand Mesa Contesters of Colorado
Amateur Radio Satellite Corporation and Mailing List
Repeater-Builder Mailing List
MIT PIC Microcontroller Mailing List
Yaesu FT-857 Mailing List
VHF Contesting Remailer Mailing List
The Internet Radio Radio Linking Project
The D-STAR Digital List
And other friends and acquaintances who will receive this message
privately... and anyone you care to forward it to...
Tonight on my way home I fired up my iPod to listen to a podcast by
well-known and very well-spoken Steven "Force" Tupper, an aviation
enthusiast from Michigan. What I heard chilled my heart to the bone.
The TSA under the auspices of "Homeland Security" has floated a
proposal to restrict and in my opinion, DESTROY numerous legendary
aircraft, by limiting their use so heavily that you will never see
them in the skies over America again. While this may sound
"alarmist", please trust me, it's not.
You all know me, and know that I can write well, expressing my
concerns with politics, living, and even the banal things of life in
words, fairly well -- but I can not possibly top the writing of Mr.
Tupper.
Even more eloquent is his VOICE in his podcast, where he perfectly
expresses the frustration, and sheer TERROR that the TSA itself has
brought down on the United State's Aviation community with the
proposal they've recently released, inappropriately entitled, the
"Large Aircraft Security Program", or LASP.
For the best and most intelligent commentary I've heard on the topic
to date -- PLEASE ... LISTEN to his podcast at:
<http://media.libsyn.com/media/airspeed/AirspeedLASP.mp3>
You really must just hear... his voice. I do hope his server can
handle an onslaught -- if it can't, wait, and listen later.
(I fully intend to help him with the costs associated with
distributing his podcast if he needs it this month, it's just that
important. Steve, please let me know if you need assistance. I have
worked in data centers and web-based businesses, and I understand that
publishing these things online to large numbers of people, is NOT free.)
It's just over 30 minutes in length, and he NEEDS YOUR SUPPORT -- even
if you are NOT a pilot. He gives instructions in the podcast.
If you honestly do NOT have time to listen, at least READ and RESPOND
to his letter in response to the TSA's Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.
He needs your input by TOMORROW. The entire text of his podcast is
also available at the link below, if you read faster than you listen
-- so to speak.
<http://airspeedonline.blogspot.com/2009/02/large-aircraft-security-program-capt.html
>
If this non-legislative rule change comes to pass, you and your family
may never SEE many historical aircraft or have an opportunity to
purchase a RIDE in any classic "warbird" aircraft in the skies over
America ever again. The rule is BROAD and affects modern aircraft
also, but the aircraft we will miss the most, are the ones of our
history that tell our story as a country.
To NOT take action and RESPOND means that you've let a small group of
tireless aviation historians, restoration specialists, mechanics,
pilots, and everyone who's ever watched an airshow with aircraft from
the classic Warbird fleet down. WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT.
PLEASE read or listen. Mr. Tupper explains it far better than I
possibly can. The TSA's proposal adds NO security to our nation
whatsoever. It's simply government run amok.
Here's a list from Mr. Tupper's website, of aircraft that I personally
believe you will RARELY see in the skies of America again, if the
TSA's "LASP" passes into being without even so much as a single
legislator overseeing it, and little to no due-process available to
anyone who violates it.
Aircraft and Max Takeoff Weight (Varies within Type)
Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress - 65,500
Chance Vought F4U Corsair - 14,449
Consolidated B-24 Liberator - 65,000
Curtiss C-46 Commando - 48,000
Curtiss SB2C Helldiver - 16,800
Douglas A-26 Invader - 35,000
Douglas DC-3/C-47 Skytrain/Dakota - 31,000
Douglas B-23 Dragon - 32,400
Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar - 64,000
Fairchild C-82 Packet - 54,000
Ford Tri-Motor - 13,500
Grumman AF-2S Guardian - 25,500
Grumman Avenger - 17,893
Grumman F6F Hellcat - 15,415
Grumman F8F Bearcat - 12,947
Grumman HU-16 Albatross - 33,000
Grumman G-73 Mallard - 12,750
Junkers Ju 52 - 24,200
Lockheed C-60 Hudson - 18,500
Lockheed L-18 Lodestar - 17,500
Lockheed PV-2 Harpoon - 31,077
Lockheed T-33 - 15,100
North American B-25 Mitchell - 41,800
North American P-82 Twin Mustang - 25,591
PBY-6A Catalina - 64,450
Republic P-47 Thunderbolt - 17,500
You may not be a pilot, you may not even care about ANY aircraft --
but if you care about the pilots who fly them, the mechanics who
wrench on them, the crowds at hundreds of airshows across the country
who see them, and the thousands of thousands who lived their lives
building an American legacy in Aviation -- one of our best legacies
ever -- please follow Mr. Tupper's request, and add your name to the
list of people who AGREE with him in his response to the NPRM sent out
by the TSA.
I, like you, am a busy person -- I had other things to do tonight. I
would much have preferred an enjoyable evening pursuing other things.
Hell, I would rather have just forwarded you all a few jokes or stayed
"on-topic" on our favorite mailing lists, but I can not sit by idle
and watch this come to pass.
Mr. Tupper needs your support no later than mid-day tomorrow, please
listen, read and RESPOND.
Thank you for your time, and I apologize if this is FAR off-topic for
some of the mailing lists you all know me from. Some lists, it's more
on-topic than others. This is so aggregious, so saddening, so
frustrating, that I just HAD to share. Like Mr. Tupper -- I'm trying
hard to keep this message "PG Rated". VERY hard.
I just can't think of any more caring, thoughtful people in all of the
other hobbies and passions of my life to share this critical
information with, and to BEG for your support of Mr. Tupper's letter
in response to the TSA. Mr. Tupper also points out that the rule
isn't far from encompassing other iconic aircraft, and says that if
the TSA enacts this rule and LOWERS the weight limitations low enough
to encompass such iconic aircraft as the North American P-51
"Mustang", then... as he so eloquently puts it:
"Be very careful. You might get away with decimating other grand dames
of the skies, but every redneck, suit, line worker, banker,
lumberjack, lawyer, cop, fireman, landscaper, fast-food cashier, and
child able to stand recognizes the mighty P-51 Mustang. Not that
aviation would fail to miss the other aircraft that the TSA would so
cavalierly tear from the sky, but at least we have the P-51 Mustang
still guarding the 12,100-pound boundary."
Thank you deeply from the bottom of my heart if you take the time to
listen or read, and especially if you will send your full name as a
U.S. Citizen to Mr. Tupper with your comments.
Aviation is one of my deepest passions, and I can't imagine that even
the most disinterested person in Aviation would let these great ships
of our past be virtually banned from our skies in a single powerful
and misguided attempt at "security" over liberty, in this great country.
Enjoy the rest of your evening in peace, please help, and thank you
again.
--
Nathan Duehr, nate@natetech.com
Private Pilot, Single-Engine Land (since 1991)
Aircraft Owners and Pilot's Association Member (since 1992)
Amateur Radio Extra-Class Operator (WY0X - since 1991)
Current President, Colorado Repeater Association
Former Secretary, Colorado Council of Amateur Radio Clubs
Former Member, USAF Auxiliary - Civil Air Patrol
Linux, Electronics, and RF enthusiast ...
... Or however else you know me.
--
Nate Duehr
nate@natetech.com
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