Miffed residents of a posh condo complex have invited the commanding officer of the USS Constitution over for a glass of wine so he can hear for himself that the frigate’s twice-daily cannon blasts – a tradition dating to 1798 – are “more disruptive to the neighborhood than you might have imagined.”
Much better all the way around if people had done their due diligence rather than “coming to the nuisance“.
Well, this has been a problem of a changing society for a while, one that demands security with no inconvenience at all to them while it holds at best a superficial approval of the military in theory and at worst an active PC antagonism towards it. “While the military goes to war, America goes to the mall.” Not to mention the military’s basically a social engineering laboratory to many of them that needs to win wars, if ever, by granting the enemy universal human rights at all times that almost go beyond the pale in even civil society.
But just wait till they start basing the JSF’s around the country so far as noise complaints go. (Noticed this thread had gone a while without bashing it.) Actually I don’t mean to bash the JSF on this point, the new engines are the source of the noise and themselves truly excellent, but supposedly it’s far, far louder than either the -16 or -18 in the pattern.
It’s Boston, I’m not surprised. Having lived there, now you should understand why I don’t live there anymore.
Even more shocking – the coast guard base is around the corner from the USS Constitution – I suppose that’s too loud for them too?
b
I served on the USS Constitution in 1997 – 1998 as a member of the crew that took her undersail for the 1st time in 116 years.
For the daily salutes, the cannons are loaded with a 50 grain shells that barely makes a “POP”. When we were out in the harbor for a turnaround, they pulled out the 250 grain shells. They make a great sound and watching the Marines in their dress blue light them off is an awesome sight.
The issue isn’t Boston (Sorry Bryan, you must have not been here long)- Boston is a great city with a long maritime history.
We are one of the great cities in America and it shows in our people, our sports teams, colleges and open hosptiality offered to millions.
The issue is the Nevuo-Riche who developed the area around the historic Charlestown Navy Yard becuase the space was there and they had lost of $$$$. Along with the $$$$, they brought an arrogance that isn’t realistic. It’s a NAVY YARD not the F*&KING Hamptons!
Old Ironsides was there LONG before the Richie-rich and if they don’t like the salute, then sell the condo and take your BRIE somewhere else. I’ll be happy to pack the van for them.
OLD IRONSIDES is a proud symbol of our Navy & Our Country – I am proud to served her undersail, and carry forward her great heritage.
Could be worse. Load the cannons with shot next time.
Love it, Zane … load the cannons with shot and have another Boston Tea Party.
Marianne
Nah, the Mythbusters showed you can shoot cheese from a cannon, and cheese goes well with whine.
I got two words that I’ll shamelessly borrow from Lex for these two whiners:
Weak Dick
With regards to the expressed sentiments about the Boston area – I was born and raised about 20 miles from Boston Inner Harbor. I’ll bet my paycheck that the complainants are not native Bostonians. I’d be proud to hear those cannon blasts every day. I’d probably time them and complain if I couldn’t set my watch by them.
Thinking of a couple of scenes in “Mary Poppins”
Mongo ~ yep.
We’ve been here before several times over the years, haven’t we? Half the VERY best tng ground and runways on the continent have been given over to “2nd responders” “coming to the nuisance” under intense lobbying pressure from the real-estate industry. Think of such tng areas as insurance policies against the day when we need to expand the force or new technology demands
larger buffer zones between the civilian community (think F-35 or new, super-long range arty) . We have foolishly been canceling those policies left and right. We will someday rue the day and wish they were still in force–like the guy watching his house burn thinking about the policy premium he failed to pay.
On a less serious note and more to the point about our well-heeled Bostonians, I am surprised they don’t regard such sounds as a increasing the value of their property–being so near to something on the Nat. Historical Register and such cannon sounds only adding to the historical verisimilitude of the place.
Normally, typical residents like our condo dwellers in question would kill, indeed condone mass murder, to get their own building a historical designation. They should be only too glad to bask in the glory and use the twice a-day sounds of near-by history as a good excuse to salute, and toss back a stiff one–all in the name of doing one’s patriotic duty.
…Now, that lil’ sucker IS loud – I was aboard USF Constellation in Baltimore earlier this year, and when they fired one of the bow chasers (with only a 1/3rd charge, IIRC), that beast will punch you in the chest, and I was 25 feet behind it.
Having said that, let’s find out what the majority of these nice folks want. If they REALLY want it to stop, move Old Ironsides. She is one of the reasons people go to Boston, and if the nearby residents want that reason gone, great. Move her to Charleston, SC – she’d be welcomed with open arms there, or perhaps New York of Washington. If the city that’s been her home for nearly 200 years feels that a reminder of her service is too much to put up with, then so be it.
Mike
Now there’s a great idea. Good on ya…
My first thought while reading this was LAX, with the lovely folk of Inglewood continually harping that jets on approach were ‘noisy!’. Uh, yeah, they tend to be all that and more sometimes. The city and airport first responded with “We were here first, and you were warned. Tough luck.”
It is my understanding that, in more recent years, LAX traffic landing after midnight is making the overwater approach regardless of winds; within acceptable limits, of course.
It went that way also with the lovely little beach community of Playa del Rey, except that the airport purchased all of the homes, razed the domiciles, and put a fence around the place. I haven’t been there in a few years, but last time around the foundations were still there. As a personal aside, it was a treat to sit on the nearby beaches as a kid and watch the brand new 747’s come growling by, enroute to far away places conjured up in the imagination by the colorful paint jobs. And then were the lowly “also ran’s”, but they were cool to watch too.
If the F-35 is truly so much louder than the legacy Hornet, to quote Sheriff Brody “You’re gonna need a bigger boat.” (buffer zone). During my dozen or so years at Pt. Mugu, the Hornet was easily the loudest gizmo in the pattern. Virginia Beach has been beating down the existing Oceana zone for years, clammering for more dirt upon which to build more of their lovely strip malls and condos. They’d better put in a permanent fix to that…pronto.
Let’s review the facts. Twice daily cannon fire, dating back to 1798. Residents are unhappy with the noise. In my twisted way of thinking, the only people qualified to complain are the residents that were there prior to the daily time checks. If you can find onen of the aforementioned residents, that can still hear, I’ll very happily agree that the cannon fire is obnoxious. Until then, just deal with the lovely sound of freedom and check your watch when you feel the boom.
Being a native of Boston I’ll slip into some Bostonian, “Screw you, if you can’t friekin’ take the noise, take your wicked pissah apahtment and get your wicked whiney aahss outa here”
RonF – ‘ll throw my paycheck in with yours. They are not local because if they were they would be from Charlestown and they got priced out of there a long time ago. A third of the people in there are transplants that stuck around after going to the colleges/Universities and now work in Cambridge, downtown, or at the hospitals, another third are people from the greater Boston area (and they aren’t likely whining), and the last third will probably people not even born in the US. Some of you may remember that some of Bin Ladin’s kin that left their mighty quick after 9-11 – that is where they lived. Maggie can probably confirm that for me.
The sad fact, and it is the same in a lot of places, transplants want to move into an area because of the “ambiance” or whatever gives that area its identity. Then they want to move the people that established the “ambiance” in the first place out.
Look at any quaint fishing village with no fishing signs posted all over as an example.
And I just read the first 50 comments on the Herald article where everyone is basically telling the nouveau riche there to pound sand. Besides, they should be more worried about getting jacked by Willie O’Brien and Vinnie Two-Fingers.
Mongo:
“During my dozen or so years at Pt. Mugu, the Hornet was easily the loudest gizmo in the pattern. Virginia Beach has been beating down the existing Oceana zone for years, clammering for more dirt upon which to build more of their lovely strip malls and condos. They’d better put in a permanent fix to that…pronto.”
The USN has desperately tried for years to get an auxiliary field put up near Oceana/Norfolk to give Naval Aviators in trouble someplace to put down without risking lives around Tidewater. It’s been fought tooth and nail, (too noisy, don’t ya know) and my understanding is that there are already ‘grass roots’ organizations in and around VaBeach threatening to close Oceana down if the -35 comes there.
Mike
And just think, if the Navy (and Congress) hadn’t closed down Cecil NAS, they wouldn’t have all those problems they have now, would they? Here they’d have Jax NAS just 5 or six miles to the SSE, and Mayport just 26 miles ENE, not counting other airfields. And to top it off, the Northeast Florida area LIKES the Navy. We get the whole “Sound of Freedom” thing.
Having said that, last election there was talk of the Navy coming back, and the state wanted to know if I was willing to pay extra tax to pay to re-locate all the business that had settled in. I said no. If the Navy wants it back, fine. But let the Navy pay for it.
Many years ago, when the atmospherics were just perfect on a hot and sunny Independence Day, I heard Constitution’s 21-gun salute to the Union 20 miles inland, and was in utter awe. Thanks be to God for such a ship and the men who built her legend!
If those leftist wankers responsible for the complaint don’t care to be reminded of who guaranteed their freedom, then they can kindly donate their condos to me and I will ensure the condos go to people who relish the thought of being so near the last US Navy commissioned vessel ported in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
The good skipper should return their invites with one of his own, to come on down and visit HIS place.
Tread the decks where better men than the whiners worked, fought and died. Check out the berth deck accommodations. Then hand them a swab and tell then they cannot leave until every deck is swabbed. And, all the standing rigging tarred. And sails aired and repaired. Maybe feed them a bit of hardtack and other traditional nautical treats.
Ask if any have ever been in the military. (USAF doesn’t count…) Ask if any of their kids have served.
Perhaps the really need an invite (that “cannot be refused” for some Pyrates instead to haul their whiney butts out to sea. Watching the walking the plank in Boston harbor would be great public entertainment.
Alas, I live in Southern FL, where the R and the E in REMF stand for “Real Estate.” We get this kind of thing all the time, from noise-abatement takeoffs, to dog-in-a-manger waterfront condos driving out actual working waterfront activities. BTW, that was a cheap shot at the AF. At Divine Services Sat. evening, the pastor introduced a recently promoted Senior Airman (what they used to call a Sergeant). Seemed to be an earnest sharp fellow. But so young… Dang I’m getting old.
Of course, I attend a fairly weird church: At the processional the priest and deaconess both walked up the aisle carrying claymores. (Hers a lightweight imitation, his a right real one of good steel, with a shaving edge. They’re both Irish, of course
JTS/
LOL! When I read the word “claymores” the 1st thing that popped into my mind was claymore mines! I thought: “What the hell? Then thought again. LOL!!
Fire the salute AT the condos. That’ll shut the twits up.
Hope all y’all don’t mind a noob posting here.
The Constitution needs to gun up, all stations with guns that will fire (some now are fake and can’t). Then go to rolling broadsides. Then go to rolling broadsides a la this from HMS Victory:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B0Cn-btAkeI
And if this is accurate: “For the daily salutes, the cannons are loaded with a 50 grain shells that barely makes a “POP”. When we were out in the harbor for a turnaround, they pulled out the 250 grain shells.” those charges are nothing, even the 250 grain (7000 grains/lb). Go to at least a pound for a good sound out of those guns.