January 26, 2008: No Fly Zone (Philly)

[xoxoxoBruce]

In order to relieve congestion at Philly airport, the FAA has changed the rules. The planes that used fly down the river until the acquired quite a bit of altitude before turning left or right, now turn much sooner, much lower, and over neighborhoods. This change has pissed a lot of people off.

Since the FAA's new departure headings out of Philadelphia International Airport went into effect last month as part of a massive restructuring of the airspace over the congested corridor from New York through Philadelphia, Hall said the noise level at his home on Fairmount Avenue near Ladomus Circle has been unbearable.

"I'm p----- off," he said. "I have to sleep with earplugs at night in my own house."

Hall, who has owned his home for 10 years, and his live-in girlfriend, Michaelene Buddy, brainstormed ways to get their complaints heard.

They finally resorted to the one true expression of anger and frustration - profanity.

more

[Undertoad]

But Anne E. Howanski, Ridley Township manager, isn't so sure Hall has the right to invoke that particular word on his own house, even if it isn't visible from the street.

"I will have to check our ordinance on this," she said. "It appears to be an obscenity and we will be in touch."

Fuck you, Anne E. Howanski! Make no laws abridging freedom of speech.

[Griff]

Originally Posted by Undertoad

Fuck you, Anne E. Howanski! Make no laws abridging freedom of speech.

I second that emotion.

[richlevy]

I noticed the FU and I could see the original phrase blacked out. Was the photo adjusted for publication or did the owners physically change the writing?

BTW, I live under the flight path to the Phila airport. Thursday night we were leaving the house and heard a helicopter overhead at most at a few hundred feet. It flew over without any running lights. It must have been painted dark and flying low because all we heard was a minute or two of very loud noise overhead and it was gone.

[SteveDallas]

I applaud the sentiment, but the problem of course is that the only people who will really see it are airline pilots and passengers. Still, I say go for it, and I hope the township loses if they try to get it taken off.

[TheMercenary]

Originally Posted by Undertoad

Fuck you, Anne E. Howanski! Make no laws abridging freedom of speech.

Someone look up that bitches email and lets send it all over the US having people email her about her comment.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Originally Posted by richlevy

I noticed the FU and I could see the original phrase blacked out. Was the photo adjusted for publication or did the owners physically change the writing?

(FOX 29, photo altered)

[xoxoxoBruce]

Originally Posted by TheMercenary

Someone look up that bitches email and lets send it all over the US having people email her about her comment.

She's just doing her job, not making but enforcing the rules. What else could she do with reporters in her face, express her personal feelings?

[Sarasvati48]

On the New Jersey side. Planes used to come in so low, I could sit out on the front stoop and hear the landing gear operating. After years and years you don't even notice...Conversation would have to stop until the plane flew by. I kinda miss it!:p

[Griff]

She could say, "It's not visible from the street, I have no jurisdiction." Not that I believe she has the power to regulate political speech.

[xoxoxoBruce]

She's a politician covering her ass and trying not to piss off anyone. Stalling for time to see which way the wind blows, is their trademark.

[Karenv]

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

She's a politician covering her ass and trying not to piss off anyone. Stalling for time to see which way the wind blows, is their trademark.

She is a lowly bureaucrat, not a politician. That means it is her job on the line and the politicians are not shy about scapegoating if they don't like the press response.

Basically she pushed it off pending some future study that probably won't happen. The better thing to do is to get other neighbors with flat roofs to print the same, so the city can't control it.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Technically you're right, she is a bureaucrat, though Township Manager is hardly lowly.
Township Managers serve at the pleasure of the Township Council, and must be a bigger politician than they are... tread on as few toes as possible, practice fence sitting until their butt is numb, and never make a decision before checking with the township solicitor.

[tulzscha]

The most interesting detail to me about the whole hoopla is that no actual obscenity was ever present on the roof. The actual roof reads as it does in the accompanying article -- "F_ck", underscore and all.

See here for an undoctored photo.

So you wind up with news reporters breathlessly flapping about obscenities, uninformed government schmucks making stupid comments, and a whole barrel of monkeys -- all operating under the mistaken premise that there's an actual obscenity present.

Oh, and did you catch the sly dodge in the news article? How the article itself contains the actual text of the sign -- F_ck -- but the picture is doctored to protect our poor little eyes from the blasphemous f-word which doesn't exist? All to make it seem like it's worse than it really is?

News media, grar!

[Griff]

Well said. The implication is that establishment media has protected speech rights that individuals don't.