“Private Jets For Climate Change.”

The words of Matt Bellamy, front man of the rock band Muse describing Al Gore's "Live Earth" concerts meant to "raise awareness" about global warming. You see, Al wanted Britain to turn all the lights off as a gesture to global warming. But there's a wee problem with that idea: Britain's national power grid operator says that the resulting surge when everyone turned their lights back on could very well kill patients in hospitals that rely on life support. (Speaking from my background in the utility field, it sounds like Britain is running at close to max capacity and has little headroom in its electrical system.)

So, to raise awareness about all those carbon emissions, many thousands of vehicles will be driven to the concert sites, huge amounts of electricity will be consumed in the concert itself and then the happy concert-goers will pile back into their SUVs to drive home. All the while patting themselves on the back over the good they just did for the planet. And the power surges after he gets everyone to symbolically turn off the lights will potentially kill people.

And the true believers do not see the rank hypocrisy in Gore's little project. Some musicians are smart enough to see it, though (not everyone is Sheryl Crow):

IT WAS intended to be the symbolic gesture at a global series of rock concerts next month to alert people to climate change. Al Gore, the former US presidential candidate turned climate doomsayer, had wanted a massive switch-off of lights by television audiences, but the National Grid has vetoed the idea.

The inconvenient truth, it says, is that the power surge when people switched their lights back on could cause disruptions in supply and even endanger hospital patients on life support machines.

Live Earth will be a series of concerts, modelled on Live Aid and and Live 8, aimed at raising awareness about the threat from global warming.

As many as 12 concerts across seven continents featuring the likes of Madonna and Genesis and 100 other acts are planned over 24 hours, including one at a research station in Antarctica.

The organisers have so far struggled to find a clear-cut way of conveying their main message. Even rock performers have criticised the concept.

Roger Daltrey, of the Who, said another concert would simply waste fuel; Bob Geldof, who helped to organise Live Aid and Live 8, said people were already aware of the greenhouse effect; while Matt Bellamy, front man of the rock band Muse, labelled it “private jets for climate change”. (Emphasis added)

But there is actually a kicker to this story, believe it or not. Al Gore has admitted that the concerts will waste vast amounts of energy. So he's going to do something about that:

Gore has admitted that the concerts will consume a vast amount of electricity. To combat criticism of their own damaging effect on the environment, the organisers will pay at least £1m in carbon credits and supply acts with hybrid cars, partly run on electricity, to ferry stars to venues as well as fuel-efficient Smart cars to run around backstage.

And who, pray tell, is in the business of selling indulgences – er – carbon offsets? Why none other than Al Gore. How much money is flowing to Gore's company as a result of this little clambake? Inquiring minds want to know. Seriously.

By the way, Matt Bellamy gets best phrase of the month award. That one is simply a thing of beauty. "Private jets for climate change". Well, thank heaven we have cheating offsets.

April (Snow) Showers And (Nor’)Easter Bunnies

The Northeast is bracing for what is expected to be a major storm event. A winter storm event. The storm has already raged across the Southern plains, dumping up to a foot of snow in Kansas and spawning tornadoes across Texas. The weather system is expected to move up the East coast and form into a nor'easter. Experts are worried about potentially devastating storm surges in coastal areas.

The storm blew across the southern Plains on Friday, piling snow a foot deep in Kansas and raking Texas with high wind.

"I felt my house start shaking like the wind and I ran in here and grabbed my little girl," Amanda Rymer, 21, said in Haltom City, Texas. "As soon as I moved her, the roof fell in right where she was standing."

The storm tore roofs off houses in Rymer's neighbor and destroyed porches and garages. About a dozen tractor-trailer rigs were blown onto their sides.

One man was killed in Fort Worth by a pile of lumber that fell on him from his truck during the storm, and a police officer in Irving died when his patrol car slid on wet pavement and struck a utility pole, authorities said.

By Saturday morning, the system was spreading rain from Louisiana to Virginia and across much of the Ohio Valley. Lines of strong thunderstorms rolled across Louisiana and Mississippi into northern Alabama.

The weather system was forecast to strengthen when it reaches the East Coast on Sunday and form a nor'easter, a storm that follows the coast northward, with northeasterly wind driving waves and heavy rain.

"This is very odd for this time of year," National Weather Service meteorologist John Koch said Saturday in New York. "This is something that you would expect to see more in the middle of winter."

Jingle bells? At this time of year? Anyway, even April blizzards aren't discouraging the true believers. But the wording of this report – especially the headline – is somewhat confusing:

Snow won't dampen global-warming rallies

The weather forecast for Saturday's global warming rallies in Grand Rapids and Holland calls for snow and cold rain and temperatures in the 40s — about 10 degrees below normal.

For some, this might make global warming a tough sell.

"I've thought of that," said Lisa Locke, associate director of the West Michigan Environmental Action Council, which is organizing the three Grand Rapids "Step it Up" rallies.

So, are they for or against global warming? Right about now, a rally in favor of global warming would probably be a big draw across most of the nation.

Mel Gibson Uproar

There's a lot of activity in the blogosphere over the story that Mel Gibson was a)arrested for DUI and b)Made a complete ass out of himself with a tirade of nastiness and Jew-hatred.

He has issued a lengthy and very public apology. It sounds like he is being both honest and is genuinely sorry for his behavior.

Frankly, he's likely damaged himself very badly indeed. There really isn't a need to keep twisting the knife. I think Dan Riehl has an excellent take on the whole issue.

“Iraq Is Free…”

"…and the terrorists cannot stand this", said Iraqi Prime Minister Maliki today in an address to the US Congress. He spoke on many topics, but the defeat of terrorism was his major theme.

Thank you for your continued resolve in helping us fight the terrorists plaguing Iraq, which is a struggle to defend our nation's democracy and our people who aspire to liberty, democracy, human rights and the rule of law. All of those are not Western values; they are universal values for humanity.

They are as much for me the pinnacle embodiment of my faith and religion, and they are for all free spirits.

The war on terror is a real war against those who wish to burn out the flame of freedom. And we are in this vanguard for defending the values of humanity.

I know that some of you here question whether Iraq is part of the war on terror. Let me be very clear: This is a battle between true Islam, for which a person's liberty and rights constitute essential cornerstones, and terrorism, which wraps itself in a fake Islamic cloak; in reality, waging a war on Islam and Muslims and values.

And spreads hatred between humanity, contrary to what come in our Koran, which says, "We have created you of male and female and made you tribes and families that you know each other." Surely (inaudible) of you in the sight of God is the best concept.

The truth is that terrorism has no religion. Our faith says that who kills an innocent, as if they have killed all mankind.

But even a visiting head of state is not immune to the boorishness of the left:

Protester: Iraqis want the troops to leave! Bring them home now! Iraqis want the troops to leave! Bring them home now!

Speaker Hastert: If our honored guest will suspend for the moment, the chair notes disturbance in the gallery. The sergeant at arms will secure order by removing those engaging in disruption.

Protester: Bring them home now!

Speaker Hastert: The gentleman may resume.

Prime Minister Maliki: Hope over fear; liberty over oppression; dignity over submission; democracy over dictatorship; federalism over a centralist state.

Let there be no doubt: Today Iraq is a democracy which stands firm because of the sacrifices of its people and the sacrifices of all those who stood with us in this crisis from nations and countries.

Poor behavior on a historic occasion. Sadly, to too many people these days, freedom of speech means freedom from manners. There are times and places for protest. This was not one.

His entire address is quite good. Do read it if you get a chance.

UPDATE: See Flopping Aces, too.

Shocking Article On The Big Dig

It's shocking because it is from the AP and it is not a thinly disguised political hit piece, like the Washington Post ran a few days ago. It actually points to the bureaucratic failures instead of trying to pin it on "Republican governors".

BOSTON – When Boston's Big Dig was still on the drawing board, state and federal transportation officials picked an engineering powerhouse and a smaller, well-established firm to build the forbiddingly complex tangle of tunnels, ramps, bridges and highways.

And then, critics say, the officials stepped back and let the two companies do their job with little or no oversight.

In the weeks since 12 tons of ceiling panels from a Big Dig tunnel fell, crushing a woman to death in a car, critics say one of the key flaws in the project was the way it was managed.

Bechtel Civil Inc., part of San Francisco-based Bechtel Corp., teamed up with the design firm of Parsons, Brinckerhoff Quade and Douglas Inc. to work on the project, starting in 1985. The consortium was known as Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff.

"It's been the fox guarding the hen house," said Sen. Steven Baddour, chairman of the Legislature's Joint Transportation Committee. "They are the only entity that has been with the project from the very beginning, and they've skated."

The $14.6 billion Big Dig, the most expensive highway project in U.S. history, has been plagued by delays, cost overruns, leaks, falling debris and allegations of shoddy workmanship and inferior materials.

Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff has largely avoided blame, despite occasional talk among state officials to ban it from other projects.

Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff required that questions for this story be submitted in writing so they could be reviewed by its attorneys. Nearly a week later, the company still had not provided a response.

Considering the size and number of lawsuits they almost certainly will be defending themselves from, it's not at all surprising they do not want to talk to the press. Read the whole thing if you're interested in seeing how a bureaucracy can fail to provide adequate oversight. Kudos to the reporter, Steve LeBlanc, for playing it straight and not turning it into a hit piece.

WaPo On The Big Dig Problems

The Washington Post has a story about the problems with the Boston Big Dig project. There has been a long history of warnings about the project. One thing the Post does is extremely dishonest though, they cast blame on "a series of Republican governors". That's really a false assertion, since the Turnpike Authority is an independent organization. Witness the difficulty Mitt Romney is having just getting rid of the current head of the Authority. The Post also gives the legislature a pass, a very disingenuous move.

Yet according to officials, government documents and people who shaped the project over the years, the Big Dig has not gone awry because its flaws were unknown. It has gone awry in spite of repeated warnings about its cost and design.

"It was nothing but problem after problem, and no one was looking, no one cared," said A. Joseph DeNucci, Massachusetts's longtime state auditor, whose office has since 1993 issued 20 critical reports about the Big Dig. "I get sick when I think about it."

In addition to the auditor's work, there were 13 negative reports during the project's first decade by the state inspector general. More recently, there have been hearings in Congress and the state legislature, and financial reviews by the inspector general of the U.S. Department of Transportation.

"This has been the most investigated project in our history," said James A. Aloisi Jr., a former assistant state transportation secretary and general counsel to the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority.

The warnings were overshadowed, many officials now acknowledge, by zeal among politicians, business leaders, lobbyists and private contractors who had a stake in the project. That eagerness to move forward coincided with a political culture in which a series of Republican governors and the state's independent turnpike authority have trusted a private consultant to shepherd virtually every facet of the project, with relatively little government supervision. "What was missing from the whole project was outside oversight," said Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino (D).

The story details several supposed transgressions by past governors but says nothing whatsoever about the other politicians who also failed to exercise any kind of oversight. And the las part of the article shows what the real problem is:

Gov. Mitt Romney (R), who is trying to force Amorello from his job, portrays him as secretive and uncooperative. "That the largest public works project in the country would have no accountability to any public official is nuts," Romney said in an interview.

Half a dozen state and federal investigations are looking into corruption, costs and construction methods.

Noting those investigations, Bechtel officials declined to comment.

No matter what is found now, Cerasoli, the former inspector general, said: "It'll never be made right. Too much money has been spent, and no one will be able to recapture the life that is lost."

'Authorities' are notoriously hard to control since they operate independently from the elected government. I rather suspect that is the source of the real problem, not the governors. Too bad the Post is playing politics instead of playing it straight on this one.

Ode To An Old Flame

Ah, the smooth sleekness. The classic beauty. That timeless sound you make.

Ain't Zippo lighters neat?

BRADFORD, Pa. – Derrick Stainton can't stop talking about his old flames. He's got more than 1,000 of them at home in Scotland. "My daughter thinks I'm crazy," the 54-year-old welder said. The objects of his affection: Zippo lighters, 1,056 of them to be exact. And he's not alone in his hobby.

Thousands of fellow fans, dealers and curiosity-seekers are gathering this weekend here to celebrate the shiny, rectangular windproof lighters that flick open with a distinctive clicking sound.

"So simple. So basic. The design is so nice," Stainton said. "I eat, sleep and drink Zippos."

Fanatics congregate at Zippo Manufacturing Co. headquarters in this northwest Pennsylvania city every other year for an international "swap meet."

They stroll around under huge tents to look at seemingly endless number of display cases in search of a must-have Zippo and trade stories with other enthusiasts. The meet is held in conjunction with a similar gathering for collectors of W.R. Case & Sons Cutlery Co. knives, which is owned by Zippo.

It's the lighters that grab the spotlight.

There are thousands of different designs on Zippos: Team logos, travel scenes, landscapes, band names, military designs or nudes. They are all on a lighter that measures 2 1/4 inches tall by 1 1/2 inches wide and weighs about 2 ounces.

A plain Zippo lighter costs about $15, but many designer ones have price tags of at least several hundred dollars.

For many fans, the connection gets personal. They can recount stories about how they got their first lighter and where they have traveled with it. But not every enthusiast is a smoker.

"We only collect lighters," said Gerard Klvivingh, 48, of the Netherlands, who has about 500 in his collection. "It's the handcrafting, that's what I like about it. You don't have to smoke."

There are collectors for everything, aren't there?

61 Lawmakers Call For Instructors Dismissal

52 Wisconsin state legislators and 9 state senators have signed a letter demanding that the University of Wisconsin – Madison fire the 9/11 conspiracy believing instructor, Kevin Barrett. The adjunct instructor believes the US government conducted the events of 9/11 to foment war in the Middle East. The UW-M(oonbat) administration conducted a review of Mr. Barrett and decided his theories were acceptable to teach.

A letter sent Thursday and signed by 52 Assembly representatives and nine state senators condemns a decision to let Kevin Barrett teach an introductory class on Islam this fall.

UW-Madison Provost Pat Farrell launched a review after Barrett spoke last month on a talk show about his views that the terrorist attacks were the result of a government conspiracy to spark war in the Middle East. After the review, Farrell said Barrett was a qualified instructor who can present his views as one perspective on the attacks.

"I still have every expectation this will be a very positive educational experience for our students," Farrell said Thursday. "Some are upset about Mr. Barrett's viewpoints on 9/11 and don't want to pay much attention to what makes for a quality educational experience."

Republican Rep. Steve Nass said the lawmakers' letter, which called Barrett's views "academically dishonest," sends a strong message to top UW leaders.

"When 61 legislators condemn a decision by UW-Madison and demand the dismissal of Kevin Barrett, the leadership of the UW System operates at its own peril if it continues to ignore views of the taxpayers," Nass said in a statement.

Barrett has said Nass was "only interested in name-calling and witch hunting."

A quality educational experience apparently includes allowing Barrett a soapbox he can use to contaminate minds with utter nonsense. Because a government that can't keep the New York Times from publishing details of a top secret program is capable of conducting the orchestration of a devious plot to foment war and keeping it hidden from all but the Illuminati such as Mr. Barrett.

Uh. Sure. Someone might want to clue in UW-M(eathead) that academic freedom doesn't mean freedom from consequence. I suspect the next budget might suffer from the stance the university has chosen to take.

UPDATE: Same wire service story, but CNN has video. Also see Ann Althouse who has been following this story from the beginning. She teaches at Madison, of course, and is not at all happy with Barrett.

Big Dig – Bigger Pain

Governor Mitt Romney of Massachusetts has ordered the immediate shutdown of the Eastbound lanes of the Ted Williams tunnel after defective bolts were spotted during inspections.

Romney said state engineers had found two bolts in the Ted Williams Tunnel that appeared to have slipped 1/2 inch and 1 inch in one ceiling panel.

"It is perhaps an overreaction but we want to err on the side of public safety," Romney said at a news conference in which he said he was overruling an earlier finding by the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority that the tunnel was safe.

State inspections of Boston's Big Dig tunnels began after 12 tons of cement ceiling panels fell on a car inside a connector tunnel on the night of July 10, killing 38-year-old Milena Del Valle.

The connector tunnel, a stretch of Interstate 90 that leads to the Ted Williams Tunnel, was shut down immediately, and inspections found hundreds of problem with bolts holding its ceiling panels in place.

The eastbound Ted Williams Tunnel, operating only since 1995, was also closed to the general public but it had been open to buses going to the airport. An initial assessment from the Turnpike Authority found no potential problems that rose to the level of a public safety threat, said Romney spokesman Eric Fehrnstrom.

"We've gone back and looked at those areas, and based on what we've seen Gov. Romney is overruling that assessment and shutting down the eastbound section," Fehrnstrom said Thursday.

After the deadly collapse, engineers conducted "pull tests" on the ceiling panels in the connector tunnel and found hundreds of bolts secured with epoxy that were unreliable. A second tunnel ramp was closed for safety concerns, and crews began removing all the ceiling panels in the two.

The ceiling panels in the Ted Williams Tunnel are secured with a different system, and they weigh much less, about 800 pounds each compared to 3 tons. (Emphasis added)

Attorney General Tom Reilly has launched a criminal investigation and is considering whether involuntary manslaughter charges are warranted. His inspectors are focusing on how the concrete panels were designed, whether they were secured properly for their weight and if they were tested properly.

This is ugly and I predict that it will get uglier before it is all finished. The new flaws prompting the shutdown of the tunnel are in a completely different support system than the one that caused the original collapse. It's going to keep expanding for a while as these new types of concerns emerge. Inspectors are going to be going crazy right about now.

Big Dig – Problems Mount

Following up on previous posts about the Big Dig and all the problems inspectors are finding, there is news that engineers are trying out a fix to some of the problems. It seems that the existing system is using bolts embedded in an epoxy. Unfortunately, the bolts are pulling out at much less than design load. That would indicate that this has been an accident waiting to happen for a while now. Mitt Romney, the Governor, has started proceedings to remove the head of the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority. (Who should frankly have the decency to resign and save everyone the trouble.)

BOSTON – Engineers tested a plan to reinforce the heavy concrete ceiling tiles in Boston's Big Dig highway tunnels and started working on a design Tuesday to put the back-up system in place.

With crews working around the clock, Gov. Mitt Romney said at least one portion of the two tunnels that have been closed since last week's deadly collapse could reopen by late in the weekend.

Romney, who seized control of the inspection process last week, ordered the reinforcement work after testing in the two tunnels revealed problems with more than 1,100 bolt assemblies that used epoxy.

"In grabbing ahold of these bolts and pulling on them with excess force, they're letting go … at lower pressures than they were designed to handle," Romney said Monday. "That suggests that this epoxy system is not working."

The two Big Dig tunnels have been closed for inspections and repairs since July 10, when Milena Del Valle was crushed in the Interstate 90 connector, part of a main route to Boston's Logan Airport.

Romney, a Republican considering a bid for president in 2008, has said he was concerned about the tunnel closures' impact on traffic, business and tourism. He said it could be two weeks before the entire closed-down section reopens.

The $14.6 billion Big Dig highway project, the most expensive in U.S. history, buried much of the city's highway network in tunnels. It took over a decade starting in the early 1990s to complete and has since been plagued by leaks, falling debris, cost overruns, delays and problems linked to faulty construction.

Last week, the governor started formal proceedings in a bid to oust the chairman and chief executive of the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, Matthew Amorello, whose agency oversaw the highway project.

Amorello was given a list of charges against him Tuesday, Romney spokesman Eric Fehrnstrom said. A formal hearing, set for July 27, will be closed and the charges will remain private, he said.

Earlier posts: Here, here, here, here and here.

RIP, Mike Hammer

He stood with his back angled to the wall. To an indifferent observer he was simply in idle conversation, but it wasn't like that at all. This was an instinctive gesture of survival, being in constant readiness for an attack. His head didn't turn and his eyes didn't seem to move, but I knew he saw us. I could feel the hackles on the back of my neck stiffening and I knew he felt the same way.
          Dog was meeting dog. Nobody knew it but the dogs and they weren't telling.
Mickey Spillane, The Body Lovers

Mickey Spillane is dead at age 88.

Mickey Spillane, 88, who died July 17 in Murrells Inlet, S.C., was one of the world's most popular mystery writers. His specialty was tight-fisted, sadistic revenge stories, often featuring his alcoholic gumshoe Mike Hammer and a cast of evildoers who launder money or spout the Communist Party line.

His writing style was characterized by short words, lightning transitions, gruff sex and violent endings. It was once tallied that he offed 58 people in six novels.

Starting with "I, the Jury," in 1947, Mr. Spillane sold hundreds of millions of books during his lifetime and garnered consistently scathing reviews. Even his father, a Brooklyn bartender, called them "crud."

Mr. Spillane was a struggling comic book publisher when he wrote "I, the Jury." He initially envisioned it as a comic book called "Mike Danger," and when that did not go over, he took a week to reconfigure it as a novel.

Rest in peace, Mickey.

Boston Roulette Update

Investigators looking into the collapse of ceiling panels in a Boston "Big Dig" tunnel have discovered documents that indicate there was a major disagreement over the design of the section of tunnel. It seems that there were questions as to whether the design could support the amount of weight the panels would apply to the bolts.

BOSTON – Investigators probing the fatal collapse of a Big Dig tunnel ceiling have discovered documents showing there was a "substantial dispute" over whether the design of the tunnel was adequate to hold the weight of the ceiling panels, the attorney general said Monday.

Four of the 3-ton panels collapsed onto a car July 10, killing Milena Del Valle, 38, of Boston, and injuring her husband. Since then, engineers have found hundreds of places within the connector tunnel, a main passage to Boston's Logan International Airport, where the bolts are not properly secured.

Attorney General Tom Reilly, who refused to give specifics, said he did not know how the dispute was resolved. He said the designer, the installer and Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff, the company overseeing the Big Dig project, were involved but would not say who raised the questions.

"There was a substantial dispute whether the design was adequate to hold the weight expected," Reilly said.

As investigations and testing on the tunnel system continued, commuters on Monday got their glimpse of the increased traffic hassles that officials say could endure for two months, at least.

A second tunnel ramp, which connects Interstate 90 west to Interstate 93, was closed Sunday after testing showed dozens of problems with the bolts holding up the ceiling. That ramp had been used as part of a detour around the accident scene.

Gov. Mitt Romney has called the ceiling problems a "systemic failure." He met Monday with congressional, state and city leaders to outline his plan for ensuring safety of the roadways and tunnels, and for easing traffic congestion in the meantime.

During any large project there are any number of disputes between the engineers, the contractor and the subcontractor. Some of these can get quite heated, as I can attest by actual experience. Not all of these are meaningful in the end so long as there is a satisfactory resolution, so I would not read to much into this yet. That said, if it turns out a warning was dismissed improperly, there could very well be criminal charges. Professional Engineers have certain legal responsibilities because of the license they hold.

Boston Roulette

There's a whole new game in Boston now. Boston Roulette is where you get in your car and travel through the portions of the Big Dig that remain open. Because you just never know when it's going to come down on you. Ok, that was some pretty harsh black humor, but the inspection keep finding more potentially lethal defects each day. There have been 362 identified so far, up from 60 the day after the fatal collapse.

BOSTON (Reuters) – From loose bolts to gaps between ceiling plates, the number of potentially dangerous flaws in Boston's $15 billion "Big Dig" highway project keep rising, reaching 362 on Friday, after a fatal tunnel collapse.

With public confidence deeply shaken in America's most expensive public works project, Massachusetts' governor took over inspections of the "Big Dig" and U.S. transportation officials expanded their investigation into the collapse.

"There are a large number of potential areas of concern and those will be inspected," Gov. Mitt Romney told reporters, referring to the concrete ceiling panels. "At this stage, you just have to cross your fingers that they don't come down."

The collapse in a three-year-old tunnel is the latest blow to an engineering project that is compared in scale to the building of the Panama Canal and has been dogged by leaks, massive cost overruns, criminal investigations and delays.

Romney signed a bill that gives him broad powers in inquiry into the rising number of defects, which are up from 242 on Thursday and 60 on Tuesday, a day after the ceiling collapsed.

The governor met with federal and local inspectors at the site where 38-year-old Milena Del Valle was killed late on Monday when a three-metric-ton concrete ceiling panel crushed her car. Her husband, Angel, crawled through a window.

"Although I lost my wife, I thank God it didn't happen earlier in the day when it would have been a bigger tragedy," Angel Del Valle, his forehead visibly scarred from the accident, told reporters in Spanish.

"I lost my wife but maybe that will now serve a purpose. And when they finish a job like this, they do it right," he said through a New England Cable News interpreter.

Someone needs an all expense paid vacation over this little fiasco. People who have to drive the system each day are rediscovering religion.

Talk-back radio has been flooded with callers who say they are too terrified to travel through the portions of the Big Dig that remain open. Others say they now cross their fingers or pray to God as they enter the tunnel system.

"I wont drive through it," said Greg Carr, a 41-year-old arborist from Weymouth, south of Boston. "I drove right under it a few days before the collapse. It's nuts."

Frankly, I'd be nervous as all heck, too.

Big Dig Update

Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney has signed emergency legislation giving him control over the inspection of the problems with the Big Dig and the ultimate reopening of the closed sections. The report uses the words "seized control" which is a ridiculous statement since it is the legislature that ultimately gave him the authority.

BOSTON – Gov. Mitt Romney seized control Friday of inspections in the Big Dig highway system where a woman was killed by falling concrete, saying an independent assessment was necessary to restore public trust.

Inspectors had already pinpointed at least 242 points where bolts were separating from tunnel ceilings, and their review was continuing.

"When it comes to an issue of inspecting the tunnel system, to have the person who's been responsible for it for the last several years say, 'I'm going to inspect it' and tell us, 'It's now safe,' that's not enough," Romney said.

The Republican governor signed emergency legislation Friday morning that gives him ultimate say on when the tunnels reopens, taking that power away from the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority. State lawmakers approved the bill within hours of Romney's request.

Romney was to meet Friday with representatives from the Massachusetts Highway Department, the Federal Highway Administration and the Turnpike Authority for a briefing on the status of the inspection, spokesman Eric Fehrnstrom said.

The eastbound section of the Interstate 90 connector tunnel under South Boston, part of the main route to Logan Airport, has been closed since late Monday when 12 tons of concrete ceiling panels fell, crushing a car carrying Milena Del Valle, 38, and her husband, Angel Del Valle, 46. He escaped with minor injuries.

Maybe someone from Massachusetts can tell me if my guess here is incorrect. In New York State, once the state creates what is called an "authority" that entity, for all intents and purposes, becomes virtually autonomous with very little control exercised by either the legislature or the governor. If it's the same in Massachusetts, that may well be a contributing factor to the mess the project has become.

Big Dig – Big Headache

The problems with Boston's Big Dig that became obvious when a woman was killed by falling ceiling panels are rapidly becoming even worse. Inspections have shown that more than four times as many defects as were originally suspected are present.

BOSTON – Inspectors on Thursday quadrupled to 240 the number of possible ceiling bolt problems in a Big Dig tunnel where a woman was crushed by falling concrete, adding to the urgency of the growing debate over who should ensure the safety of the troubled project.

The Massachusetts Turnpike Authority said inspectors found additional bolt assemblies that were separating from 3-ton concrete roof panels, raising the number of defects over previous inspections that found 60 defects. The earlier defects were enough for officials to order a sweeping review of every roadway, tunnel and bridge in Boston's entire highway system.

Michael Lewis, director of the Big Dig, said inspectors found 68 suspect bolt assemblies over the westbound lanes of a connector tunnel providing the main route to Logan Airport. Forty-five more were discovered in a lane carrying carpool traffic, as well as 69 in ramps connecting two interstate highways.

Legislative leaders expressed support for Romney's plan to give the governor authority over when to reopen the tunnel, which has been closed for three days.

The governor has already called for the resignation of the head of the Turnpike Authority, which currently oversees inspections of the Big Dig, the nation's most expensive highway project.

"When it comes to an issue of inspecting the tunnel system, to have the person who's been responsible for it for the last several years say, 'I'm going to inspect it' and tell us, 'It's now safe,' that's not enough," the governor said. "The public wants to see an independent inspection effort."

He added: "There should no longer be any doubt that the Turnpike Authority has failed to do its job effectively."

Lewis said the road may remain closed for weeks, until federal officials review the panels and workers fix any needing repair. "It will be reopened in segments, not all at once," he said.

On Wednesday, Attorney General Tom Reilly said the contractor and state officials were warned of problems with the tunnel ceiling as far back as 1999, when five bolts came out during tests. But it remained unclear Thursday what, if anything, was done to resolve those problems.

Now I had a commenter on my original post on this subject that blamed the failures on Republican governors. Only it turns out the governor has had no authority over the project from the get-go apparently. Mitt Romney is trying to get a bill passed that would give him some control of the project.

Romney's legislation would give the executive branch the authority to oversee inspections of the failed ceiling system in the tunnel, which has been closed since the accident Monday night that killed 38-year-old Milena Del Valle and injured her husband, who was able to crawl out of the mangled car.

The bill also provides for a $20 million safety audit of the Big Dig project, which has been plagued by leaks, falling debris and other problems linked to faulty construction. The state is seeking millions in compensation from companies that managed the project.

Romney warned: "At some point, the pressure builds and builds and builds, and the public gets angry enough, that they say, `You know what? This really is wrong.' The governor said the process "is reaching a boiling point, and hopefully steam will begin to rise very soon.'"

Top lawmakers sided with Romney.

The people of Boston must be really happy with their politicians right about now.