Bill Proenza, New NHC, draws fire with frank criticism (1 Viewer)

[RebSaint]

Saw this story on CNN and it's typical political nonesense getting in the way of legitimate problems with equipment. Instead of listening to the guy, he'll probably be ousted. Considering this region's history with storms, I think this story is worth following.

More evidence that this government doesn't have the people's best interests.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/orl-noaa2407jun24,0,7844742.story
http://www.theledger.com/article/20070622/NEWS/706220331/1036

 

[Sabine]

Sounds like it has stirred up such a stink that Proenza's job is protected (for a while). He comes off as someone who might put the safety of the people over his own interests. His superiors aren't coming off that way.

Bill Proenza's public complaints about an aging satellite have sparked a storm of controversy.

He hasn't even dealt with his first serious threat as new director of the National Hurricane Center. Yet Bill Proenza already is in the eye of a storm, one raging not in the atmosphere but in the federal bureaucracy.

Proenza touched off a heated exchange when he publicly protested that his superiors in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have failed to plan a replacement for QuikSCAT, a doomed satellite considered crucial for tropical-weather forecasts.

The higher-ups responded by slapping Proenza with what amounted to a reprimand, saying he may have misinformed the American public. They also expressed displeasure that he had gone to the media to state his case, making them look bad in the process......http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/...,7844742.story

NOAA Brings Out The Duct Tape
If Bill Proenza's bosses at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration really want to boost their agency's public image, they should put away the bureaucratic equivalent of duct tape.

Proenza, the director of the NOAA's National Hurricane Center, recently received a letter of reprimand for publicly criticizing the agency's plans to spend up to $4 million to celebrate its anniversary and broaden public understanding of its activities.

The expense, he said, was troubling in the wake of the NOAA's $700,000 cut in funding for hurricane research and amid growing concerns about the reliability of a key weather satellite that has already outlived its life expectancy......
http://www.theledger.com/article/200...706220331/1036

Do we really need to celebrate NOAA's anniversary to the tune of $4,000,000?

How about we just stick a bow on a new satellite and skip all the hoopla?